JOHN & MEL HALSTEAD
1st Open British Barcelona Club Palamos 2011
talking to Cameron Stansfield
The 2011 renewal of the supreme test of British long distance racing pigeons got underway at 8am on Friday June 24th when the British Barcelona Club convoyers liberated 420 birds at Palamos into a light north wind. As is the norm, given the distances involved, no birds were recorded on day 1. The hours ticked by slowly on Saturday, noon passing with still no news of arrivals, but this was to change at 1.21pm when John and Mel Halstead of Gillingham in Dorset clocked their wonderful three-year-old cock.
John with Maurice
The thrill of having timed was tempered by the knowledge that their bird could be beaten and an anxious wait ensued but this possibility was looking ever more remote as the day progressed. At the end of day 2, five more birds had given there all to reach home but none was able to wrestle the main prize away from the Halsteads. These other gallant birds were: one for William Stribling of Weston-Super-Mare, two to the loft of Andy Parsons in Salisbury (completing an exceptional weekend), one to Team RML of Romford and one to former Palamos winners Mike White & Son of Bournemouth.
Maurice
I spoke to John on Sunday morning and he was buzzing; he said the main emotion he felt was ‘satisfaction’ in having executed his plan after nominating Palamos as this cock’s target from early on in the season. But let’s go back a bit, as there is a story attached to this cock.
In 2010, as a two-year-old, he was entered in the Barcelona International but went AWOL, unbeknown to John landing in Southampton, 30 miles short of his home loft, on the Monday after release. John says: ‘He was rescued by a non fancier who saw him being chased under a car by a cat. This chap rang the RPRA, who put him in touch with Maurice Brick, secretary of the Vosper Thornycroft club in the town. Maurice collected him but he was so exhausted he didn’t think he would make it through the night. He did, however, and after a few days Maurice rang me. When I got there he was still skin and bone. I brought him home and put him in his next box, where he stayed for about 10 days as I set about building him back up. It wasn’t until I started to race him this year that I was going to know if he had fully got over the ordeal but he had been giving me good signs from early in the year as his droppings were fantastic. The plan was always Palamos. I sent him to an inland race to start him off and he was my 6th bird home out of 26. His next four races were all from across the Channel. First up was BBC Carentan where he took 215th open, then BBC Messac - 500th open, Fougeres with the local club from where he was 5th, and Cholet with the NFC on June 4th, just under 8 hours on the wing winning 8th section 139th open 8,745 birds. His first two feeds on return from Cholet were Versele Laga depurative and young bird, half and half. Thereafter he was on Super Widowhood and Gerry Plus, fed in a hopper twice a day with this left in front of the team for half an hour each time. The idea was to get him to eat as much as possible so I also in this period put maize in a pot on the front of his nest box, using three different types of Mariman maize so he could take his pick. The fitter a pigeon gets the less it will want to eat so I was tempting him into eating more than he might otherwise. At the beginning of the last fortnight before basketing he had a couple of peanuts at each end of the day, building up to around 8 peanuts morning and night, so he would have had into three figures’ worth. His body at basketing was very blown up and buoyant. People could have been fooled into thinking he was fat but I knew he was fit because of the work he’d had. During this period he was also exercised for 45 minutes to an hour twice a day right up to basketing day. He came home in fantastic condition; there were four cocks in the section when the chap came to verify him and I asked him to pick out the Palamos pigeon – and he picked the cock in the nest box below! I’ve telephoned Maurice and he has given me permission to name my Palamos winner after him.’
Maurice's wing on return
It is entirely fitting that this great performance has been put up by a pigeon bred for the job. His pedigree contains arguably the most influential long distance lines in the UK being a combination of such greats as Turban, Salve, Sister Wittekop, Vend, Natrix and Favori, not forgetting a dose of Southwell blood via former Pau National winner Ernie Deacon.
This success completes the Barcelona – Palamos double for John and Mel, and they have also won 2nd open Barcelona (with the g.sire of this Palamos winner). To add a further twist to the story, the nestmate of Maurice won 1st section NFC Tarbes in 2010 and is going for a repeat this coming weekened. Watch this space.
