LES J. PARKINSON
For the first time, we went to the Doncaster Show and were pleased to see so many fanciers attending. What I did notice was that there were a lot of stands that were not pigeons related which makes a change. I was talking to a few people who were regulars at the show and they were saying that with the way the stands are increasing the show needs more room. I then thought back to I think it was 1975 when we were at the last BHW Show at the racecourse before moving to Blackpool and they were experiencing the same problem. I did see and speak to a lot of people I knew at the show and a lot spoke to me, the problem is many are on the other end of the phone and I don’t see their faces so end up scratching my head as to whom some are. As always when I say something to that affect Elizabeth says it is my age. I must admit that I am not the best of people for remembering faces; I was not the first in line when they gave memories out. Again, Elizabeth said “That’s what they call, selective memory” but when I said don’t agree she said “You would if it was a pigeon in the loft” Anyway it was a good day out and now I am looking forward to the Blackpool Show.
By including the following there is no advantage to me but the best pigeons I saw at the show were those on the Vanneste-Rigole stand but they only sold one which surprised me. They were real quality pigeons and well-bred and I would be confident that if they had been sold the buyers would have bred good winners out of them. I still cannot understand why fanciers go for the fashion of the day which is generally pigeons that have had more than their share of publicity. A lot of the publicity on continental fanciers is exaggerated on what they do win and that has come from a fancier racing over there. Over the years I have visited many lofts on the continent and spoken to many fanciers about winners. What does happen is many fanciers win on nominations in races yet they may have never been in the top 20 of a race. Now you may think that if they have nominated the pigeon then they are the best but that is far from the case because some of the races may only have a hundred or so birds entered in that particular race. All this came about because there was an advert in one of the UK papers so I took it over to Belgium with me and asked what the competition was like in the club. The fancier I was discussing this with flew in the provincial so new about the fancier concerned, he smiled and rubbed his thumb over his fingers and that meant it was all about money. The fancier did not speak brilliant English but more than enough to get by and went on to say that this fancier did not appear in the top 50 of the provincial but the reports were rating him as a superstar. There are many fanciers on the continent who are really good winners who we do not hear from because they are what we might call publicity shy but in fact don’t want publicity because they are racing their pigeons for their own enjoyment and not financial gain. There are fanciers in the UK who are like that because I have tried quite a number to do an article and they are not interested in publicity. These are probably the fanciers who we need to go and buy from, that is of course if they will let you have them. There are some good German lofts about and if I get the chance I might take a trip that way to see who is winning what. There is no doubt there will be fanciers over there who win out of turn who we never hear of. Don’t get me wrong the sport needs such fanciers because they are what keep’s the wheels in motion.
No matter what sport or hobby we get involved with there are always business’s and selling pigeons is a business. Sitting here in the office I can see out of the window and the sky has turned blue from what was a dirty grey and rain earlier in the day. It was bitterly cold but not too bad now, the type of autumn weather that the pigeons like to exercise in, sun shining with a very light cool breeze. Then the following morning I sat here looking at a clear blue sky that then turned a purpley grey. Just then the phone went and it was Chris Knowles who went on to tell me that they had thunder and then it started snowing at the same time, crazy weather. We have seen the reports of the hottest overall year on record and yes it was but not the weather for pigeon racing on some weekends. Well we are now approaching the end of November and there is no doubt many sorting out what they are going to pair to what. It was easy for me in the stock lofts when I had all direct children of 1st National winners in the sections. I would just put them in and let them pair to what they wanted unless there was a special pair and they were the ones that gave me the problems. If there were mixed pigeons in the section, then they needed to be sorted because some were needed for others and did not want crossed pigeons. When it came to the race team then thoughts were on what races they were going to be sent to so they were matched as near as possible for the job that was set out for them. If they were all raced as widowhood cocks them there would be no problem but I did like to race the hens especially from across the channel in the National races. More often than not, I found that the hens raced better from the longer races and more often than not they would beat the cocks. It is the National and the longer races that I am missing and even now after nearly 2yrs with pigeons in the back garden I still go down the side of the house from the office and look at the summer house. I have looked at it several times and thought 18 natural pairs but then think of why they went in the first place and then forget about them until the next time. I am still in contact with fanciers every day and take photos so they are not far away whatever I am doing. We were recently at a family gathering for a birthday and Bill Smallwood brought a 1952 bronze medal that his family had won at I think the Dairy Show in London and this was won in the pigeon section. The Middlewich Smallwood’s were pigeon fanciers in those days and I have included some loft photos in past articles. Having said that there were a lot of fanciers in Middlewich in those days and it was only a small place then. Those were the days when there were enough young fanciers in the sport to have their own competition. When we were at the Donny Show I was asked about writing and as I said at the time we are so busy. But with a few things on my mind I thought I would put a few of them together.
