PIGEON TOPICS
Stuart Bowman
Hello again folks. Before getting on with a couple of club results let me take this opportunity to congratulate Davie Burns on his National win from Fontenay with the SNRPC. This win is long overdue for Davie who has been chapping at the door for many years. Not only was it a spectacular win but Davie also had the next two places in the Section which is the first time it has been done. In fact these were the only 3 birds in Sect C’ on the day, quite remarkable and what pleases me is that it has happened to a very genuine fancier! Davie timed a 4yo blue hen, a grand daughter of Davies 3rd Open SNFC La Ferte Bernard. This hen also had the Dennis Dall blood in it crossed with Davies own old bloodlines. She won 36th Open Arras in 2010 showing a lot of promise. This year she had 3 races to Leicester and then flew Leicester again the following week. She then had 4/5 tosses from as far as Kincardine and was never once tossed over the river forth for this race. She was then sent with a little confidence covering 12 day eggs and the rest is now history! Davie’s 2nd Sect winner had exactly the same preparation as the National winner and was also sent on 12 day eggs. This 4yo chq hen was 30th Open Arras National in 2010 being timed at 10.10pm, again an excellent performance. Her sire was bred by Bob Blyth from Kirkaldy and the Dam from Dennis Dall. Davie’s next pigeon giving him the winning trio was a 4yo chq cock which was actually paired to the second one, and again had the same preparation. His sire was bred by Bob Blyth from a bird bought at the late Jimmy Keirs Bereavement sale and was from the Cholet hen, Bob then paired it to a hen he got from Davie from his hen which won 4th Open Reims & 10th Open Reims to breed the sire of this latest 3rd Sect. The Dam was bred by the one and only Dennis Dall from a pair that Dennis bought at the late John Trails clearance sale, the dam in fact was from one of Jocks best pigeons “Survivor”! There you have it then a top class performance by a top class fancier, one who in my opinion has not been given the credit over the years he so richly deserves. This has never been a loft i would underestimate in fact it’s one of those lofts i always ask about in the big races. Some names have a twang to them over the years but good observant fanciers should take note of the names that are winning in the last few years especially right now, not years ago. Maybe from now on we should put Van in front of Dave’s second name, or will fanciers use commonsense and look at the results a bit more carefully! The loft of Dave Burns has been winning at the distance for donkeys years and it has not gone unnoticed, at least not by me. Congratulations Davie you’ve done it and not before time!!!
Rosyth had another come back race from Berwick Upon Tweed before the Arras race and the winner of this steady race turned out to be Jimmy and Dwain Bingham with a 2yo blue pied hen bred by Ally Birkett. This one was racing to a day old baby and had previously won Otterburn as a young bird. 2nd was yours truly with a late bred Mealy cock racing to 10 day eggs. He has been a steady bird this year for a lb and was at the Wanstead race 345mls before this race. Sire is a full brother to the cock that won Wanstead last year while the dam is the same dam of the hen which won 51st Open Arras etc last year. Secretary Gordon Cree was 3rd with a 2yo blue hen bred by Lee Birkett and was racing to 10 day eggs. 4th yours truly with a ylg blue hen, her first year on the road and racing to 7 day eggs. She is bred from the same pair that bred John Ellis’s 12th Open Arras National in 2010. Dam from J.Ellis and sire was from my old mealy cock.
Rosyth from Arras racing with the Kingdom and the SNRPC turned out to be an interesting race with the birds being basketed earlier because of adverse weather coming in on July 16th/17th. The birds were liberated at 10.30am into a s.w.wind giving them 12hrs til the close of the race on the first day. Overall there were 28 birds timed in on the day with the SNRPC mostly in the east. Wind and weather, hours of darkness dictated this. The most was made out of a bad situation as the weather on sat/sun would not have given us a race not even early in the week! Not an ideal situation i agree but surely a bit better than no race at all. The winner in Rosyth was Stuart Bowman with a 2yo light chq cock sent on 14 day eggs. This bird won as a yb then in a testing race was 20th Association Leicester 2010 and has a few other prizes. This year he had 4 races incl both Leicester races and had 3 tosses from 25mls before basketing and was on his 4th flight. He was bred by John Clark from Airdrie from whom i’ve exchanged a few good birds with now. My second bird in this race was also bred from a cock that john supplied me with. Many thanks again John! 2nd was Louie Mitchell with a 2yo chq pied hen. Louie’s timer had about 5 races to Leicester then flew Wanstead Flats 340mls approx 4 weeks before Arras. She was covering 10 day eggs the same as all the team for this race. Her sire is a Janseen cross Silvere Toye while the dam is from a daughter of Dale Newcombes “Style “and “Regatta via an exchange between Dale and Louie. 3rd was Stuart Bowman with a 2yo dark Hen sent on 14 day eggs also on her 4th flight and was in fact paired to my first bird. As a yb she only went as far as whitton Castle. Last year she was unraced and got injured by a bop on a training toss and by the time she was ok the racing was nearly finished. This year she had Otterburn, W/Castle, Ripon, Wakefield, Leicester (2) 4th to the loft then Wanstead where she homed about 10pm. She then had 4 tosses from 25 mls. Her sire was bred by John Clark, being an inbred cock from a G.Sire to G.Daaughter pairing. The hen having won for John, the G.Sire being the Eric Fox cock. The dam was a dark hen who scored twice from Reims for me. She came from a J.Donadlson cross D.Newcombe cock crossed with a Donadlson cross Jock Ellis hen. I was quite pleased with this hen in the end as it has took me a long time to get her down the road! 4th was the club secy Gordon Cree with a 3yo blue hen of Janseen bloodlines. This one was raced most weeks in the club out to Wanstead Flats and has been a steady bird for Gordon. Prior to this race she had 3 or 4 tosses from Peas Bay with Wattie Hodges trailer. Wattie trains a lot of the birds for the fife fanciers and is also the Convoyer for the Kingdom. The hen also had 2 private tosses from Dunbar and was sent to the Arras race covering 14 day eggs. Returns seemed to be ok from this race considering what the birds had to go through. Congratulations are again in order to Pete Virtue who wins 1st & 2nd Open National his second National win this season, top drawer stuff from a National ace! Well done also to John Ellis on his 1st Sect C’ in the same race, Hope youv’e got your feet up now John, take care!
Finally Jock Mackenzie of Anstruther is having a sale of old Birds on Sunday 28th of August at the Coaltown of Balgonie Bowling Club immediately after the Kingdom late bred sale. Viewing is from 6pm sale starts at 7pm. The usual late breds will be on offer from some of the top pigeons and fanciers in the Kingdom plus their friends during 2011. Followed by approx 25 old birds from John Mackenzies loft. These include a few stock ones, and entire old bird race team which have flown and won across channel this year from Reims, Fontenay and Arras and a 1st Sect Wanstead Flats National this year also in sale. Bloodlines are mostly the successful line of Jimmy Hamilton of Kennoway “Iron Lady Fame “ John has had a lot of success with these birds in recent years with these birds winning top positions from Tours, Messac, Reims, Arras etc. Plus some Jan Aarden, Busschaert, and a few other birds from fife fanciers crossed with Johns family. This loft was Runner Up to Over all National Averages winner John Bell last year. The Mackenzie loft won Sect C ‘ Averages in the National in 2010 and 2008, Winning many top Awards in SNRPC and Kingdom Racing Pigeon Association, incl best Ave Tours and Arras, and best Ave Reims and Tours, incl 1st Sect Tours etc. John is calling it a day so this is a good opportunity to get your hands on some excellent bloodlines from the most discerning and honest fancier i know. Being a mentor of mine John has helped me a lot with good birds over the years and can help a few more lofts i’m sure with birds he is bringing to this sale. It will be a sad day but these birds have to go, you know where to be on 28th August. John has said that the ybs will be raced out and the survivors will be sold after the yb racing is finished.
All thats left now is the yb’s , Lucky White Heather ! Any info to 118 Sinclair Drive Cowdenbeath Fife KY4-9RG ,tel 01383-518471. Email to
