GARY & JAMES DUTTON
"DEDICATION"
by Martin Sheppard
Over the last few years I’ve had the pleasure of visiting some of the country's top pigeon fanciers. I’ve also had the opportunity of writing about them. I’ve learned that success within pigeon racing is like any other sport: vision, complete focus, hard work and sheer determination. Gary & James are no exceptions. Their zest for improvement has no boundaries.
I first met Gary & James last year through another top fancier, Stuart Inett. (Van Robaey 2007/Rhonfried winner 2008). At the time, I'd lost most of my youngbird team over just two training tosses. Stuart had told James about my dilemma. The next day, James phoned me to say he had 10 youngsters waiting for me. So between Stuart Inett, Gary & James Dutton and another fantastic fancier, Chris Hitchins (Cheshire) I now had a new team of 28 youngsters again. The night I picked the youngsters up was the first time Id ever met the Duttons. The first impressions that they were a very friendly, genuine, decent hardworking family.
As James showed me around the lofts, he passed me some of the best pigeons I had ever handled. The one part of that loft visit that stays fresh in my mind was the condition of the birds along with how content and tame they all were. James told me that one of the most important lessons to be learnt when it comes to those few seconds on race day is the love of there home. He and Gary always try to build a solid bond between them and the birds. This was very noticeable, especially with the widowhood racing cocks, which were almost at the end of their season but in absolutely magnificent condition.
He put my 10 youngsters in a basket, and he also then promised to breed me a couple of pairs out of his top Lambrechts for the stock loft at the end of that season. At this point in my mind I had a figure for what he was about charge me for these 10 beautiful youngsters. When I asked him he looked puzzled, verging on embarrassment. “They are free", he said. The 2 pair of Lambrects at end of the season will be at the right price. This statement had just come from a lad who was up to 60 fed cards for the year and had recently won the Redditch Open.
I’ve learned over the years that generous people simply want you to get on. They want you to reach your goals a little easier than they've had to. Generosity through knowledge or wealth has benefited every single one of us.
The seeds of this future formidable partnership began in 1974 long before pigeon protégé James was born. Gary, like a lot of the local lads, kept tumblers. But like most pigeon fanciers who have kept these weird but wonderful pigeons he eventually developed the buzz for clocking in on a Saturday instead.
Gary joined the Twin Green F.C. (Birmingham). Like most clubs in the 70s/80s, the club had over 40 flying members every week. During this time a fellow member, Cyril Storer, gave Gary his first racers, these being the old reliable Barker lines. During these times the birds were raced reasonably well taking a few prizes, including 1st Truro, 1st Nantes, along with other channel prizes.
Keeping pigeons now was more of a hobby than a sport due to Gary’s commitments to his carpentry & joinery apprenticeship along with starting his own family. With all this in mind he decided to pack the pigeons up till such time work and financial constraints would be more favourable.
In the early ninetees after moving to their new house, a loft was built by the now qualified carpenter & joiner, then he purchased Busschaerts from Mr & Mrs Sutton, along with gift birds from fellow top fancier John Bate of Sheldon.Gary now joined the Solihull & Knowle club, which he and James still race to this day. During this time young pigeon protégé James, now 8 years old, was showing all the signs of becoming a fully fledged partner to his dad. Mr & Mrs Sutton & John Bates' pigeons transformed their racing results virtually overnight, but there was just something missing.
During this time, showing interest in the finer points of sprint racing, Jim approached a fantastic fancier in Dean Cartmell. (Van Robaey winner 2003). Gary & James bought in the very best of Dean's pigeons with instant winning results. The transformation into the big time was now well and truly on its way!!!
In 2006 Gary & James through Dean Cartmell met fellow Van Robaey & Rhonfried winner Stuart Inett. Stuart has been arguably one of the best pigeon fanciers in the Midlands over a generation. He’s won from every race point in every wind against some of the best competition in the country, winning Federations with 3/4/5000 pigeons, racing just 12 widowhood cocks to three clubs and winning all three.
Through Stuart, Gary & James would now get an insight into how to move to the very highest level of pigeon racing. They would also get to know in depth all about the very best families of racing pigeons from across Europe. During the hours spent with Stuart, developing all the new skills to add to their own, a new family of pigeons were emerging from Berlaar, Belgium: LAMBRECHTS!!!
Stuart advised Gary & James to invest in these new racing machines as they were becoming hugely popular across the whole of Britain.Bill Duckworth was one of the original fanciers who bought them over to Britain in 1996 with breathtaking results to follow.
James set about acquiring these racing machines direct from the masters themselves. He set about contacting Cyril & Carl, with a view to going over to Belgium to visit these legendary lofts, with the view to obtaining some of arguably the best sprint pigeons in the world.Cyril and Carl were contacted by James in 2007 with requests for youngsters to race the following year, but unfortunately due to waiting lists from fanciers all over the world the request had to be denied until 2009. Although the partnership couldn’t obtain any youngsters from Lambrechts for 2008, with his inquisitiveness and passion for our sport, he kept in touch with Cyril and Carl via telephone and email. Again learning the art of pigeon racing at the very highest level and at the same time building a good sound friendship along the way. Attention to detail and acuteness with James is hugely obvious when you become friends with him. That is why Cyril and Carl have grown to like this youngman so much.
The 2009 season came, and along with Stuart Inett both went over to Belgium to spend the weekend with the Lambrecht family. Both James and Stuart whilst over there were astounded by the hospitality showed to them by the Lambrecht family and Belgium people in general. Both said what a truly fantastic time they’d both had. Whilst there Cindy, Carl's wife got up very early one morning to go into town especially to buy muscles for James’s breakfast. During the same time the family asked them both to join them in a special Easter Day sit down meal with all the family. Carl's mom had even baked a cake especially for their visit. Whilst there James and Stuart were also treated to an escorted visit too all the other top lofts in the area by Carl. On the same night they went with Cyril and Carl to the pigeon club to mark the pigeons for the next day’s race. Again the lads say how friendly all the members were.
The next day the lads watched Lambrechts time in the birds. Both James and Stuart were well impressed with the set up, and especially the way the pigeons raced into the loft.
During the visit it became knowledge that the main source to the founding of this brilliant sprint family originally came from Cyril’s brother Emanuel. Emanuel had been a top top fancier until he was diagnosed with pigeon lung, then he let Cyril have all the main stock. Among these first top pigeons was Goede Witte Emanuel. Cyril and Carl believe this is one of the main pigeons which helped form this phenomena in what we are seeing today in sprint racing today.
James and Stuart took with them pedigrees and results of pigeons that had done really well for them. They showed Cyril and Carl with a view to obtaining more of the same. The main pigeons on the pedigrees were handled with admiration. A family of super fast sprint pigeons.James acquired 20 youngsters along with Stuart picking out 6. Out of the 20 bought back from Belgium that day, 4 were put straight into the stock loft whilst the others were put to work. Four of the cocks went on to become brilliant pigeons for James and Gary. “Donker Kris II” was one of them and won 1st Redditch open and four equivalent 1st Feds. This cock will only be a two year old racing this year.
Other top Lambrechts obtained over the last two years have been sons and daughters from “Superke”, “Blauw Witpen Kris”, “Donker Kris from 2000”, “Super Quiverainman”, “Goede Geshelpte”, “Driehoek”, “De 90”, “Manke Geshelpte”, “De Zot”, “Donker Van Den Dries”, “Romeo” (brother to car winner), “Den 43”, “Karel Mollen 1997”, "lauwe Kees”, “Goede 64”, “Donker 08”, “Asdiuf 2008”, “Geode Zwarte Asdiuf Noyon 2001”, “Goede 30”. These have come via Stuart Inett, Mark Evans' Heart of England auctions, Gary Downing (entire clearance sale), Rob Horton, Steve Foster and Jason Hulse (entire clearance sale). So you can see not only have Gary & James spent thousands of hours learning from the very best in the sport, they have spent literally thousands obtaining the right tools to do the job.
James went over too Cyril’s and Carls four times in 2010 trying to obtain certain lines that were proving to be in a class of their own. One such pigeon is “Donker Zot”, another outstanding cock, who has bred one cock to win 4 x 2nd feds, along with numerous other prize winners. James offered a huge amount of money to Cyril and Carl especially to buy the mother of “Donker Zot”. No amount of money would buy this hen.
Other outstanding pigeons to add to the Dutton’s are “Rood Vechter”, grandson of two Lambrechts car winners when paired together and “Romeo”, full brother to another Lambrechts car winner.
Most fanciers who don’t race or own any Lambrechts will probably find some of the reading about this family of pigeons a little tedious. But what I will say is everyone I’ve spoken to who’ve raced these pigeons all say the same: “Lightning".
Their results over the last three years flying in one club have proved that the best pigeons in superb health can and do produce some of the fantastic results we have seen form this youngman and his father in such a short period of time. I just hope with all the enthusiasm he has for the sport, he doesn’t become handicapped by his own success, as we see within pigeon racing on a regular basis.
Fed 2008 1x1st 2x2nd Fed Cards 40….
Club 2008 12x1st 12x2nd 13x3rd 12x4th…
Fed 2009 2x1st 3x2nd Fed Cards 39….
Club 2009 14x1st 9x2nd 8x3rd 14x4th…
Fed 2010 5x1st 5x2nd Fed Cards 70….
Club 2010 14x1st 12x2nd 14x3rd 12x4th
1st & 2nd Redditch/Studley Open. 2010
When Gary and James raced the Redditch open they invited Stuart Inett to be there when the birds arrived home. After they had timed the birds in Stuart paid them the ultimate accolade. He said, “you won’t get pigeons to come any better than that”.
Gary & James' system is simply down to pure commitment and perseverance. Nothing complicated. They have spent literally thousands of hours listening intently to all the fanciers already named. Then they have put in a style of their own to maximise how their birds repay them week in week out.
Young birds are parted on Cosworth Stud breeding mixture for a minimum of two weeks until they start to fly with confidence around the loft, then the hard work starts for both pigeon and fancier. The youngsters start at one mile, then right through to 80 mile tosses. Either Gary or James will drive the 60/70/80 miles down the motorway early morning before most fanciers have finished dreaming of winning a big race. Then both of them go to work. To come home at tea time to start all over again. I asked Gary how he fitted everything in with the hours he works, and he explained… 'our pigeons are trained, exercised, cleaned out, fed and watered, done… before I we leave for work at 7 am'.
Every week in a rolling three week programme they treat the 1st week canker, 2nd week respiratory, 3rd week general broad spectrum.
Gary & James believe sedachol is a very beneficial product to use. They also swear by a brilliant Rhonfried product - K+K Protein powder.
The widowhood cocks are paired up on the 15th December and rear two youngsters. The youngsters are taken away with the hens at 21 days. Then the cocks are rested and fed a mixture of Diet 200. Gary & James are very big on garlic. There will be either garlic cloves in the water or garlic on the corn. The cocks will then be exercised twice a day till they are exercising strongly around home. No flags are used.
James will also treat the birds with Nasaline up to four times during the season. He explained that respiratory problems are a major cause for the loss of form; he also uses smoke bombs in the loft, again three to four times during the racing season.
Red Band is another favourite of the Duttons. James explained to me that only Haiths Red Band is ever used. Peanuts are also used along with the Red Band for trapping purposes. The Red Band along with the peanuts are put in there boxes on arrival from training or after exercising.
The main feeding of the cocks is very simple. In the mornings they get a WD-40 cap full of a mixture in the boxes of the following: Gerry plus, base plus and energy plus. The night time feed is ¾ oz maybe 1 oz depending on the workload and where the race’s from along with scrutinising the weather forecast to predict what the wind may be. On the return from the race diet 200 with garlic juice x k-k powder.
The training starts from 3 to 4 miles building up to 30 miles, once up to 30 miles and within four weeks of the first race the hens will be shown. Then the training will be twice a week from 50-60 miles. The Sunday before the first race a 70 mile toss will be given. After that no more training.
Young cocks will be introduced to the widowhood as soon as possible. The widowhood cocks are put in aviaries to moult out as soon as they have finished racing, along with the stock cocks. I found this a bit harsh. But the pigeons, as I’ve said earlier, are in such fantastic condition. Beautiful condition.
Gary & James would also like to thank some very influential people who came into their lives as mentors and have now become good friends. Stuart Inett, Joe Fanin, Dean Cartmell, and last but not least Cyril & Carl Lambrecht along with the Lambrecht family. He would also like to thank from the bottom of his heart that of his brilliant Dad, Gary, because without him none of this would now have ever been possible. Gary, for me, is the ultimate you get in Dads.
The most successful people within the world we live in today past and present have got there through exactly the same grit and determination as I’ve seen in this father & son partnership. It’s as simple as that.
I drove through West Bromwich today and saw a picture on one of the advertising billboards of Mark Evan’s of Heart of England Auctions, Tuerlings Gold Ring Classic. I believe if we are to encourage more young men like James Dutton into our sport then such influential successful people like Mark Evans need to be more involved with the running of our great sport.
Yours in sport.
Newland
