Living The Life takes on the boys in the All American

Is a Grade 3, $100,000 stakes the spot where you experiment? It is for trainer Gary Mandella, who sends the 5-year-old mare Living The Life to Golden Gate Fields to compete in Monday’s one-mile All American Stakes, where she will be running against the toughest males Northern California has to offer.

Living The Life has eight rivals, including the Jerry Hollendorfer-trained Summer Hit, who has won the last two runnings of the All American; G. G. Ryder, coming off a victory in the Grade 3 San Francisco Mile; and Outside Nashville, who has won two stakes here as well as his last two starts. Also entered is Pepper Crown, winner of the Grade 3 San Francisco Mile and Berkeley on the main track last year.

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The combined record for that quartet on the Tapeta at Golden Gate Fields is 20 wins, 8 seconds, and 5 thirds in 36 starts.

But Mandella’s decision to send Living The Life to face males is well thought out.

“There are a lot of reasons, but the most important is that Beholder will not be there,” he said, referring to the Southern California-based two-time champion who is trainer by his father, Richard Mandella. “She’ll be meeting some very tough horses that I would really like to have in my barn, but I don’t think you would trade Beholder for any of them.”

With Beholder entered in the Grade 1 Vanity earlier this spring, Mandella skipped that 1 1/8-mile dirt race with Living The Life only to see Beholder get sick and have to scratch.

“Now is the time to try her long so we can make plans for the summer,” said Mandella. “We want to see if she can run long, but if she had run poorly in the Vanity would it have been because of the distance or the dirt?”

The Irish-bred Living The Life ran primarily on synthetics in Britain, and she won a Grade 2 race on the synthetic at Presque Isle Downs and the Camilla Urso in her lone start at Golden Gate Fields on Tapeta. She has earned more than a half-million dollars on synthetics with 7 wins in 16 starts.

Living The Life has never won at a mile or longer, but Monday’s race over a surface she likes will determine if Mandella can look at longer races for her.

All American, race 8

KEY CONTENDERS

Summer Hit (Last 3 Beyers: 89-88-87)

◗ The two-time All American champ loves the track and the distance. He’s a powerful force on the front end and should be completely geared up as he makes his third start of the year. He has worked nicely since tiring late in the San Francisco Mile.

G. G. Ryder (Last 3 Beyers: 90-95-101)

◗ Both of his stakes wins have come on turf, but he runs well on the main track, recording a 101 Beyer here in February. He has good speed but can stalk, and will try to wear Summer Hit down late, just as he did in the San Francisco Mile.

Pepper Crown (Last 3 Beyers: 86-95-91)

◗ It’s hard to separate G. G. Ryder and Pepper Crown. They formed the exacta in four straight starts until Pepper Crown ran fourth in defense of his San Francisco Mile title. He can stalk but generally prefers to sit back for a big late run.