GWENT GREATER DISTANCE CLUB
Reports by Gareth Watkins
Off to a flying start with the BICC from Falaise
The first race of the season for members of the GGDC took place on Saturday 2nd May from the French race point of Falaise. Although a little early in the season for most Welsh lofts, with only a couple of previous races available to get the birds fit enough to face the English channel,15 intrepid members entered 105 birds for this 230+ mile race.
Liberation was held up until 11.15 am due to bad weather in Northern France and the English Channel. The convoy of more than 4,500 birds were then set to face the journey home to all parts of southern England and Wales with a west south west wind on their shoulders, and not surprisingly given the conditions, most of the early birds were clocked on the eastern side of the country in Kent, Essex and Suffolk.
However after 5 hours and 50 minutes Spencer Jones of Pontypool clocked a two year old celibate hen to win 1st GGDC and 1st Section with the BICC. The hen had not been mated this year and was, as Spencer put it, “Racing to her perch”. Mated she may not have been but bred in the purple she certainly is, as her sire is none other than “That’s my Boy” a multiple winner for Spencer including 4 x 1st Fed and 1st Welsh Combine from 17,000 birds. He is also sire of Spencer’s 1st Open BICC Falaise in 2008 so he is now responsible for two 1sts section with the BICC. The dam is a Van Loon bred by Brian Bolton of the Bolton & Williamson partnership. This year’s Falaise section winner was lightly raced as both a young bird and yearling and had only two short “blow home” races this season in preparation for this race. In the last of these from Newbury, approximately 80 miles, the week before Falaise, she finished at 3rd Open from an entry of 7,000 birds. Spencer clocked a second bird after 6 hours and three minutes on the wing to take 3rd GGDC and a prominent position in the section with the BICC. This one is a direct son of Spencer’s 2008 Falaise Open winner. Congratulations once again Spencer on yet another excellent performance.
Spencer Jones pictured with Jan Deacon at the GGDC 2008 presentation.
Andrew Vincent of Llanhilleth has been knocking on the door for a couple of seasons now, consistently clocking early birds and in this race he clocked another good pigeon to take 2nd GGDC and probable 3rd section BICC. Andrew’s timer is a three year old chequer pied cock raced on the natural system and bred from Mardon Van Reets crossed with Janssens from Smith and Baker of Swindon. He flew the hard Bergerac race in 2008 and this season has had just two short races from Salisbury and Southsea as preparation for his tilt at the channel. He was sent feeding a week old squeaker. Well done Andrew.
Next up we have double National winner Steve Jude of Cwmbran racing in partnership as Jude & Prosser. Steve clocked a yearling red cock that had three races as a young bird and was first in the clock each time, winning two club firsts into the bargain. In this race he looks likely to finish at 7th section BICC .Raced on the round about system this year, he is bred from a Ken Hine red hen and a Dordin cock bred by Eric Bevan. The partners’ race team are prepared on a break down / build up feeding system being fed depurative on return until Tuesday morning and then going on to a stronger race mix up to basketting.
Finally, in 5th place, a mention for the GGDC’s only North Wales member, Darren Roberts, who competes under the name of Davenport & Roberts, although Chris Davenport no longer assists with the birds. This loft has an incredible record of 12 x 1sts section in various National races and in this Falaise race Darren clocked a two year old Huybreght hen that had previously won 1st club and Fed and is a full sister to the partners’ 1st Open Chester Two Bird club winner.
GGDC members once again dominated the West Section result of the BICC with the following positions taken from the provisional first bird verification result:- 1st, 3rd, 7th,8th,9th, 10th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 17th, 18th,& 19th section- and this in a west south west wind !! Can this phenomenal run of success continue? We’ll find out in two weeks time from Alencon.
