“ON THE ROAD” WITH KEITH MOTT.
Three Borders Federation (Weymouth Race 1).
The Three Borders Federation had 788 birds away at Weymouth for the second old bird race of the 2026 season. Back in the day when I was a pigeon race convoyer, the liberation sites in Weymouth were at Chesil Beach and Lodmore Car Park, but in recent season the pigeon liberations have been moved to car park area out in the country side. While at the race point the Federation convoyer, Dom McCoy took a short film of the liberation and the new site in general and I must say, it looks a cracking space to liberate the birds! The race day was a waiting game to start with the weather and after a cloudy outlook to start with, it turned into a perfect racing day. The Three Borders Federation convoying team produced a cracking race when they liberated at 10.30hrs in to a West / North West wind. The Mitcham & Merton club took the first ten positions on the Federation result and the club president, Eric Fry won the race. Eric deserves everything he wins with his pigeon racing; he is a gentleman and a great worker for our sport. I noticed Eric was 4th Federation in this same race last season! Eric’s Weymouth Federation winner was his good mealy cock, ‘Crowborough Boy’ and he was raced on Eric’s own celibate system.
He purchased a kit of youngsters off Stuart Davenport of Wales in 2024, which produced three top winners for the Fry loft, including ‘Crowborough Boy’. Well done mate! The Federation secretary, Stuart Emans won the first race from Blandford the weekend previous, but got ‘pipped at the post’ this week by Eric Fry and won 2nd and 18th Federation from Weymouth. Stuart’s first bird on the ETS was his good blue pied widowhood cock, bred Gerald Delaney and he has named him, ‘Remy 270’, after his grandson. This wonderful cock has a great racing record, winning several other premier positions, including 1st Three Borders Federation Wincanton in the 2025 season. Great pigeon racing!
The first ten in the Weymouth Federation result were: 1) Eric Fry 1683: 2) Stuart Emans 1678: 3) R. & W. Morris 1677: 4) Jim Andrews & Son 1676: 5) R. & W. Morris 1676: 6) R. & W. Morris 1676: 7) R. & W. Morris 1675: 8) W. & W. Morris 1675: 9) Jim Andrews & Son 1672: 10) Jim Andrews & Son 1671. This was race number two of the season and at this point the Mitcham & Merton club are leading for the ‘Federation Points Trophy’ with 10 points, with the Esher club being runner up on 8 points.
As I previously stated a man who deserves evert success is the Mitcham & Merton club president, Eric Fry, who enjoyed a great 2025 old bird racing season in the Three Borders Federation winning: 22nd Federation Wincanton, 4th, 15th Federation Wincanton, 8th Federation Blandford, 10th Federation Wincanton, 7th, 22nd Federation Honiton, 8th, 10th Federation Blandford, 3rd Federation Honiton, 2nd, 8th, 22nd Federation Penzance. Great pigeon racing!
Eric stared racing pigeons with young birds in 1964, in partnership with his late brother, Reg. They raced in the old Clapham Junction club and in their first season, they won four of the seven young bird races in the club. Eric’s father was the late ‘Jock’ Fry who raced pigeons in the 1950’s and Reg previously raced in partnership with his father at that time. The lads first loft was home made out of old second hand doors and they enjoyed great success racing to it! Eric and Reg had a blue chequer cock which won five firsts in the club, plus 1st Federation (twice) and that great pigeon bred a cock that won ten firsts, plus 1st Federation. Brilliant pigeon racing! Eric started racing in the Mitcham & Merton club in 1989 and says he has enjoyed some wonderful weekly racing, against some great pigeon racers in those 36 years!
Eric Fry has won the Federation many times over the years and has enjoyed a wonderful old bird season racing in the Three Borders Federation in 2025. He doesn’t keep stock birds and races several families of birds, the main ones being, Stuart Davenport and Kirk Bullen bloodlines. Eric’s best pigeon is a blue chequer cock named, ‘Speedy’ and he has won four times 1st club, plus 1st Federation and his best two racing hens in the 2025 season were from the Stuart Davenport bloodlines. The Fry loft is 20ft long and is open fronted with ‘sputnik’ trapping. The old and young birds are fed the same, on Eric’s own mixture, which he makes up himself with premier corn brands. Eric races old bird hens and cocks on the celibate system and tells me two of his best racers in 2025 have been hens. The cocks are shown their hens on marking night and then the racers are left together until the morning after the race, when they are separated again. His 15 pairs of birds are paired up in January and after rearing a round of youngsters they separated ready to start racing. They get very little training, but are exercised around the loft for an hour every day. His 24 young birds race the full Federation programme on the natural system and are trained as much as possible up to 35 miles. Eric races his birds every week and enjoys competing from all distances, through to 450 miles! Congratulations to Eric Fry on his great Federation success, it was a great pigeon racing!
Gilbert Brothers of Mitcham.
The SMT Combine’s last and longest old bird race, Bergerac (450 miles) was flown in July 1979 and it was much the same as three channel races proceeding it, being tough with poor returns. The Combine winner, doing 1072.9ypm, was a yearling blue cock owned by Gilbert Brothers of the Mitcham Common FC and this club had set somewhat of a record. Out of the five Combine races flown in 1979 the Mitcham Common had recorded a staggering three firsts and two seconds in the SMT Combine and the 60 member club had an eight bird limit in place on channel races. Brilliant pigeon racing! Gilbert Brothers named their Bergerac winner, ‘Billy’, and he was bred from stock birds of the Bernard Miles / Stichelbaut and Bill Stevens of Wandsworth strains. ‘Billy’ was sent to Bergerac sitting chipping eggs and from the 1979 Le Mans smash he returned with a note in his ring after dropping in to a loft in France, which turned out to be a good single up training toss.
The brothers had two lofts, a 12ft racing loft and 8ft stock loft with an aviary, and they liked plenty of good ventilation in their set up. When they started up 18 years previous, their loft was a converted Canary aviary which belonged to their father and this was stocked with birds obtained from several local fanciers. The Gilbert partners paired their 17 pairs of old birds up on 14th February and the mail family raced were Stichelbaut crossed with the Bill Stevens of Wandsworth pigeons. They had always raced natural, but gave the widowhood system a try in the 1979 season, and said at that time that the old bird races had to be planned, with the youngsters being raced to educate them. They trained as much as possible and fed on high carbohydrate mixture, with ‘Red Band’ for trapping. Fred Gilbert rated Terry Goodsell of Mitcham and R. Pool & son of Hackbridge the best local pigeon racers, because they were the most consistent. Apart from their Bergerac win the brothers also won 1st club, 10th Surrey Federation, 12th SMT Combine from the very hard Le Mans race in 1979.
Terry Goodsell also of the Mitcham club was 2nd Combine, doing 1072.7 and this was the second time that season that Terry had been beaten on decimals in the SMT, he was previously 2nd and 4th SMT Combine from Plymouth. The 2nd Combine Bergerac pigeon was a Rosenbrek / Janssen blue chequer cock named ‘Terry’ and was sent to Bergerac driving his hen to nest. This game cock also won 4th SMT Combine Plymouth in 1978 and his sire was the champion racing cock, ‘Mr. Nice Guy’, winner of six times 1st club, three times 1st Federation and 3rd Combine Plymouth.
That’s our article for this week. Well done to Eric Fry on a great result from Weymouth! I can be contacted with any pigeon ‘banter’ on telephone number: 07535 484584 or email me at:
TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT (www.keithmott.com)
