JOHN DAVID'S
RAMBLINGS
Difficult races for NFC & WSRNFC on weekend of June 4th
There was much jubilation in Welsh pigeon circles building up to the weekend of 4th June with a high pressure area weather system starting to build up over the country and fanciers were optimistic that the harsh weather of recent weeks was moving away as a consequence. However this in itself can cause problems and the main concern about flying from France into the UK was the likelihood that the good weather would be accompanied by high temperatures and humidity levels and strong north easterly winds which presents a stern test for racing pigeons.
I prepared four of my pigeons for racing that weekend and decided to enter three cocks and one hen, two in the Nantes NFC race from 306 miles and two in the Messac WSRNFC race from 265 miles. After rearing from my race team, my birds had been separated for three weeks as in the past I have always found that absence makes the heart grow fonder. I had allowed them to run together on a sort of semi widowhood system for a few races as I had moved them to a different loft during the winter period and there was always a danger in them returning to look for their mates in the old loft. The best nest condition I have found for the two cocks to be sent to the NFC is about four days after pairing as long as they are not driving hard so the hens were put back on the Monday. However I was surprised on Thursday morning to find the hen going to the WSRNFC was already going to lay on the Friday so decided to leave her home together with the yearling cock and keep them for the next National race in two weeks time. So I set off with the two year old cocks for Frome for NFC marking and after dropping my wife off at 10am soon ran into trouble on the motorway where a major traffic accident had occurred. It was extremely hot and after two hours we had not even reached the Bristol area. Eventually we re-routed around Bristol and arrived at Frome just after 2pm making a four hour trip which normally takes 1.5 hours. By that time most of the NFC birds had already been basketed and it was nice to meet up with Tom Sherwood and his 12-year old daughter I had not seen for almost twenty years. I remember undertaking a very successful auction sale for Tom in the Eton Park Social Club, Princess Way, Burton on Trent which was the Midland National HQ in November 1990. Some years before this the late great Don Blakeway had rang me up and said there is a young fancier Tom Sherwood from Aylesbury flying out of his skin in the Upper Thames Fed with unbelievable performances with birds of Gerhard Schlepphorst origin. These birds had been bred by Don who said to me if I could get any birds off Gerhard the same way bred he would pay £500 each for them which was a lot of money in those days. I remember I was with Ken Darlington in the Belgium film studio of Armand Sheers making the film “Taffy Bowen and Friends” when I met up with Gerhard and I asked him about these birds. Gerhard did not speak English and Armand interpreted from English into German. Without even blinking Gerhard said “I no longer have any of these birds at stock!” Later Ken Darlington said to me Gerhard is an honest man and I will do business with him in the future. Getting back to Tom Sherwood I remember he had a wonderful cock bred in 1983 that had bred over 50 x 1st Prize winners including 18x1st Fed winners who was down from the Wereldmeister 517 of Gerhard Schlepphorst. In 1990 I recall Tom won an incredible 38-1sts and 32-2nds and to put these performances into perspective I remember in 1990 he clocked the best three bird average in the Nantes NFC before any other fancier in the whole of the country. Incidentally that year 11,306 birds were in competition and the winning velocity was 1150. This is the beauty of sending birds in the NFC you meet up with the best fliers in the country!
It was not long before the birds were basketed and I understand 1,100 members sent 8,932 birds. Frome was the largest marking centre where 135 fanciers entered 1,167 pigeons and they were all done and dusted by 2.30pm. I later discovered because of difficulties getting into Nantes the NFC race was moved to Cholet which is about 25 miles further and a distance of 328 miles to my loft in South Wales.
Close up of birds ready to be entered in NFC race together with ETS clock & race sheet
When at the Frome marking my daughter took some interesting pictures. She managed to catch Roy Christopher of Shaftsbury on camera busy at work with marking of the birds. Later we caught him relaxing (minus his hat) having a welcome cup of tea. Fanciers will recall that with his father R H Christopher of Fontmell Magna won 1st and 2nd Nantes National in 1963 when 6,856 birds were in competition.
Roy Christopher inside marking area at Frome.
Roy having a welcome rest in the tea room.
The next photograph was of Geoff and Catherine Cooper of Peasedown St John who were talking with John Halstead. Geoff had entered 15 yearlings and 1 two year old for the race and John had 8 entries. John has won two Nationals from Bordeaux and Barcelona but has topped the section in the NFC an incredible 14 times (flying to two different loft locations). Of course Geoff and Catherine raced the 2008 Tarbes Grand National winner “George” and have also won 1st Open BICC Falaise so what an opportunity to get an opinion from the Masters on the ideal last race for prospective Tarbes candidates this year. Poitiers next week with the BBC from 350 miles three weeks before the big race would be the ideal launching pad suggested Geoff and John agreed.
John Halstead left with Catherine & Geoff Cooper.
Before we left we had a welcome mug of tea and observed the basketed entries being given a good feed rich in maize before being their baskets were stacked in the shade of overhanging trees where they could drink to their hearts content and rest until being picked up later in the day by the NFC transporter.
Entered birds enjoying a feed before the big test ahead.
Birds under the shade of overhanging trees. Note the red chequer even reaching for Terra Firma.
Saturday opened with the news that the NFC was liberated at 6.30am at Cholet followed by the WSRNFC at 6.45am in Messac. Both organisations reported that the birds cleared well into bright sunshine in light north or north easterly winds. The winds on the channel appeared to be north, north east fresh to strong in nature but the fly in the ointment was the heavy cloud along much of the coast of northern France which delayed liberations especially at Carenton on the Cherbourg peninsula. There were quite a number of organisations there whose convoyer’s I understand had to wear their overcoats at 6am as the weather was so cold there with low cloud and no sun. Clearly the NFC would not reach this area for 4-5 hours flying at 40 mph and it must have been anticipated that the cloud would have cleared by this time. Of course they have fanciers competing from up to 500 miles so an early liberation for them is essential as flying time under the prevailing conditions could be as much as fourteen or fifteen hours.
The WSRNFC however would reach the St Malo area by 8am and the northern tip of the Cherbourg peninsula by 10.15am. One organisation decided to liberate at Carentan at 10.15am and hundreds of pigeons failed to leave the site and were flying around for over 30 minutes after release. Another organisation liberated at 11.15am who cleared reasonably well but others waited until later including the West Cheshire Fed who liberated at 11.45an into clear skies and a fresh north easterly wind. Their birds were clocked in less than 7 hours flying 285-295 miles. Some only had 50% on the day but good returns the next morning.
The XCWeather forecast was spot on showing the weather as overcast at Cherbourg with full cloud cover at 900 ft at 11.30am but clearing to sunshine by 12am. Similarly at Saint Brieuc west of St Malo on the French coast the weather was overcast with low cloud at 600ft until late morning but again clearing by mid-day. The winds were about 10mph at Cherbourg from a north or north easterly direction but would increase to North- North easterly up to 20mph along the southern coast of the UK.
My dark chequer two year old cock arrived at 16.29pm after almost ten hours on the wing and my mealy pied cock arrived at 19.22pm almost thirteen hours on the wing. He saw me sitting in the conservatory and flew onto the roof of same to tell me he was home. He was in very good spirits after his almost 13 hour fly and was very pleased to see his hen. They had previously only flown south east this season to Maidstone and had an easy race from Carenton 179 miles so had only had four hours on the wing previously and then given a 150 mile jump so I was more than satisfied with their performance.
John David Havachat Bungalow, Mwyndy, Pontyclun RCT CF728PN. Email
