ESSEX & KENT AMALGAMATION
E. J. SAINS
Wetherby - August 30th 2014
Liberated at 10.45am into a west south west wind
The last Essex & Kent Amalgamation race of the season is organised to combine a mass liberation of young birds from federations located from the east coast of Essex stretching all the way across to London and beyond. En route the day opened with quite a lot of cloud cover, but with a strong westerly wind which allowed the sun to peer between the clouds, giving a very good flying day. The early morning wind was blowing west-south-west, turning to west-north-west as the day progressed. Showers were forecast to become more persistent in the early afternoon. The 4291 birds were readied for liberation, but after an unfortunate escape of birds from one metal crate due to a malfunction in the liberation mechanism, one club’s birds had to be re-marked. The birds were finally liberated at 10.45am making for an excellent race.
Wallis & Royce
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 6th 7th 8th 9th 16th 18th & 19th open Essex & Kent Amalgamation
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 6th 7th 8th 9th 16th 18th & 19th Essex Central Federation velocities from 1639 to 1600 ypm
This performance achieved by the Wallis & Royce partnership has never been bettered in the history of the Essex & Kent Amalgamation, with eleven of the top twenty falling to one loft. But to be perfectly honest this loft’s performances have been on fire this season. Flying in two federations, the Essex Central and the Essex and Suffolk Border Federation, they have topped the Essex Central four times and the Essex &Suffolk Border Federation five times. These performances are also achieved with big federation numbers, for instance one week previous to the amalgamation race the partnership achieved 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th & 6th Essex Central Federation Market Rasen 2445 birds.
The Partnership
The partnership consists of hard working pigeon fanciers - Mr Steve Wallis, his son Sam Wallis, Mr Ian Wallis Steve’s brother. Ian’s the man who originally purchased the old Belgian hen bred by Louis Cooreman, mother of the loft and probably one of the most successful living breeders in the world, being responsible for many, many high performing federation winners that breed federation winners in their own right, not just for these lofts but also for many other fanciers. The fourth partner is Roders Royce, the man who can set the sky alight with the hens. Although all flying to the same lofts they each have their own sections and birds, each of which compete against each other in in-house competitions. With all four fanciers flying to the same loft imagine the impact on the drag and the possible multi drops that can be achieved. The partnership also maintain that in order to keep the birds on line and always homing from the north, that the wind direction plays a very important part in deciding what federation they should be sent to on a week by week basis.
The set up for the young bird sections and food
The section set up for the 2014 young bird season is Steve and Sam Wallis 31 hens, Ian Wallis 34 cocks, Rodney Royce 28 mixed. The birds are fed twice a day morning and evening after their fly or training. The mixture fed is combination of 50% Junior UK and 50% Gerry Plus that is purchased from Kingston Kennels.
The birds
The birds are the result of breeding down from the old Belgian hen as mentioned earlier, one of the best breeding sprint middle distances hens around today. One could go on and on about her previous achievements in breeding, but let’s just concentrate on the impact she has on this race alone. The first four birds to be clocked were all grandchildren to the old Belgian hen.
First open a blue pied hen was produced from a daughter of the old Belgian hen, when paired to a son of Louis Cooreman’s Tony. Second open a blue hen was the result of a son of the old Belgian hen paired to a recently purchased Cooreman stock hen. Third open a blue chequer cock was produced from another son of the old Belgian hen when paired to a sister of Champion Messi of the Steve Fenech lofts. Fourth open a blue pied hen was produced from a daughter of the old hen when paired to a son of the Tool, an outstanding stock cock purchased from Bob Fenech.
The Wallis & Royce team
Ian Wallis
Rodders Royce
Mr Sanders & Son
5th & 17th open Essex & Kent Amalgamation 5th & 17th Essex Central Federation Wetherby velocities 1633 & 1601.2 ypm
Acting chairman of the Maldon and district pigeon club Mr Dave Saunders has been proving himself a good pigeon man as well as doing an excellent job as chairman in a very strong demanding club. For Dave the season started off on the south road, but after some changes in his work commitments he decided it would be more beneficial to turn his bird’s north, the route they had been flown as young birds. Almost straight away they performed well going on to win the federations, twice once in the Essex Central Federation and once in the Essex and Suffolk Border Federation.
The birds
The birds that are performing well for Dave are a line of Lambrechts from the lofts of Steve Foster of Preston. The first bird timed in from Wetherby contain the bloodlines of Moorke, the auto winner Liam and the Prinse on dam’s side, with Geode Genoplje showing up on the sire’s side.
Dave Saunders
J Newton & P Wheeler win first West Essex Federation Wetherby Velocity 1582 ypm
Once again the flying partnership of Jim Newton and Pam Wheeler have topped their federation in one of the Essex & Kent 2014 amalgamation races, this time in the Essex & Kent’s young bird amalgamation, excellent flying for these two young fanciers.
The first bird a blue cock was sitting 8 days. From the 4th day of sitting, an egg was added each day, so that on Friday the day of basketing this cock was struggling to cover them. The winning young bird was bred from two yearling widowers, which were both bred by Alan Maull of Wales. The sire is 50% V.D.Merwe and 50% Gerald Koopman and the dam is 100% Gerald Koopman.
Jim Newton & Pam Wheeler
Mr & Mrs Steven Fenech wins the County of Essex Federation Wetherby on 1580 ypm
Steve’s, whose loft is situated in one of the most westerly positions in the amalgamation, had seven birds drop together to take the first seven positions in the County of Essex Federation even though the odds were stacked against such a good performance, with his birds having to fly into a strong westerly wind. The birds’ condition still allowed his loft to get a multi drop, almost repeating his previous week’s performance when he had five birds drop together to take the first five in the federation. Steve made a point of saying that for this sort of performance getting several birds together is usually a sign of a good liberation with no clashing and no diversions due to inclement weather.
Steve's YBs
The Clarke Bros top the Havering Federation from Wetherby with a velocity of 1568 ypm
Mick and Bill Clarke have over the years helped many young fanciers get a foothold on the ladder by letting them have the right birds and information needed to help them progress, as has been reported to me by numerous young fanciers while covering the Essex and Kent amalgamations and combines. This is the sort of effort that is needed if our sport is to survive in the future.
Once again the Clarke Bros have shown that their birds are a force to be reckoned with, not only topping their federation but having a multi drop of 1st 2nd & 3rd Havering Fed velocities 1558 1557 & 1556. All three of these young Cooreman hens have taken positions in this year’s young bird season.
Bill Clarke
M Connolly & Son win the East London Federation from Wetherby with a velocity of 1552 ypm
The pigeon racing partnership of Mickey Connolly senior and his son Mickey junior have been very successful over the years, twice topping the London North Road Combine also being the 2012 winners of the Tommy Long trophy. In the last five years they have been four times federation champions. 2014 has so far seen them topping the federation twice as well two great performances at the distance in the London North Road Combine: 5th open Stonehaven and 5th open Thurso with only 8 birds home on the day.
They timed a young blue cock to top the East London Federation in the Essex and Kent Amalgamation from Wetherby. The breeding of this young cock was Frans Zwols x Heremans Ceusters, the sire being breed at the Formula 1 Lofts.
M Connolly & Son
30.08.2014. WETHERBY
LIB 10.45. WEST NORTH WEST WIND
APPROX 4291 BIRDS
Provisional Top 20
1 WALLIS & ROYCE EC 1639.9
2 WALLIS & ROYCE 1639.6
3 WALLIS & ROYCE 1639.4
4 WALLIS & ROYCE 1639.3
5 SANDERS & SON EC 1633
6 WALLIS & ROYCE 1626
7 WALLIS & ROYCE 1616.9
8 WALLIS & ROYSE 1616.6
9 WALLIS & ROYCE 1616.6
10 M/M S ODDY EC 1615.69
11 M/M A HILLS EC 1615.63
11 MISS R BACON EC 1611
13 M/M S ODDY 1610
14 L FULLER & DTR EC 1608
15 R & P THOMAS EC 1606
16 WALLIS & ROYCE 1602
17 SANDERS & SON 1601.2
18 WALLIS & ROYCE 1601.0
19 WALLIS & ROYCE 1600
20 MARTIN & WATTS EC 1597.9
OTHER FEDS
WEST ESSEX - NEWTON & WHEELER 1582
EAST LONDON - M CONNOLLY & SON 1552
COUNTY - M/M S FENECH & SON 1580
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