General Quarters (foaled March 7, 2006 in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

) is an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

who was a contender for the 2009 U.S. Triple Crown. He was sired by Sky Mesa, winner of the 2002 Grade I

Hopeful Stakes The Hopeful Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, the Hopeful is the first Grade I stakes for two-year-olds each season and historically has ...

, a son of the 1997

Blue Grass Stakes The Blue Grass Stakes, currently the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes due to sponsorship by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is a horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. The race is run ...

winner,

Pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, access ...

. His dam is Ecology, a daughter of the 1995

Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup ...

winner,

Unbridled's Song Unbridled's Song (February 18, 1993 – July 26, 2013) was an American thoroughbred racehorse who won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Florida Derby and Wood Memorial. He was the favorite for the 1996 Kentucky Derby but suffered a cracked hoof in ...

. He is owned and trained by 75-year-old

Tom McCarthy Thomas McCarthy (also Tom and Tommy) may refer to: Academia *Thomas A. McCarthy (born 1940), American professor of philosophy *Thomas J. McCarthy (born 1956), American professor of polymer chemistry at the University of Massachusetts *J. Thomas Mc ...

, a retired

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

and principal. On May 30, 2008, McCarthy claimed General Quarters, his only horse, for $20,000 out of a maiden race at

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

Racing career

Two year old season:
General Quarters made seven starts as a two-year-old. He won a

maiden Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

claiming race In Thoroughbred racing, a claiming race is a type of horse race in which the horses are all for sale at a specified claiming price until shortly before the race. In the hierarchy of horse races, based on the quality of the horses that compete, claim ...

his first time out and was claimed by 75-year-old owner-trainer

, a retired high school teacher and principal from

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. After that, the colt showed limited promise until his last race of 2008 when he earned his best

stakes race Glossary of North American horse racing: Additional glossaries at: *Glossary of Australian and New Zealand punting *Glossary of equestrian terms This is a basic glossary of equestrian terms that includes both technical terminology and jargon ...

result with a second-place finish in the Inaugural Stakes at

Tampa Bay Downs Tampa Bay Downs is an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility located in Westchase in Hillsborough County in the U.S. state of Florida, just outside Tampa. It opened in 1926 under the name Tampa Downs, and has also been known as Sunshine Pa ...

.
Three year old season:
On February 14, 2009, General Quarters won the Sam F. Davis Stakes at

. At

Keeneland Race Course Keeneland Association, Inc. is an equine business based in Lexington, Kentucky. It includes two distinct divisions: the Keeneland Race Course, a Thoroughbred racing facility, and Keeneland Sales, a horse auction complex. It is also known for its ...

on April 11, the colt won the most important race of his career: the Grade I

. His win qualified him for the May 2

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

, the first leg of the U.S. Triple Crown. Ridden by French jockey,

Julien Leparoux Julien R. Leparoux (born July 15, 1983 in Senlis, Oise, France) is a French Eclipse Award winning jockey currently racing in the United States. He has won seven Breeders' Cup races, including the 2015 Breeders' Cup Mile with Champion Turf Mare T ...

, he finished tenth. He was then entered into the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

at Pimlico Downs, again with Leparoux aboard, and finished ninth. Following the race General Quarters underwent surgery to remove a bone chip, and returned to the races seven months later to finish second in an allowance race.
Four year old season:
On May 1, 2010, General Quarters won the

Woodford Reserve Turf Classic The Turf Classic Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for open to horses aged four and older, over a distance of one and one-eighth miles, on the turf held annually in early May on the Kentucky Derby day meeting at Churchill Downs ...

, beating Court Vision, before running third in the Stephen Foster Handicap and then unplaced in two starts at Arlington Park.

Five year old season

General Quarters started six times in 2011 without a win, though he did place second in the Grade II Kentucky Cup Stakes at Turfway. He was retired at the end of the year with a total record of 27 starts, four wins, nine seconds, and two thirds, and total winnings of $1,226,655.

Retirement

General Quarters began his stud career at HallMarc Stallions in Florida in 2012 before moving to Crestwood farm in Kentucky in 2014. He is the sire of blacktype earner Mia Torri, who ran second in the 2016 Grade III Charles Town Oaks, as well as General McGooby, who won the Not Surprising Stakes at Gulfstream in 2017. In November 2016, General Quarters was sold to Omer Aydin to continue his stud career in Turkey. Speaking of his purchase, Aydin said:

“I think this horse will work in Turkey because he won races both on the dirt and the turf, so we are hoping to benefit from him. The American horse has a big influence on the improvement of racehorses. I like European racing, actually, but I believe U.S. Thoroughbreds are the best.”

Of General Quarters' foals born before his relocation, the most successful is Signalman, winner of the 2018 GII

Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes The Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the last week of November at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. A Grade II event, the race is open to two-year-olds willing to race one and one-sixtee ...

. Signalman, trained by Kenny McPeek, also ran second in the GI Breeder's Futurity and third in the GI Breeder's Cup Juvenile in 2018. As of June 2019, Signalman has added a third in the Blue Grass Stakes and second in the Matt Winn Stakes to his record.

References

{{Reflist
General Quarters's pedigree and partial racing stats

General Quarters at the NTRA

Video at YouTube of General Quarters winning the 2009 Blue Grass Stakes
2006 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States Thoroughbred family 16-g