General

General's Legend

General was born on January 19th, 2004 in Florida, USA. He is a registered Thoroughbred that raced under the name “One Last Look”, his father, Quaker Ridge, only raced a small handful of times over two years with a couple first and second place finishes. His mother, Bridleshow, had an extensive racing career spanning six years and a grand total of 36 placings, with 16 impressive wins, in 55 starts. She was the granddaughter of the famous Triple Crown winner Secretariat.

General was quite young when he went into training, his racing career starting in 2006, at only the age of two. General ran seven times as a two year old winning once and placing second once. In his three year old season General raced thirteen times with 2 seconds and 3 third place finishes, his four and five year old seasons had a few more races and some more wins. General would be considered a fairly good earner as a racehorse, however not good enough to earn him a job as a stud, a horse used to father the next generation of Thoroughbreds.

His racing career over, with no known injuries, General was sold by his owner to the gentleman that Tranquil Woods Trail Rides would eventually get him from. General spent a wonderful 13 years with his new family being a trail horse on their hobby farm. It was there that General learned to be the gentleman that he is today. General was not the only horse that I got from the small hobby farm of a friend of a friend. Justin, General’s best friend of 10 years, also called Tranquil Woods Trail Rides his home.

The pair moved into Tranquil Woods in March of 2023. Justin needed to gain some weight before he could start on the trails but General went straight into riding. He very quickly became a favourite here on the trails. He is a sweet, gentle man that always takes care of his rider. One of the rules I like to follow when shopping for horses is, “if I don’t feel safe putting my kids on them, then they don’t come home,” and General is the epitome of that rule. My kids have always felt safe around and on General, he is my oldest son’s favourite horse, he is also my partner’s favourite horse so, there has to be some compromise when we go out on family rides.

General will ride at whichever pace is asked of him, in the lead or following, with no complaints. He still loves to run, he may be in his twenties now but he still has the “get up and go” of a racehorse when he’s asked for it. He never gets carried away, the moment he feels his rider ask for less or have a moment where he thinks they may be a little unbalanced he slows right down to “catch” them.

General has proven to be a one-of-a-kind horse over and over since he came to live with us. It takes a truly special horse to block the advance of another horse with his own body to protect a person on the ground beside him. He has been afraid of some things on the trails but General will keep himself steady to make sure that his rider keeps their balance. I have thanked him countless times for protecting his people, my kids, my partner and myself. He is especially good for a snuggle when he senses you need one or when he wants to show how much love he has to give. General is one of the most loyal and self-less horses I have ever had the pleasure of caring for.