DEESIDE & NORTH WALES
with Paul Jacobs
Chepstow 1 old bird race 21st April
Well, if this is global warming, give it to me any time. It’s officially the hottest April since records began and it looks like it’s going to stay nice for the foreseeable future. Our birds have been exercising very well and I’m at a little bit of a loss as to why they are not higher up the sheet as we were 11th club the week before. I gave the roundabout hens a toss to Shrewsbury on the Thursday before the Chepstow (1) race to give them a wake up as they have not really been competing with the cocks as of late and they did it in really good time. On marking night we decided to send nineteen birds and pooled three up which were “Pretty Boy” which is my good pied cock bred by Derek Robson of Hazelrigg and two yearling sons of “Joe 90” and “Millward’s Hen”, one of which was one of my later bred birds of 2007 which came well last week.
Saturday just like the previous two races turned out to be another scorcher with yet another east wind forecast. The Deeside Amalgamation which consists of the West Cheshire Federation and Deeside and North Wales Federation cut their strings at 10.30am into a light south east wind and another quick race was on the cards. I worked out that two hours to our lofts (12.30pm) which is 109 miles away would give us a velocity of around 1600ypm but I thought they would be quicker than that so I plumped for a velocity of around a mile a minute which would put my e.t.a at 12.19pm. We were well prepared with everything ready and all we needed was a pigeon! At 12.14pm my dad shouted we’re in and two pigeons appeared from the back of the loft obviously having gone over with the fast winds. It was our schallie hen originating from CWL which would have won this race last year but she was a fed only bird and a cheq wf cock grandson of our good old De Klak stock hen “Blauwe 418”, they went round a couple of times before landing probably losing 20 seconds which wasn’t bad as the wind made it difficult to land. We clocked both at 12.15pm and at the time I didn’t think they were bad birds with their velocities both being over 1800ypm. After we timed they started to pile in and by 12.40pm we had 16 out of 19 home and the other three turned up by 1.00pm. Another good race was had by all and I would like to congratulate our convoyers and race controllers for another super day. We had a phone call off CLM lofts with the news of two cracking birds to Eric (Egger) Davies at 12.13pm which would be hard to beat. Clock checking revealed this to be so and another good race was had by Joey Evans and grandson Joe who were once again well up with only a small team of widowhood cocks. We ended up 10th Club 17th Fed with our schallie hen. Plenty of work to do then.
An increase of 170 birds saw the birdage of Deeside Amalgamation of Federations rise to 3,768 birds which were sent by 179 members. The West Cheshire took a 2:1 lead over the Deeside and North Wales Federation this week and did it with style taking 28 of the 30 positions available. 1st and 4th went to Mr & Mrs A.J. Price; West Cheshire on 1879.72 and 1869.09, well done sir, 2nd and 3rd went Jones & Thomas of the West Cheshire who are flying a cracking bird on 1877.94 and 1872.03 they also had another 3 on the Amal sheet, 5th – D. Joinson, West Cheshire 1869.01, 6th – Roy Sandland, West Cheshire 1866.63, 7th - Griffiths & Sandland, West Cheshire 1865.67 (there are 6 birds on a velocity of 1865!!) 8th – Davies & Rogers, West Cheshire 1865.59, 9th – I. Pinches & son, Deeside 1865.37, 10th – N. Weston, West Cheshire 1865.34.
The Deeside and North Wales Federation saw 66 members send 1,160 birds and breaking the monopoly of the first two races which saw Shotton HS house the Federation winners was I. Pinches & son of Holt HS on 1865.37, 2nd and 4th went Shotton winner Egger Davies on 1853.85 and 1850.57, 3rd Fed yet again went to Joey Evans and grandson, Joe on 1851.61, obviously the young un’s touch is paying dividends Joe!! 5th – “Deadly” Doug Morris, Shotton 1847.79, 6th and 9th – Alan “Sandycroft Slayer” Atkinson, Sandycroft on 1838.16 and 1833.42, 7th and 10th – Mel “The Duke” Jones, Shotton 1837.56 and 1833.15, 8th – R.A & R.M. Piggott, Shotton 1836.06.
Around the clubs now and I have no news yet again regarding the winner of Holt HS which turned out to be the Federation winner, I. Pinches & son, so it’s off to my own club Shotton HS where 31 members sent 471 birds and Eric “Egger” Davies had a good day winning 1st and 3rd positions on 1853.85 and 1850.57 with two full brothers. They are both Wildemeersch x Busschaerts on the roundabout system which is obviously suiting Egger’s birds as they are in the top ten most weeks now. The sire of these two prize winners was bred by “Deadly” Doug Morris from his Cliff and Greta Jones Wildemeersch family and the dam is a Busschaert hen which was purchased from Louella Pigeon World for a lot of money (Egger’s wife’s money, not Egger’s!!) and has bred a lot of prize winners for Egger. 2nd position on 1851.61 went to the loft of Joey Evan’s and grandson, Joe. They are in the prizes most weeks and only sending at most, nine cocks which is tremendous flying!! Joey’s prize winner is yet again another Willy Thas cock which originate from Jim Lavery and is a full brother to his winner of 2nd Club 3rd Fed Hereford a week earlier, 4th on 1847.79 was Doug Morris who clocked a yearling FVW cock which was winning his first prize, he is a son of his number three stock pair and was picked up by mistake as Doug had five land together and thought he had clocked his pooler the “31 cock” and clocked this one instead!!
Sandycroft HS had 6 members send 178 and winning his third race in as many weeks and another clean sweep is the “Slayer” taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd on 1838, 1833 and 1821. 1st went to a Gevaert x Demeester hen winning her first prize and whose sister has topped the Deeside Amalgamation, 2nd and 3rd places were taken by two Gevaert Van Schoorisse sisters, all these hens are raced on the roundabout system, 4th on 1821 was J. Jones & son with a Gaby Vandenabeele x Verheye hen also on the roundabout system, thanks for the info Alan.
Saltney HS had 9 members sent 195 birds and making it three out of three on 1830.09 was Ray Powell. Ray’s winner is the same winner as last week and what a hen she is as she is a previous winner of 1st Club 1st Fed 1st Amal Hereford, 1st Club 1st Fed 5th Amal Hereford, 1st Club 9th Fed Hereford, 2nd Club 13th Fed Chepstow and 3rd Club 4th Fed Wincanton and also this weeks win where she was 1st Club 14th Fed Chepstow, she is a 3 year old Gevaert hen raced on the roundabout system, 2nd also went to Ray Powell on 1825.01 with a yearling Gevaert hen taking her first card, she is a granddaughter of the “Swerver” and “Dikke” on the sire’s side and a granddaughter of the “Wittekop” on the dam’s side, well done Ray, 3rd and 4th went to Ray Newell & son on 1805.07 and 1801.29 with a yearling Van Bruane x Busschaert hen which won 4th Club Ludlow this year flying unpaired and a full sister to the 3rd prize winner, thanks Ray.
Hightown HS had 11 members send 182 birds and back to the winners enclosure for Steve Burgess who won with a two year old hen on 1831.22 which won 2 x 1sts as a young bird, she also won the Brymbo Open race as well as £220 plus also scoring in the Shotton Gold Ring race winning 24th Open. She is a Janssen x Van Reet and her sire is a winner of 6 x 1sts for Steve, her dam is a winner also, 2nd and 3rd on 1825.87 and 1821.06 was the “Woodfields Wizard” Derrick Jones, Derrick scored with two of his FVW one of which is known as “Miss Misnut” which has won once or twice and another which was winning her first prize, 4th went to Roy Morgan on 1794.92, this cock won last week and is a son of his Deeside Amal winner from Frome last year. Thanks Eileen.
I would like to remind all members of the North Wales Championship Club that the £1,000 race is not that far away, in fact it is only a month away and somebody is going to be very happy that day!! The race is to be held from Falaise on June 2nd so I would like to remind all members to pencil this date in their diary and not to forget about it! Also I have a few members who have not paid their subscriptions so if they could send them ASAP please. Thanks.
Don’t forget you can contact me Paul Jacobs at 20, Lon Dderwen, Connah’s Quay, Deeside, Flintshire. CH5 4WG and phone (01244) 819934 or e mail at
3/5/07
