 At age sixteen he went to work at the Irish National Stud then a year later moved to the United States, working in the business in California where he still makes his home.Harty worked for notable stables such as that of Allen E. Paulson and eventually became an assistant to trainers John Russell and then Bob Baffert.In 2000, he took charge of the training of two-year-olds for the North American division of Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin Racing.