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Sim Trainer Stats Sim Race Stats |
GENERAL'S CHARIOT Owner/Trainer: proudtruth Record: 64-25-10-5; $5,749,775
Win: Never Ready Sprint-G1, Because I Said So S-G1, Japan Sprint-G1, If I Had a Lillehammer-G1, Ky Horsemen Elixir Sprint-G1, Scrape the Barnacles You Alky Special S-G1, Four More Years-G1, Cane Toad S-G2 – 2x, Snow Phantom Appreciation-G2, DelPenn Battle of Saratoga-G2, King’s Fall-G2, The Shakers Town-G3, Booty Call S-G3, Dalesbark Cup-G3, Belgian Tike S-G3, The Awesome Angel Memorial S, Dowelly’s Dane Special, Forever Gone (IRE) H, Hulk Car Special, Hugo de Pero (AUS) Special Place: 2000 Guineas-G1, Walter Swinburn-G1, The Golden Jamboree-G1, Newmarket Rivalry-G1, Longchamp Sprint-G2, Winthorpe S-G2, Flying Saucer S-G3, Smackdown III S, The Jack’s Skeleton Special, More Trap Memorial S Show: Breeders Bowl Turf Sprint-G1, Smackdown II-G1, Because I Said So S-G1, DPCD V Penn Dash-G1, Clique Hope H General’s Chariot was the little engine that could, the horse that single handedly put turf sprint racing on the map. His “dam”, Ambrosius, was one of those annoying flash in the pans – who runs lights out earlier in the career, then never comes close to duplicating that effort, no matter how hard the trainer tries. Snowchief, under her proudtruth stable, made the decision to retire the blueblooded underachiever in the hopes that the next generation might do better. She decided to go with Gone West, who was a quality sire capable of getting runners on both turf and dirt. The result was a little brown colt with a crooked white strip and star splashed across his face. He was quick and intelligent, and acted like a general should. It was not long before the precocious colt was ready to show where he fit within the division. Word had leaked out about the colt’s ability in the mornings, so he was heavily bet in his debut. The General had no trouble rattling off two straight victories before moving on to the Belgian Tike Stakes-G3 for his stakes debut. Once again, he handled matters with ease, pulling away to win by 1 ¾ lengths. Next came the Dalesbark Cup-G3, where General’s Chariot would be asked to stretch out to 6 ½ furlongs. This time, he showed uncharacteristic speed, but was not the least bit rank as he went to the lead; he was just that good. The colt opened up a 4 ¾ length lead in the stretch, before coasting to the wire under a hand ride, ears pricked forward. Final time was 1:17 1/5, for an eyepopping 91 SF. The son of Gone West had been deceptively fast. The Equinics beckoned, and understandably, General’s Chariot was selected as the representative for Terrapin Jockey Club in the 2yo turf sprint race, the If I Had a Lillehammer-G1. The favorite in that race would become a familiar rival for the General – Niner Connection. Niner came into the Equinics unbeaten in two starts, including the Feeling Bad S-G3. General’s Chariot would be the second choice. The little colt left no one in doubt who was the best that day, as he laid just off the early pace before storming home the easiest of winners, hitting the wire a widening three lengths in front. Final time for the six furlongs was 1:10 2/5, for a 96 SF, as well as a gold medal. With his closing style and breeding, the next logical step was a distance race, and so Snowchief sent her pride and joy to the Flying Saucer S-G3 in Ontario. As it turned out, the General turned in a gallant effort in defeat, closing for second with a 93 SF. Most of the time, it would have been a winning effort, but Jupiter’s Moons was simply too much the best, running away and hiding. This was no freak effort – Jupiter’s Moons would prove to be a legitimate G1 router, finishing second in the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile-G1, and going on to win the Canada Turf-G1 and Japan Classic-G1. Snowchief was philosophical in defeat, and her colt had done little wrong. So, it was on to the Breeders’ Bowl Juvenile Turf-G1. The General ended up the favorite in a deep and talented field. The colt ended up fifth, after some traffic problems, behind Like a Porcupine and Jupiter’s Moons. Once again, he had posted a 96 SF, so he had given a solid effort, despite his problems. Snowchief would race her colt once more that year, in the Four More Years-G1 at 7 furlongs. Returned to a sprint, the General sizzled, defeating Niner Connection by 1 ½ lengths, and posting a 103 SF. While historically, voters have tend to have a router bias when handing out the Eclipse Award (now Cartier) for Juvenile Turf Champion, the General could not be denied. He was the only 2yo that year to earn over a million dollars, and he had won four graded stakes, two of them G1s. Expectations were high at the beginning of the colt’s sophomore campaign. It still was not clear whether the colt was better sprinting or at a route, even though his wins had all come at distances under a mile. Public interest in the colt was intense. General’s Chariot debuted in the Booty Call S-G3 after a two month freshening. The break had done him good – the General was never going to be a tall colt, but he had filled out more and was dappled out heading to the post. The return was worth the wait, as he easily handled the field, winning by four lengths with a 97 SF. The General was back. After two easy preps, including a dominant three length win in a listed one mile prep stakes, it was on to the prestigious 2000 Guineas-G1, and a rematch with Niner Connection, who had won the Fainting Goat S-G1 earlier in the spring. Another colt had hit the turf scene – Manifest Destiny, who came into the 2000 Guineas-G1 a perfect six for six on the turf, including a score in the All Your Base Are Belong to Us-G1. Still, the champ went to the post as the 6-1 lukewarm favorite. The General once again made a gallant effort, managing to poke his head in front at one point during the stretch drive, but for the first time, Niner Connection was able to turn back his rival, and won by 1 ¾ lengths. General’s Chariot would try the mile distance two more ties, and each time, he couldn’t quite get there, falling ½ length short in the Newmarket Rivalry-G1 where he was outkicked by Dubeye. Snowchief had had enough. She resolved to return the colt to sprints, where he was clearly dominant. He was a solid miler, but seemed to just be better going short. The General quickly proved that decision to be correct. In the Never Ready Sprint-G1, General’s Chariot gave notice that the rest of the turf sprint division better look out. In the Evening had won a pair of graded stakes while the General was off in the turf mile wars, but was no match for the champ. The General won by 1 ¼ lengths over In the Evening, posting a 108 SF and stopping the clock in 1:09 flat. Next came the Cane Toad S-G2, where the colt would face elders for the very first time. In the field was Lady’s Man Too, who had recently won the King’s Fail-G2. The colt wasn’t intimidated at all, and came out ½ length on top with a 105 SF. Snowchief next sent her colt to the Snow Phantom Appreciation-G2. The main threat there was Drunken Lullabies, who had won the Alec and Stephen S-G3 earlier in the year. Once again, it was no contest. This time, the colt scorched the track with a 110 SF, covering the 7 panels in an eye-popping 1:21 2/5. At that time, there was no Breeders’ Bowl Turf Sprint, but on the Breeders’ Bowl undercard that year was an oddly named race: The Scrape Your Barnacles You Alky Special-G1 that served as the equivalent of the Turf Sprint. The top turf sprinters from around the world showed up that day, with the likes of In the Evening, Digging the Grave (who had won two graded stakes earlier in the year), Kiki’s Solid Rock, Drunken Lullabies, Danzig on Skies (who had captured two G1 races that year), and of course, the General showed up to do battle. Once more, the little colt would be half-hidden in the pack, biding his time. He began rolling after a half mile, and Harzheim timed the ride perfectly, with the colt getting up in the final strides to win by a head over In the Evening. The time for the six furlongs was 1:09 flat (109 SF). Several of the horses showed up again in the Because I Said So S-G1 three weeks later, and once again, the colt came from behind to win, scoring by a length, and posting what would be the highest speed figure of his career, a 111. The General would race once more that year, belatedly closing for fourth in the Penn Dash-G1. It was the first time the colt tasted defeat in a sprint. Still, it was an incredible year. Seven wins from eight starts sprinting, three of them grade ones in a division where grade ones are few and far between. His fans were legion, and they voted him another Eclipse Award, this time as Champion Sprinter. Expectations were once again high at the start of the General’s four year old campaign. After an eight week break, the colt would return to the racing wars, and in no easy spot. Once again, the Equinics beckoned, and the General would once again represent in the turf sprint race, the Walter Swinburn-G1. However, this time Digging the Grave simply wired the field, leaving Snowchief’s colt too much to do, falling 1 ¾ lengths short. More shocking was a third straight defeat, this time in the General Pals Sprint Show-G1, where the colt was fourth behind Kiki’s Solid Rock. Nerves were tight as the colt went postward in the KyHorsemen Elixir Special-G1. The General was still giving top efforts, but everyone was used to him winning. Snowchief and the colt’s legion of fans gave a collective sigh of relief when he did exactly that, win, scoring comfortably by 1 ¼ lengths. The rest of the year was an exercise in frustration, compared to the past two campaigns. The General would score a repeat victory in the Cane Toad S-G2, reeling in Drunken Lullabies and Digital Overture, but that would be it for wins. Instead, the colt had to settle for seconds, including a heartbreaking nose loss in the Longchamp Sprint-G2 to Drunken Lullabies, and thirds, including a third in the inaugural Breeders’ Bowl Turf Sprint-G1 behind the 3yo I Make Stuff Up. It was still a respectable year, a 12-2-4-4 record, with a G1 win and a third in the Breeders’ Bowl, but by the General’s standards, it was a bit of a letdown. The following season was more of the same. The highs were very high, but there were lows as well. After three off the board finishes to start the year, the General was dropped into a confidence building listed stakes, and handled it like a champ should. Off of that effort came a second in the Smackdown III Stakes, where the General finished behind Northern Pirate, but behind I Make Stuff Up. General’s Chariot was on his way back, and defeated all comers, including Dubeye, I Make Stuff Up and Digging the Grave in the DelPenn Battle of Saratoga-G2. The inaugural World Cup was next, and General’s Chariot gave a game effort in defeat, closing for fourth. It was then on to the Breeders’ Bowl Sprint-G1, and once again, the small colt with the giant heart had to settle for fourth, behind rival and future division leader Mr Devious. A second in a listed stakes and a last place finish in the DelPenn Dash was an unsettling end to the year. Retirement was definitely on the table, but in his first start at six, the General showed he was not quite ready to ride off into the sunset, winning a listed stakes by 1 ½ lengths with a 104 SF. Once again, the year was maddeningly inconsistent. When the General was on, he was on, but when he wasn’t, he couldn’t hit the board. The General won the King’s Fail-G2 by ¾ of a length with a 110 SF, the second highest of his career. He would finish off the board in his next three starts, including a third appearance in the Equinics. However, the season would end with the old General showing up in a crowd-pleasing, heart-warming victory in the Japan Sprint-G1, when he came home 1 ¼ lengths in front with a 107 SF. The popular brown horse would never hit the same heights again. At seven, he would win The Shakers Town-G3 with a 105 SF, and a listed stakes, but there were also several off the board finishes. After two off-the-board finishes at the beginning of his eight year old career, the champ was retired. His son, General’s Son (by Danehill Dancer), as of this writing is already a stakes winner and graded stakes placed. While he is a stakes winner sprinting on the turf, his best effort to date is in his lone route try, a second place finish in a G3 stakes with a 101 SF. General’s Chariot put turf sprinting on the map, winning two championships that traditionally go to other divisions (turf route for the Juvenile, dirt for the Sprint – this was prior to separate awards for the two divisions). He retired the richest turf sprinter in history, and was only recently surpassed by Mr Devious. He won seven grade one races in a division that does not have an abundance of grade ones, including the precursor to the Breeders’ Bowl Turf Sprint. Mention the General, and most people who were around when he raced will know instantly who is being mentioned. His trainer, Snowchief, is a class act, and her colt is a well-deserved addition to the Hall of Fame.
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