AROUND THE UP NORTH COMBINE
by Keith Simpson
Hayden with Mick Bowden of Bowden Bros holding their 1st Club, 2nd Fed Bourges winner.
We sent to the Bourges race this time around, the longest race of the Up North Combine programme. Its always a very long drawn out day for the Bourges race as you need to be at the loft until dark, we were joined at the loft by Clubmate Sack Peirson who flies in the partnership of the late Gordon Peirson M.B.E. & Sons Sack & Jim. Our other mates Trev & Emily Lancaster of Loftus who fly as Lancaster, Brian Garbutt & Daughter, also called at the loft in the hope of seeing an early timer. Sack & Jim had enjoyed two Club wins to date, with the duo timing a couple of birds at Huntingdon to win an impressive 1st and 4th Club, 4th and 8th Fed from a convoy of 2,483 birds. With the brothers red card winner being a 2y chequer flipey hen bred by the 1st UNC winning loft of Basley & Roberts of Horden fame, from a batch of young birds the boys purchased in 2012, the winner chalked up 2nd Club Clermont in 2013. The yellow card was awarded to a yearling mealy hen gift bird bred for Sack & Jim’s loft helper Trevor McConnell from a fancier in Stockton. Sack & Jim recorded their second win of the 2014 old bird season at Melton Mowbray (2) after having two more birds on the clock to win a notable 1st and 5th Club, 2nd and 18th Fed when there were 1,326 birds competing. This time the lads chart-topper was a 2013 bred chequer pied hen bred out of the birds they purchased from Basley & Roberts in 2012, showing they are proving their worth. The partnerships second timer was a 1y blue cock gift bird bred by Prokopowicz & Son for Trevor’s mate Peter “Shock-Head” Hamilton, who has spent a bit of time at the loft in the past. Trev & Emily in their first season flying in Loftus due to their former Club Liverton Mines folding after the 2013 racing season, the partnership are looking for their first win in their new Club but did lift 3rd and 6th Club, 8th and 19th Fed out of the Eastbourne (1) National when there were 1,341 birds away. Trev, Brian & Emily timed another couple of their entries at Peterborough to pocket 4th and 5th Club, 6th and 17th Fed out of an entry of 1,586 birds. Brian and Me flying as B & K Simpson recorded our first win of the season at Rivenhall (1) when we timed three birds to win 1st, 4th and 5th Club, 1st, 15th and 19th Fed from a convoy of 1,612 birds, with the red card winner being a yearling chequer Louis Cooreman hen. We chalked up our second win at Melton Mowbray (3) after timing five of our entries to win 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Club, 3rd, 8th, 11th, 12th and 15th Fed when there were 1,305 birds competing, with the winner being a 2013 bred dark Louis Cooreman hen. We talked a lot of Pigeons while waiting for the birds, news filtered through of a handful of early timers but none in our Club Skinningrove or our Federation. The following morning news came through of the East Cleveland Feds first arrival with that coming from the Brotton H/S partnership of Darren & James Waters who won with a 3y recording a pole position Fed vel of 719 to also win 1st £2 Fed now to pocket £35.00. James used to fly in partnership with his late father Jim who won Bourges a great number of times over the years, topping the Fed and scoring many top UNC positions. James son, Darren has learned the trade as he too has won Bourges before when flying on his own. The inform Mick & Boss Bowden of the Bowden Bros partnership of Skelton Green timed a 5y doing 683 to win 1st Club, 2nd Fed. It was good to see Alan Wyke of Lingdale win 1st Club, 7th Fed with a 4y doing 404; and Chris Cook of Staithes winning 1st Club, 8th Fed with a 4y making 390. David Coates and loft helper Popeye won 1st Club, 9th Fed at Boosbeck with a 5y knocking up a vel of 392, there was only 10 Fed birds clocked in race time.
The East Cleveland Federation had a second race on the Bourges weekend when the 72 members convoy of 1,393 birds were liberated at Rivenhall (2). Jimmy Reed clocks up another win at Marske & New Marske after filling couple of cells to win 1st and 3rd Club, with the red card being won by a yearling blue roundabout cock of Jimmy’s own blood lines, recording a top vel of 1289 to go on to lift 23rd Fed. The cock was one of the five that dropped together at Rivenhall (1) when the lad won the first 5 Club positions. The green card was awarded to a 7 day sitting blue pied hen of the late Jack Brown & Tony Hunt bloodlines. Martin Hogarth timed a single bird to chalk up 2nd Club with the blue card scorer being a blue roundabout hen from Brown & Hunt x Craig Wedgewood lines, the hen who won both Peterborough and Maidstone as a young bird is carding for the second time this season after taking 3rd Club at Melton Mowbray. Geoff Bavin was in 4th position after timing a 12 day sitting yearling chequer hen of Jackie Traylor bloodlines via late Clubmate John Clayton. Craig Wedgewood came next with a chequer widowhood cock of John Whittaker bloodlines, the cock has being very consistent for Craig scoring numerous of times. B & K Simpson enjoyed a good clocking day at Skinningrove after timing five birds to win 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Club, 2nd, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Fed; with the winner being a yearling blue Louis Cooreman hen. Clubmates Sack & Jim Peirson were out of the Club points but timed a couple of quick-fire later birds to pocket 21st and 22nd Fed; while the Loftus partnership of Trev & Emily Lancaster & Brian Garbutt notched up 35th Fed. Onto the Eastbourne (2) National where the inform Jimmy Reed records another win at Marske & New Marske with pole position being won by a 2013 bred blue pied hen of Brown & Hunt bloodlines taking 22nd Fed out of a 72 members entry of 1,035 birds, the red card winning hen who was sent sitting 14 days netted 3rd Club the previous week from Rivenhall (2). Geoff Bavin & Son enjoyed a canny clocking day after filling three chambers to lift 2nd, 4th and 5th Club, with the blue card going to a 2y blue Jackie Traynor x Whittaker hen, this cross breed is proving successful for Geoff. The yellow card was chalked up by a yearling Brown & Hunt mealy cock, and in cell three came a 2y blue Jackie Traylor x John Whittaker hen sent sitting 14 days. Craig Wedgewood is in third spot with Craig’s timer being a 1y chequer widowhood cock of John Whittaker of Bramley Lofts. Jimmy Reed’s winning run continued at Melton Mowbray (4) when a couple of birds were timed to win 1st and 5th Club with the red card being awarded to a yearling blue Wildemeersch cock sent chasing his hen. In cell two was a 2013 bred blue pied hen of Brown & Hunt bloodlines; the hen won 1st Club Eastbourne (1) National the previous week and also took 3rd Club out of Rivenhall. Geoff Bavin & Son enjoyed a good clocking day after filling another three chambers to lift 2nd, 3rd and 4th Club with the blue card going to a 1y mealy cock of Brown & Hunt bloodlines. The green was potted by a 2y Jackie Traynor x John Whittaker hen, and she was followed by a 2y Wall, Lunt & Green lines via Bramley Lofts. B & K Simpson had four birds on the clock at Skinningrove to win 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th Club, 4th, 7th, 8th and 12th Fed from a 55 members entry of 874 birds; with pole position being won by a 3y blue Louis Cooreman cock. Mr & Mrs Ian & Liz Purver were 2nd Club, 5th Fed with a yearling. It was “Chip Ahoy” at Loftus where Trev, Emily & Brian recorded their first win of the season in their new Club after timing a couple of birds to win a well-deserved 1st and 6th Club, 9th and 40th Fed. Geoff Bavin & Son hit winning form a week later at the Eastbourne (3) National where the lad filled two cells to win 1st and 3rd Club, with top spot being won by the 2y blue Jackie Traynor x John Whittaker hen that took 2nd Club out of the Eastbourne (2) National. This time the red card winning hen went onto chalk up 38th Fed from a 63 members convoy of 788 birds. The green card was netted by the yearling mealy cock of the late Jack Brown & Tony Hunt lines; that took 2nd Club Melton Mowbray (4) the previous week. Martin Hogarth returns to the frame in 2nd spot with a blue Brown & Hunt x Craig Wedgewood hen sent sitting 10 days, the same hen was 2nd Club at Rivenhall (2). The curtain came down on the 2014 old bird season at Ypres, the World War 1 Centenary race. Pride and place went to the forever trying Martin Hogarth who won pole position with a 2y blue Brown & Hunt x Craig Wedgewood hen who was sent on chipping eggs. The chart-topping hen who won 1st Club, 34th Fed out of Lillers, went onto score a well earned and very impressive 6th East Cleveland Federation from a 66 members entry of 661 birds. Geoff Bavin & Son had a couple of birds in the clock to lift 2nd and 3rd Club with the blue card being awarded to the yearling mealy cock that was 3rd Club Eastbourne (3) National, this time the cock went onto pocket a useful 20th Fed. In cell two came a 2y blue Jackie Traynor x John Whittaker hen that won 1st Club, 38th Fed out of the Eastbourne (3) National; this week the hen chalked up 29th Fed. Jimmy Reed is in 4th position with a 4y hen who has knocked up some very good channel results that includes 2nd Club, 42nd Fed Lillers in 2012 and 1st Club, 8th Fed Lillers (1) and 1st Club, 8th Fed Lillers (2) in 2013. That is the final old bird results of 2014; I will get cracking on catching up on the young bird results now. With that I will sign off until next time.
Any news to Good Corn 6 Boulby Drive Loftus Saltburn Cleveland TS13 4JN. Tel; 01287 643624 or Email;
