RHONDDA VALLEY FED
Reports by Martin Dunn
GUILDFORD, MAIDSTONE & FOLKESTONE
Third race of the programme was from Guildford, a change to the designated race point of Leatherhead. The fed race convoyers were informed that the original site at Leatherhead was unsuitable for a large liberation and would not suit the amount of pigeons that were planned for this week.
The Parry Brothers spent the Monday before the race travelling around the area to find a suitable race point, which they managed to do eventually and with the help from Gail Jones at the W.H.U. offices, who managed to send out the distances in time for the race, we found ourselves at Guildford, which is around 125 miles to the Rhondda itself.
The morning opened up bright and sunny and the 3546 pigeons were liberated into a variable wind at 06:45. The birds didn’t mess about, with the first 2 positions falling to Newport's Tony Gibbons. Tony clocked his first arrival 2 minutes clear of his next, this yearling clearing the field by some margin on the day. Tony had a very good old bird season in 2008, claiming the Rhondda Valley Federations bird of the year award to go with it. He starts off 2009 in similar fashion.
1st & 2nd fed Guildford – Tony Gibbons
Mal and Darron Woodland make up for the disappointment from the week previous when their ETS system failed to record their arrivals. They win it at Gilfach Goch, taking 3rd fed with a yearling from their roundabout team, and they also have another 4 on the result, 14, 16, 19, & 21st fed, showing once again how well their team is performing.
Topping the West section are Payne Parry and Davies who win at Kenfig Hill, they slot in for 5th fed, with Dave Gore taking 2nd and 3rd club, 17th and 26th fed at Kenfig Hill.
Next pigeon is up at the top of the fed boundary at Maerdy where the two Bryn’s, Davies and Evans win this strong club taking 6th fed, this pigeon must have been on it’s own for most of the journey home to get up here at that time, Jeff Prowle takes 2nd club and the Holland Bros in for 3rd club.
Bob Garn wins it at Treherbert, although Bob lives down in the Bridgend area, he takes 8th fed just pipping last weeks fed toppers Jonathon and Chris Butler into 2nd and 3rd club 11th fed, with Mathias and son 4th club at Treherbert, Williams & Reeves are 5th to complete the result.
Back down the valley to Penygraig, where Dunn son Seal clock a 2year old Vandenabeele hen to take 1st club, 9th fed, this hen as won 11th and 45th National previously, plus 2nd federation. Arnold and Keith Davies are 2nd club with one of their widowhood cocks, 26th fed and Martin Jarman and Green flying their small team of widowhood cocks are just relegated into 3rd club. Dunn son Seal are back in again to complete the Penygraig result with another 2 Vandenabeele’s for 4th and 5th club.
Just up the road to Tonypandy, where Roy Street and Les Hughes clock the winner at this club, they clock one of their Van den Bosch widowhood cocks for 12th fed, just edging Keith and Liam English into 2nd club 29th Fed, this loft has made a cracking start to the season with just a dozen or so widowhood cocks on the go, they have been on every fed result so far. Gareth Watkins clocks a yearling cock for 3rd club and Brian Fitzgerald is 4th club with another yearling from his small team. These yearlings flew really well as young birds in 2008 for Brian. Dunn son and Seal complete the result with the same in that was 4th fed from Newbury the week previous.
Just up the Valley from Tonypandy we have Cambrian and Tony Southwood enjoyed a good day here, he takes 1st club 13th fed ,just over the Valley to Tylorstown where Gwyn Humprhies son Faulkner take their second red card of the season, for 22nd fed, Gwyn just holds off Brian Roberts, another loft that has started well in 2009, Brian takes 2nd club 28th fed, with Gareth Hughes taking 3rd and 4th club, and the pool money for the 3rd week in succession. Down the valley from Tylorstown we have Ynyshir, where Brown and Jones takes the red card this week, they were well placed in the fed at 10th open. Next in I believe is Mike Kettley taking 2nd and 3rd club.
To complete the result we go over the top of the Rhondda to the Ogmore valley at Nantymoel and Denny Phillips has 2 together to take 1st and 2nd club, 23rd and 30th fed.
Final pigeon to mention and it’s a good one on the wind is the Tredegar winner of M/M Lewis who take 24th fed for good measure.
Following week and we find ourselves at Maidstone, with Welsh South East national and Combine, this week the fed had 3175 pigeons away, with the weather forecast in the days leading up to the race giving the race controllers nightmares, it was good to get the birds away at 11:05 in to a strong South Westerly wind, the leading pigeons in the National were to be found in North Wales, the leading birds in the fed were surprisingly at the bottom of the fed radius against the wind.
The winners this week and putting up a tremendous performance were Amesbury Akers and Humphries of the Tonyrefail club, they sweep the board at Tonyrefail and take 1,2,3 fed and 1,2,3 Section in the National.
4th Fed was taken by the Tredegar loft of J.P Davies, who clocked a 2 year old to win the club, 2nd club are the ever present Gregory and Davies, 17th fed and Cooper & Smith who claim 3rd club 28th fed for the Tredegar lofts.
Over to Tonypandy where the winners is clocked by Brain Fitzgerald, Brian only sending around 8 pigeons per week, clocks his yearling hen for 1st and 3rd club 5th & 20th fed, the winning hen as been a real money spinner, pooled all the way in club and National, she flew really well as a young bird, best of which was 1st club Ramsgate, 3rd fed and a pot full of money in various ring schemes. Runner-up at Tonypandy was Dunn son Seal, they had another good race, clocking 3 quick ones for 2nd,4th and 5th club, 18th and 27th fed, all three pigeons were Vandenabeeles crossed with sons of their Maidstone National winner.
From Tonypandy we go to Penygraig, where Kevin Andrews takes his second win of the season, Kevin clocks a fancied yearling widowhood cock, pooled all the way in the club, he takes 6th fed. Dunn son Seal clear the rest with 2nd,3rd,4th,and 5th club, first bred by Obryan and Jones of Port Talbot, who we can’t thank enough for the Vandenabeele’s they have given us over the last few seasons.
Mal and Darron Woodland keep up their rich vain of form, this week they take the first two at Gilfach Goch, with fed positions of 7th and 8th, these were runner-up old bird points in the fed in 2008, who wouldn’t bet against them going one step further in 2009.
Dave Gore down in Kenfig Hill is next, he’s 1st and 2nd club, 1st and 2nd West Section and 9th and 10th fed, these 2 really had to motor in this wind to get down here at this time, two crackers for Dave. Payne Parry and Davies follow up last weeks 1st section with 3rd club 3rd section this week.
From the Bottom we go to the top of the fed radius, to Abercwmboi where Clive and Carwyn Harris open up their account for 2009, they take 1st and 2nd club12th and 20th fed with 2 of their widowhood team. Staying at the top end its another win for Davies and Evans, who clock a yearling for 1st club at the big Maerdy club 13th fed, followed home by the Holland Bros and Morris Pugh and Whitcombe in a very tight finish at Maerdy, fed positions of 14th,15th and 16th fed.
At Tylorstown it’s Brian Roberts in the winners enclosure, 21st fed, again just edging another form loft of Gareth Hughes into 2nd club 29th fed. Just down the road at Ynshir Mike Kettley takes his 3rd win from 4 starts, Mikes been flying really well, he’s 26th fed, Roger Webb is 2nd club 30th fed with his first arrival. Final Club winner goes to young Josh David at Nantymoel, Josh wins it here and notches 25th fed for good measure.
Unusually for Treherbert they just missed the fed result this week, John Evans is te winner,followed home by Gwyn Collins in 2nd and Street and Hughes who take 3rd and Butler Bros who take 4th club.
The following week we found ourselves at the new race point of Folkestone, which is 200 miles in to the Rhondda Valley.With terrible weather forecast all week the race was in doubt right up until the final decision was made to postpone basketing for one day and the probability that we would have a race on Sunday afternoon.
This is how the race turned out, liberated at 12:20 into a strong southerly wind, the National was dominated again by the North Wales boys, although the birds came through really well with excellent returns for all, our own lofts had 44 out 46, so couldn’t complain.
The winners this week are where you would think with the wind, at the top end of the radius at Tredegar. Gregory & Davies clock after 4 hours 9 minutes with a velocity of 1355ypm to take 1st fed, 1st East section in the National and probably the first bird into South Wales. These 2 are no strangers to top performances, they actually won 4 x 1st fed in 2008 with the Rhondda Valley. They also clock another 3 arrivals to take the first 4 in the club and further fed positions of 4th,14th & 15th.Well done on another excellent performance.
Runner-up this week and with 2 clocked together, is Kenfig Hills Dave Gore, these 2 pigeons are the birds of the race, to get down here at this time they were really going for it, the first pigeon is the same bird that was10th fed the week previous from Maidstone, it was also 6th fed Epsom as young bird, the second arrival has already won 1st club Maidstone as a young bird and topped the west section of the national to go with it.
Dave Gore – flying really well against the wind
Gwyn Collins has the first bird into the Rhondda Valley, he wins Treherbert with one bred from his Second National winner, this one is 5th fed, he’s also 2nd club 18th fed with his second arrival, good day for Gwyn. JohnEvans swaps places with Gwyn this week, John is 3rd club 28th fed.
Mal and Darron Woodland have another excellent race taking the first 4 at Gilfach they notch fed positions of 6th,7th 17th and 21st fed, they are in the middle of another purple patch. Gareth Watkins gets a yearling hen sent sitting to win at Tonypandy, this hen slips in for 8th fed, with Gerald Honeyfield taking advantage of his ETS system, away on holidays when his widowhood cock turns up to take 2nd club, and the pools to go with it, 19th fed. Dunn so Seal are 3rd,4th and 5th club, 30th fed, first arrival is a gift from Tommy Chorlton of Manchester.
Morris & Webb wins it at Ynyshir, this loft really hit top form at the back end of the 2008 old bird season with 4,5,6 timers on the fed result each week, could be in for more of the same, they take 10th fed. Last weeks winners at Ynyshir, Brown and Jones slips one position to 2nd club 13th fed and the ever present Mike Kettley 3rd club 24th fed.
Up at the top of the Rhondda Fach, at Maerdy this big club has Morris Pugh and Whitcombe in the winners enclosure for the first time this season, they are never far away when the national programme starts off, they take 12th fed, with Thomas bros and Radcliffe in for 2nd club 29th fed. Staying in this valley at Tylorstown, new partnership who started back in 2008 with young birds, Edwards, Hicks, Richards and Moulds,send one pigeon and have it home before the rest to take 1st club 16th fed,plus 2nd in the local 2- bird club to round off a good day for these boys. Rumour has it that Neilo Richards was a little worse for wear after this one. The Ramsgate specialist Alan ‘Tweed’Lewis is 2nd club with a Graham Warren Van Reet, and Brian Roberts 3rd and 4th with pigeons from Johnny Gauvains bloodlines.
At my own club at Penygraig, Arnold and Keith Davies are moving up the result sheet with the big races on us, they take the first 2 positions, 20th and 25th fed, first bird pooled all the way to take the money. Dunn son Seal are 3rd,4th and 5th club 30th fed. Over at Nantymoel the solicitors wins here, Owen, Owen, Davies and Hale, this partnership formed this year take 1st club 23 rd fed with a yearling cock to complete the fed result.
Final result is the Rhondda Valley 2-bird, Chris Jones sends the result out to show that the winners from Folkestone are Dunn son Seal, with a yearling hen that has scored on a number of occasions, been in the top ten of the fed twice, this hen picks up £50 in pools.2nd club are Treherberts Stanton Bros & Evans, these boys are always in the 2-bird results, been top flyers in this club on a few occasions to go with it, they take £30. Taking 3rd are the Butler Bros, these won from Brussels in 2008 and are another loft who know how to pick a pool bird. If anyone is interested in Joining the club, give Chris Jones a ring on 07930492611, next race is Brussels, it’s £1 a bird to enter.
