President: Nigel Rigiani Chairman: Mike Shepherd Patron: Mark Gilbert BRITISH BARCELONA CLUB’s 50 ANNIVERSARY (Part 1). Season 2014 represents another milestone in history for the British Barcelona Club, for this year is the clubs 50th anniversary. In celebration of this event it is intended to reproduce some of the articles on past winners that have appeared in the Fancy Press over the years. It is well worth remembering that here in this country we have just three racing organisations thatâ¦
Source: British Barcelona Club
President: Nigel Rigiani Chairman: Mike Shepherd
Patron: Mark Gilbert
BRITISH BARCELONA CLUB’s 50
ANNIVERSARY (Part 1).
Season 2014 represents another milestone in history for the British Barcelona Club, for this year is
the clubs 50th anniversary. In celebration of this event it is intended to reproduce some of the articles
on past winners that have appeared in the Fancy Press over the years. It is well worth remembering
that here in this country we have just three racing organisations that cover the whole of the country,
of which only one, the British Barcelona Club, encompasses the Channel Islands, making its races
truly National events. To celebrate the Golden Jubilee every section winner in this year’s races will
receive a special commemorative medal which will be presented at this year’s dinner at Days Hotel,
Bournemouth. In the meantime it is hoped that readers will enjoy the exploits and methods of past
winner of this highly successful club. For those interested, it is not too late to join and partake in this
year’s celebrations. Good luck to our members for the forthcoming 2014 season: Michael Shepherd
(BBC Chairman)
The late great Cyril Medway of Southampton.
open BBC Palamos (661 miles) 1972 / 1
open BBC Palamos (661 miles) 1980.
This week we are going to feature my first article on BBC winning lofts that I visited years ago. I must say that this
week’s article is extra special to me personally, as it features a brilliant fancier who I admired in my early days in the
sport. The late great Cyril Medway of Southampton was my hero when I started up in pigeon racing, being the fancier
who had superb long distance performances with a small team of pigeons. When I think about it, I realise I’ve tried to
go down the same path as Cyril did in my 45 years in pigeon racing, having kept only a small team of birds and never
having had a bigger loft than 15ft. long. Eric Cannon was a good friend of Cyril and in early 1977 he took me down
to Southampton to meet the Hampshire champion.
Cyril’s record, despite the number of birds he sent to the long distance races, is second to none. He must be one of the
most respected fancier within these four shores, staying consistently at the top in the major distance races every year.
The Medway loft won 1st open British Barcelona Club Palamos in 1972 with the great pencil blue cock, Champion
‘Palamos Pathfinder’, who won the race by almost two days! After the event, Cyril had to take ‘Pathfinder’ in the
kitchen every night for three weeks for safe keeping, but some time after that he was sold to Japan, with two hens.
‘Pathfinder’ was bred from the dam of the loft, ‘Maureen’, when mated to a Hansenne cock from P.C. Morris of
Andover and ‘Pathfinder’s’ performances were incredible, recording 2nd club Guernsey, 2nd club Exmouth, 1st club,
3rd Solent Federation Nantes, 58th, 161st, 135th open N.F.C. Pau, 1st sect, 1st open B.B.C. Palamos (658 miles)
velocity 637ypm. A true champion!
Cyril became interested in pigeons as a young boy and had his first pair in a box in the garden when he was 11 years
of age. Three years later he joined the Southampton S.R.F.C. and was given a lot of help by Bill Yates of
Southampton. Positions were few and far between, but won a Guernsey race in his first season. Cyril married Joan in
April 1947 and they moved in to their Southampton address. I went down to visit Cyril in mid-February with Eric
Cannon, a good friend of Cyril of many years standing. It was a great day! To hear these two great long distance
fanciers talking was most interesting. On our arrival, Eric introduced us, and then it was all down the garden to the
Medway’s small 10ft.x 6ft. loft, to see the birds. When I asked Cyril how many birds he kept, he said he was
overstocked with 12 pairs at that time, as he usually housed just 10 pairs. The very neat loft was built by him self and
sat about 4 feet off the ground to stop the cats problem that Cyril was always plagued with. Trapping was through
bob wires and the birds bathed on top of the loft as he didn’t like them on the ground, because of the cats. The traps
were wired up to a bell in the house and this was checked every time the bird went to a major race.
Cyril opened the door of the loft and the cocks were in the young bird section. He asked me if there was anything in
there I fancied. The first cock I picked out was a handsome pencil blue, which had never been in a basket, as he was
the last son of ‘Palamos Pathfinder’ before he was sold. This cock was very true to the family, being medium, apple
bodied in the hand, with nice wide flights and strong back. Cyril said he didn’t go too much on the pigeon’s back as
he had handled good pigeons with so called ‘weak backs’. I asked him if he had his great 1967 blue pied cock,
‘Palamos Kid’, winner of 1st section, 9th open B.B.C. Palamos in 1971, and he said the ‘Kid’ must be dead as he was
the only pigeon not to return from his team that went to Avranches one year.
Next pigeon to hand was the great mealy pied cock, ‘Palamos Eric’, winner of, 1972: 1st club La Reole, 1974: 22nd
open B.B.C. Palamos, 1976: 5th open B.B.C. Palamos, winning the B.B.C. Channel Average in 1976, with his
daughter who won 4th open Rennes young birds. Joan timed ‘Palamos Eric’, in from Palamos, in fact, she did most of
the clocking in as Cyril was at work more often than not when the birds came in from the Palamos National. The next
gem we looked at was the dark chequer cock, ‘Palamos Ned’ winner of 3rd club La Reole, 218th open N.F.C. Pau.
He was then sent to Palamos four times, recording, 1973: 17th open B.B.C. Palamos, 1974: 88th open B.B.C.
Palamos, 1975: 10th open B.B.C. Palamos, 1976: 66th open B.B.C. Palamos. ‘Ned’ was the last son off ‘Maureen’
before she stopped laying at ten years old. He was a first cross from a cock loaned by the late Ned Hammond of
Southampton. Next to hand was a blue cock whose sire was bred by Eric and Pat Cannon and whose performance
was, 3rd club Nantes, 19th, 121st, 492nd open N.F.C. Pau and 74th. open B.B.C. Palamos. Great stuff!
We looked at the rest of the cocks and they were all outstanding, then we had a cup of tea and a chat on the lawn,
where I was told that Cyril was the secretary of the Southampton pigeon club for many years and was a first class
clock setter. He fed beans and wheat when rearing, beans and a lot of maize when racing and some seed when the
birds went to the National races. The birds were usually paired up on 13th. March, although they were mated a bit
earlier some years. The base of the family was Barker and every bird in the loft in 1977 was bred through ‘Maureen’,
except for two Eric Cannon pigeons and a Dutch pigeon. Only two stock birds were kept and they were the nest pair
bred from ‘Palamos Pathfinder’ before he was sold to Japan. Cyril said he hadn’t wanted to sell his great champion,
but the risk of leaving him in the loft was to great and he was offered a good price. He said his modest transport was a
push bike until he sold ‘Palamos Pathfinder’! 1972 was an incredible year for the Medway loft, which won 3rd club
Nantes, 1st club Niort, 1st club La Reole, 218th open N.F.C. Nantes, 19th, 263rd, 269th open N.F.C. Pau and 1st
open B.B.C. Palamos. A brilliant performance! Cyril didn’t show his birds, but he did a bit of judging now and again.
Next it was the turn of the hens to be inspected. Cyril said his cocks were even better than his hens, which were a
smaller type of pigeon. One of the first we looked at was blue chequer pied hen NURP 58 Y 5014, the great
‘Maureen’. Although she was 18 years of age, this wonderful pigeon looked great. Her full performance on the road
was, 1960: raced unpaired winning 1st club Bordeaux (over 15 hours on the wing), 1961: 13th open N.F.C. Nantes,
1962: 89th open N.F.C. Pau, 1963: 267th open N.F.C. Nantes, 41st open N.F.C. Pau, 1964: 26th open N.F.C. Pau,
1966: 62nd open N.F.C. Pau, 1967: 148th open N.F.C. Pau, then put to stock.. She won over £800 racing in the
1960’s and was the dam of the loft and of ‘Pathfinder’ and ‘Ned’, and grandma of the ‘Kid’. This great hen was solid
gold!
We looked at a very nice 1976 blue pied hen bred from, ‘Palamos Eric’ and ‘Palamos Joan’ and she had 4th. open
B.B.C. Rennes in the 1976 season, when there was only a handful of birds home in race time. Cyril said the birds
wouldn’t fly around home when they were paired up so they got lots of training that season. The birds were trained
from all over the place, but mainly from the west, down to Weymouth. Next to hand was the 1971 bred blue pied hen,
‘Palamos Joan’, and winner of, 1975: 9th open B.B.C. Palamos, 1976: 13th open B.B.C. Palamos. This hen was
really nice in the hand and Eric Cannon really rated her highly. We looked at two hens which Eric Cannon bred for
Cyril and their breeding was similar to Eric’s champion blue hen, ‘Culmer Blue Bird’. Cyril’s birds were very tame
and he said they sat on his back when he was cleaning out! He also said he mob flew from Palamos in 1976, by
sending five birds. Usually he only sent only two or three. Cyril’s wife, Joan, was a great help around the loft,
feeding, timing in etc. and he told me, he could leave her in complete trust to time in , in fact, she even phones in the
wing marks in the National races. He had hardly ever seen a Palamos pigeon come, as he used to work over the
weekend, but did clock his great ‘Palamos Pathfinder’ when he won!
That was a great day out in February 1977. I think it’s incredible how Cyril Medway did so well at the highest level
with only ten pairs of pigeons. Shortly after our visit, Cyril won 1st open B.B.C. Palamos for the second time. A
brilliant fancier! What a good one it’s been this week! A very special article, on the late great Cyril Medway, a very
special long distance champion.
TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT
(www.keithmott.com)
