THE PORT NEWS
Alan Shinton
Paul Coombes - "This is what our hobby is about"
Victoria HS were at Frome for their fifth race of the season. Flying approx 147 miles, the winning pigeon for the second time this season was timed in by the longest flyer, Paul Coombes, winning his second race in five starts. Paul has been seen at the height of consistency. After winning the first race of the season (and taking 2nd position for good measure), he has subsequently finished 2nd, 3rd and 4th club Frome the previous week which in turn gave him 4th, 5th & 6th in the West Cheshire Federation. This week has seen Paul back on the winner's podium and for good measure he tops the West Cheshire Federation beating 2161 pigeons.
The Victoria HS result reads: Paul Coombes first on 1635, Sid Arathoon is starting to find his rhythm and drops into second and fourth with velocities of 1615 and 1614, with Mrs and Mrs A J Price taking third on 1614. With 17 members sending 452 pigeons, the birds were liberated into a west wind for the fifth consecutive week. The West Cheshire Federation conyoyer Dave Cotgreave, race controller Steve Williams and secretary Mrs J Dodd gave us another excellent race.
When visiting Paul to write this report, he was really excited by the way he described his hen's arrival from the race. Paul has raced pigeons for some forty years, but it was really refreshing to listen to a guy with so much experience describe the extreme pleasure from watching his bird "fold" or "buckle" and drop like a stone and then (get the remark) "hit the back of the shed out". In Paul's own words (and I believe him when he said it) "winning the race, and even being told I had topped the federation was brilliant, but sitting and waiting for my birds and anticipating their arrival still gives me butterflies in my stomach. On this particular day, I had the company of my good friend Jack Davey. Jack would be normally sat at the loft of Gary Williams who flies in the Wrexham Fed, however they had put racing back to the Sunday due to the forecast of inclement weather. In fact it was Jack (an ex-convoyer himself) who told me to expect the birds under three hours for the 147 mile journey. Jack was to be proved correct. As I looked south over the Westminister estate, I noticed a pigeon extremely high, like a dot in the sky; the bird folded and started to drop within seconds of me seeing it. There are only two lofts locally on the Wezzie estate, mine and Alan Shinton's. This pigeon was only bound for one loft. It was my blue hen, I was never in doubt she was coming to my loft and I said as much to Jack. The hen did not flinch, she hit the trap and timed in immediately losing not even a quarter of a second. The butterflies in my stomach were at their peak, I was bursting. Was this excitement?, was this pride? What I had just witnessed had taken my breath away. To witness such an approach with regard to height, and even notice the pigeon in the first place, then to watch the bird fold up, drop and trap all within a twenty to thirty second time frame which felt on reflection like two minutes of absolute bliss really epitomises why we love this hobby and our pigeons. Within the ten minutes of timing in the result really meant nothing, the exhilaration of the arrival meant everything. Having my close friend there to witness the arrival also meant a great deal, as now we could both reflect on and discuss the race, and after my other birds had trapped I could then start to contemplate the time and probable velocity of my blue hen. Could she be a winner? Come one o'clock we would find out. But even without a result, the way she arrived will stay etched into my mind forever. As for Jack, I am sure I will be reminding him of this moment every other day while working our allotments. And I now give you challenge as a novice scribe to put this into words that people and especially pigeon fanciers will understand and also grasp the extremely special moment I enjoyed" - Let's hope I did.
One o'clock did arrive, and unfortunately due to illness I couldn't attend the club and witness Paul's excitement and probable disappointment of others, but needless to say the hen indeed triumphed by not only winning the Victoria HS but also the West Cheshire Federation. From all your colleagues and co club members, well done.
Paul's blue hen is an apple bodied compact yearling, bred down pigeons originally obtained from Roy Sandland. The sire a blue cock is a direct son of Roy's "Golden Couple" who have produced children and grand children to win at federation and amalgamation level. This blue cock is now himself the sire of three West Cheshire Federation winners. The dam is also again obtained direct from Roy Sandland, a blue pied hen and known in the loft as "Perfection". This hen is the model that Paul Coombes has set his standard by (with regard to breeding) and hence the name Perfection. She is Paul's idea of the perfect pigeon with regard to handling and general make up of her attitude with regard to homing and breeding. She is a daughter of Roy's Staf Van Reet 613 when paired to his 419 hen. 613 is renowned for winning the averages for Roy in Bebington virtually on his own. Bred from Toey and the Regatta Hen, he is the sire and grand sire of numerous winners. The 419 hen is a full sister to two first amalgamation winners for Roy and is a daughter of the "Present Hen".
Paul Coombes with his West Cheshire Federation winner
Paul Coombes' Federation winner "in hand"
Paul conditions his birds on the roundabout system, although these days he has modified it somewhat to suit his own methods. Although his hens are not allowed to see the cocks through the week, they are also darkened. This not only calms his hens but also retards them with regard to pairing. Paul is an avid barley feeder and as such he can control them with regard to pairing to an extent, however once he starts to put them onto hard widowhood mix or in his words "better scran" and the fitter they become the more likely they are to pair up with each other. Darkening helps stop this, although as he states he has not seen an improvement in their performance just the retard of pairing. Paul also sends both cocks and hens to all inland races. He will then send cocks one week and hens the next to the channel races. Paul intends to fly competitively out to Messac and will decide about flying Niort after he has had three channel races. Niort is just short of five hundred mile into Ellesmere Port and although Paul is a past winner of our club's longest race, he does not class it as a must send race. The channel races are now approaching for the Victoria HS so the excitement begins to mount, or not as the case may be.
West Cheshire Federation Result
With the winds favouring the easterly or shortest flyers in the federation (that said you still need to get the pigeons), it was not surprising to read that the fed was topped in Ellesmere Port and closely followed by Chester. The enigmatic Paul Coombes wins the federation and Victoria HS. Warren Walker not only takes the first three in the Chester HS but also second, third, and seventh in the federation. Warren has not only been knocking the door in the federation again this season, he has nearly broken it down, and will no doubt figure as the season progresses to its conclusion. Steve Williams has been on the sheet most weeks and again wins the Rock Station. Steve timed three birds in five seconds and a fourth within another fourteen seconds for good measure to take first four positions in the Rock Station Club and fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth fed. T Hayes wins the Willaston club, and ninth federation with R and R Sandland taking second Willaston HS and tenth federation.
West Cheshire Federation raced from Frome on 11th May (93/2161). Club Results: Victoria (17/452) P Coombes 1635. S Arathoon 1615. Mr and Mrs AJ Price 1614. Chester (8/167) W Walker 1629, 1624, 1620. Rock Station (13/320) S Williams 1623, 1623, 1622. Willaston (10/322) T Hayes 1619, R and R Sandland 1618, 1611. Hooton (17/387) BV Jones 1612, 1605, W H Cottrell & Son 1605. Moreton (9/144) P Stewart 1584, Mr and Mrs A Clare 1581, 1578. Neston (11/223) C and CD Jones 1580, CAG Mathias 1579, P Leighton & Son 1577. Christleton (8/136) D Griffiths 1563, 1558, J Churchill 1557.
