KINGDOM RACING PIGEON ASSOCIATION
by Stuart Bowman
Members of the Kingdom Racing Pigeon Association competed in the final race of the season for our Open race from Wakefield 180-205 mls. Many were of the same opinion as me, saying they were glad it was the end of the season as it has been a trying year, and wanted to close up the loft and get on with the moult.
The 558 birds were away at 7am into a light west wind and the winner taking just 2mins short of 5hrs was big Peter Holt of Strathmiglo, flying with the Howe Premier club. Peters was flying 194mls and was doing 1148.798. Pete was also 7th & 27th Open, and between his first two birds goes away with nearly £250. Not a bad day's work! The 2nd bird wins the Trophy for 1st Nominated bird in the race! This is a very popular win as Pete has been flying really well in the Howe club with his y.bs . The Open winner a blue hen was on darkness and just flying home to its loft. Her breeding is Jan Aarden crossed with Janseen. Pete thought the Jan Aardens were a little slow so he tried a cross with the Janseens. Not as slow now Pete!!! This hen has been very consistent her self as she has won 2x 1sts and a 2nd beaten by a loft mate, and now comes out to give herself her 3rd 1st prize and an Open win. A very good pigeon and a worthy winner! Petes second bird was a M & D Evans Vandenabeele. Pete's y.b team this year have been raced and trained every week with Wattie Hodges who trains a lot of the Fife Fanciers pigeons with his trailer. Pete wins the Future Trophy for 1st Open and the Jock Armour Memorial trophy for 2- bird Ave! Congratulations Peter from all the KRPA members!
The consistent Veteran fancier John Anderson wins 2nd Open and the Leuchars club on 1146 with another fancied pigeon. This one was a blue cock flying to the perch. Breeding Vandenabeele x with a Geoff Cooper hen. What a season John has had, Well done John!
The ever consistent loft of George Anderson was 3rd Open on 1139, and wins the Marathorn club. This chq hen was on darkness. Her sire came from a gift via Jimmy Anderson and Son of Wellbank. The dam was a daughter of 159, who was from a son of the Jimmy Anderson Pigeon. 159 was 1st Sect, Newbury SNFC a few years ago.
Davy Wilson was 4th & 5th Open 0n 1131 & 1129. This is another loft who has flown well in the Kingdom this year. Davy's first bird was a young Red hen flying for the love of it’s loft. She is a Grand Daughter of his 2nd Open Clermont SNFC in 2002! Jim Benvie came in at 6th Open on 1120.895,and seems to have been in from them all this year! George Anderson was in again for 8th, 9th and 10th Open, on 1120.6, 1120.2 and 1119.8, and as I said showing some consistency, for this is a loft that is no stranger to the Association winners enclosure! Big Pete Penman will be happy with his 11th Open on 1119.6, winning the Coaltown club. Finally Davy Wilson was 12th on 1118.
There were very good returns in this race from everyone iv’e spoken to, with some fanciers only having one maybe two missing. Our race controller Ian McClaren has asked if me to thank Vic Hammond of the Essex Fed, who were one of the Feds who held their birds a little so that ours could get a clear brake for home! Also thanks to Brian Denny of York, and Mick Brennan of Ayecliffe . Ian stated at the time that their would be no wind until the birds got near the Berwick Upon Tweed area, and this has been proved about right! Well done Ian you have gave us some excellent racing in this most difficult of seasons!
In Rosyth Alan Cunningham took the first 2 places. The winner a home bred chq pied cock flying to the perch. The next one was b, pied cock racing to the perch and was bred by Dougie Barnes of Crossgates. That’s 4 of the y.b races Alan has won plus now the Y.B Ave as well. Very consistent with the yb’s this year, So well done Alan! 3rd was Richard Brown with a home bred Black Pied cock also flying to the perch. 4th was yours truly with the same red cock I was 4th with from Whitton Castle, just flying to the perch. Sire is a son of Jim Donaldsons famous stock cock the “ Dall cock “ Sire of 1st Open National and section winners for Jim. while the dam is a daughter of a Donaldson cock and a daughter of Jock Ellis’s, hen which won 15th Open Reims amongst others!
After the last race was flown some members decided to try their luck at the SNRPC Leicester YB National, distances ranging from 255- 280mls. The birds were away in a no wind situation, changing to N.West. Some low cloud and mist seemed to have hampered them a little, but it would most probably have been the N W wind which slowed them down a bit, as we expected them a little quicker! I expected them into the Kingdom between 3pm and 3.15pm, but it was not until 3.40 pm that the first pigeon arrived into the area.
The winner and winning 4th Section C’ was Alan Cunningham from my own club Rosyth. Alan’s timer is a b.pied cock that was 2nd club from Wakefield, and also has another 2nd and a 1st prize to his credit! This pigeon was one of six bred for him by Doug Barnes, Crossgates. The pied cock was from a Tom Larkins Busscheart crossed with a Curtis wall Lunt & Green, Janseen based pigeon. Alan also has others on the result and had 6 from 7 when I last spoke to him. To say Alan was over the moon would be an understatement. Yes you can hold your head up Alan, for beating the old school fanciers in the Kingdom isn’t exactly easy! Alan’s y.b’s have been flying very well winning 4 of the club races, plus other prizes. Alan has trained them every week Monday to Friday from either North Berwick or Bonnyrigg depending on where he has been working. It seems to have stopped them falling to pieces in the moult and has certainly kept them fit! Very well done Allan and Congratulations from the KRPA members on having the first pigeon in the Association! A worthy winner!
2nd KRPA was the very experienced Pete Patrick of Thornton, with a chq hen flying to the perch. The sire won from Reims in 2006 with the SNRPC, nearly 570mls. While the dam also won from SNRPC Reims last year but was unfortunately killed only a couple of weeks before my visit to Pete’s on the night of the race. Pete wins 11th Sect, C’ with his timer and has others in the result. This is another loft which is hard to beat in the Nationals year in year out. Another name to look for next year, well done Pete!
3rd KRPA and 14th Sect C’ is Harry Maidment of Ladybank, with a chq cock racing to the perch. I was particularly pleased for Harry as it comes from a good line of pigeons for him, and hopefully will time them from the channel at a later date! Sire was from Dennis Dalls good stock cock who was from “ 2203” , sire of Rowena, when paired to “Barbara”. The G. dam on the sire side came from Trails Spark when pared to a daughter of Nancy. The Dam of Harry’s timer is the Mother of the loft and bred by Billy Davidson & Son of Coalburn. This hen is responsible for good pigeons such as “Cloe’s Angel”, 2nd Open ST. Nazaire SNRPC, and other hens to win 44th Open Clermont, and 39th Open Chenoise with another one, are some that spring to mind. So you can see that this cock is half brother to Harry’s 2nd Open ST. Nazaire, Cloe’s Angel only beaten by John Proctor! Harry also had more on the sheet and will be quite happy, well done Harry!
Jock King managed to win 4th KRPA, 15th Sect C’ with a D,chq cock flying to the perch. This one had 2nd club Newton Aycliffe to it’s credit and Would have won the club from Wakefield but for a stopped clock. As a matter of fact this cock has been 1st to the loft this year on 4 occasions. The nest mate of this cock was also timed in this race to be 2nd to the loft and on the Open result. The D, chq cock was bred from a G.Son of Jock’s Fair Isle Mary. The FIRST EVER, SNRPC Gold Award winner in 2006 for 5 National prizes from the channel. She now has in fact won 7 times, and gives jock his 3rd Gold Award Winner! The dam of the D, chq was bred by John McNeil of Broxburn.
Yours truly sent 7 to Leicester and managed to get 3 on the sheet not bothering to time in the 4th just after the 3rd one. The annoying thing is I didn’t see any of the first 3 arrive, losing quite a bit of time with the first one. This is what happens when the phone wrings, or I am making some enquiries. I will need to get another couple of hand sets outside as this year I have been caught out a few times and this can’t go on. I had 5 on the day and another turned up on Tuesday, so only one down. We seemed to get pretty good returns from this race, which is ok at 260mls. Funny how we don’t always get this from 50 and 80ml races, makes one wonder!
That’s it for 2007 thank god, because it’s been some year, this one! We will have to wait and see what 2008 has in store for us, hopefully favorable and with a few pleasant surprises!
Before closing I would like to tell the KRPA members that the Association has had a very profitable season and we should look forward to more of the same, thanks to plenty of support from you the members again!!! During 2008!
Anything of interest to Stuart Bowman 118 Sinclair Drive Cowdenbeath Fife KY4-9RG, TEL 01383518471, email to
15/10/07
