Gareth Watkins reports on multiple BICC winner
JOHN LANE
OF WHITSTABLE
1st BICC Barcelona - 1st BICC Perpignan - 1st BICC Marseille - 1st BICC Pau
As can be seen by the above top class performances in Long Distance and Marathon races, John Lane, the subject of this report, is an expert in breeding, conditioning and racing pigeons to compete at the highest level - International racing. I recently visited John at his home in Tankerton, a village near Whitstable in Kent and the following report is the result of that very enjoyable visit.
John and Kath Lane
THE BEGINNING
John's grandfather raced pigeons before the outbreak of the Second World War and it was John's grandfather who obtained six youngsters for his then 10 year old grandson to begin his lifelong association with the sport.
In 1962 John went into partnership with his cousin Victor Shaw, "Sham" to his friends, and the lads enjoyed a fair amount of success, particularly in channel racing, with the then 50 member strong Orpington club. Unfortunately Sham developed cancer and passed away at the very young age of 25.
During the 1990s, prior to his move to the Whitstable area, John also raced in partnership for a short time with Fred Broadbridge and once again enjoyed a fair amount of success at all levels.
So we move on to 1999 and John and wife Kath's move to their present address in Tankerton situated just 350 yards from the English Channel.
John decamped the whole set up of loft and pigeons to his new address, an idyllic location with a garden that oozed a sense of peace and tranquillity.
THE LOFT
The loft is a wooden three-section structure that has a pantiled roof facing west. This 24 ft x 8ft loft houses just 70 birds in total i.e. old birds and young birds plus a few stock birds and all birds fly out with no prisoners kept. Ventilation is provided in all four walls and the loft is cleaned daily 365 days of the year.
John Lane's loft
MANAGEMENT
The birds are separated in September and are allowed out daily throughout the winter months in all weathers. They are not locked out at this time but are allowed to come and go as they please ranging over the surrounding countryside and out over the North Sea at will.
John rarely races young birds, but, along with his good friend and fellow Barcelona winner Terry Johnson, trains his young bird team throughout the winter months at least twice weekly out to a maximum of 50 miles. This private training continues into the beginning of the old bird season when the race team of old birds and yearlings are trained out to 300 miles. By the two year old stage, when the pigeons have their first ever "race", the birds have not been hammered in weekly club racing but have gained massive experience and an ability to think for themselves rather than relying on the homing ability of "the pack". Just the sort of pigeon you need if you are to take on International racing against the top Continental fanciers.
Some stock birds are mated in mid March but the old bird racers remain celibate until they are to be prepared for their target race which is usually one of the long distance Internationals in June, July and August. Selected birds are then mated in stages in order to have them in their preferred nest condition for the selected race.
The older, more experienced birds in the race team do not get as much racing as the younger members but John does like them all to have at least one ten hour fly before entering them in their selected race.
During the race season the birds, while still separated, are given a couple of hours of free flight each day in all weathers except on the days when they are training.
The old bird section
As a matter of interest I give you here the race record of one of John's two year olds treated in the above manner.
Dark w/f cock GB11 '40. Now known as "Sham's Boy". In 2013 after undergoing the young bird and yearling private training regime he had three private training tosses from over the channel and was then entered in the first race of his life, a National race from Tours with the BICC, and homed at 8 am on the second morning. The second race was an International from Agen 500 miles, when the cock raced home to win 1st Kent 500 mile Club, 3rd section 14th Open BICC in only the second "race" of his life. A month or so later the two year old was sent to Perpignan at 600 miles and finished at 1st Kent 500 mile Club, 2nd section 3rd Open in only his third race!!!
I handled "Sham's Boy" and he was a really impressive medium sized, long cast pigeon with excellent feather quality. As was his mother, a beautiful dark chequer hen bred by Terry Johnson from a daughter of Spartan 1st & 7th Barcelona when mated to a son of Frank Perry's Llanover Lady 1st & 6th BBC Palamos. Incidentally this lovely hen is a full sister to three pigeons that won in 2012 for Terry Johnson 8th Open BICC St Vincent, 13th Open BICC Barcelona and 9th Open BICC Pau International. Blood will tell is certainly an accurate observation in this case.
Three other two year olds were raced in the same manner and all three negotiated the "minefield" of National and International races without mishap.
Also handled during my visit were two sons of Terry Johnson's Spartan when Spartan was mated to Ted's Girl, 3rd Open BICC Barcelona for Terry. These two nestmate brothers are sure to breed the goods in years to come.
Sham's Boy - see text for performances
FEEDING
John believes in keeping it simple and as such feeds good quality grains purchased directly from the farm. This includes wheat, barley and beans. During the racing season the barley is hopper fed and before the birds 24/7. Beans are fed separately to appetite in the late afternoon. On occasions John will add molasses and poultry spice or brewer's yeast to the barley as he sees fit. This is made up the night before so that the mixture is dry and crumbly like a cake when fed.
In winter the bean content of the daily feed is severely reduced and the birds are hand fed a mixture of 90% barley and 10% beans.
When rearing the stock birds have access to a mixture made up of 50% wheat and 50% beans until the youngsters are weaned when they revert to the old bird feeding regime.
John with trophies won in the GDSBNC in 2012
THE BIRDS
John still retains a large proportion of his old family of pigeons which he raced so successfully to his Bromley home before moving to his present address. However, since moving to Whitstable he has been very generously gifted some top class pigeons by his good friend Terry Johnson. These include sons and daughters of Terry's two Barcelona cocks "Spartan" 1st & 7th Open Barcelona and "Pippin" 2nd [beaten by Spartan] and 6th Open Barcelona as well as some from "Ted's Girl"3rd Open Barcelona. These are of basically Jan Aarden bloodlines. More recent introductions from Terry have included the bloodlines of "Llanover Lady" the Westcott x Hansenne x Vanbruaene hen that won 1st & 6th Open Palamos [700 miles] for Frank Perry of Pontypridd.
Llanover Lady also had the blood of two Lerwick National winners in her make up through Cambrian Queen and Cambrian King a sister and brother raced by Bowen Brothers of Porthcawl to win 1st WGNFC Lerwick in 1973 and 1981 respectively.
Katie - 1st Open BICC Perpignan 1987
Young Danny - see text
PERFORMANCES
Over the years John has won many top prizes in long distance racing and a number of friends have helped him along the way but none more so than his lovely wife Kath who John says has clocked more of his long distance winners than he has himself. Without Kath's help and devotion none of the performances outlined below could have been achieved.
The following are literally "the tip of the iceberg" in relation to John's many wins:-
9th Open NFC Pau winning £3,000.
1st Barcelona 158th Open International 21,736 birds, clocking the only bird in the UK on the second day when only 200 were clocked on the winning day in the whole of Europe. This performance achieved by "Young Danny" who was also awarded an RPRA Long Distance and Meritorious Performance Award plus The Queen's Coronation Cup and Osman Memorial Trophy.
1st Open BICC Perpignan.
1st Open BICC Marseille.
1st Open BICC Pau.
3rd Open BICC Pau.
4th Open BICC Barcelona.
3rd Open BICC Perpignan.
1st GDSBNFC Pau.
1st Open GDSBNFC Palamos.
TJ - winner on north and south routes including 12th sect 58th Open Palamos 660 miles. Bred by Martin Cooper of Canterbury.
Of the above performances it’s not surprising to learn that the performance of "Young Danny" in the Barcelona race highlighted above is probably John's most memorable. Young Danny had a formidable record racing prior to his Barcelona triumph, including 3rd Open BICC 923rd Open International Barcelona 17,000 birds in 1985.
His bloodlines included the very best of the Trueman-Dicken blood from Geoff Hunt & son Ian of Westmarsh in Kent crossed with a little red hen containing all the best of John's old Bromley family.
It has been a pleasure to compile this short article on a fancier I have admired for some time and I can only wish John and Kath many more years of good health and enjoyment in the sport they love.
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Elimar - December 2013
