RHONDDA VALLEY FED
Reports by Martin Dunn
EPSOM & RAMSGATE
Third race of the season was from Epsom, where the 4585 birds were liberated at 08:20 into a South Easterly wind, which must have been quite strong along the route, with the leading velocities being well into the 1800’s.
Topping the federation in this race was Glyncorrwg’s White & son, this partnership have had an excellent start to the season, it’s no easy feat to top the fed in Glyncorrwg, situated in the western valleys and out on their own, the pigeons must be in top form to get up here in good time.
Loading the Rhondda Valley Federation transporter for Epsom
The winner was doing 1829ypm, this yearling blue roundabout cock of Marcelis bloodlines, just edges club mate’s, the Lewis bros, who clock another roundabout yearling cock, this baker x Darkie Diamond based cock, was just a few seconds behind the winner. The father of this cock has topped the West section from Newbury in 2007.Young Corey Lewis comes in for 3rd club 26th fed to complete a good day for Glyncorrwg.
New club for 2008 Tredegar, open their account with the fed, with Terry Matthews slotting in for 1st club, 3rd fed, tight finish at Tredegar for 2nd and 3rd club with Gregory and Davies pipping the Williams Bros, both on 1807.fed positions of 18th/19th,, M.Morris was 4th club, 21st fed with J.P Davies completing the result 5th club 28th fed
From Tredegar we drop down to Pontypridd’s Jeff Owen, Jeff had a good season in 2007 with many top fed positions and around a dozen first clubs, he’s started off 2008 winning the first 3 races and this week he clocks a Houben Cross cock on Widowhood for 4TH Fed, also taking second club and with it 27th fed, Dave Wilson takes 3rd club and Bushel and Morgan completing the result in 4th.
Next in is the first pigeon into the Rhondda itself, it’s the Fed Chairman John Williams with his Side kick, Penygraigs wind up Merchant Glyn Davies, these 2 clock a Belg. Lier Market special, these 2 have had a lot of success with these birds from the same fancier over the last 3 seasons, added to this they gave Chris Jones the pick of the Bunch and he had 3 x 1st with one the Belg. Young birds in 2007.John won’t give the fanciers name away in case we all start buying them.
Runner up at Penygraig, 6th fed is new Member Brett Jones, Brett is making his presence felt already, he clocks a 2 year old roundabout cock, with Kevin Andrews squeezing one in for 3rd club 14th fed and Dunn son Seal, clock a 2 yr old Marc Verheyde x Urbain De Hammers roundabout cock for 4th club.
Butler Bros wins it at Cwmparc, taking 7th fed, Chris clocks a yearling cock, beating Ray Williams into 2nd club 27th fed and the ever present Rhydian Mathias taking 3rd club 29th fed. At Tonypandy Dunn son Seal clock a yearling Urbain De hammers cock, for 1st club 8th fed, a brother to this cock was 2nd fed in the same race in 2007.Gareth Watkins get 2 cocks together for 2nd/3rd club and Keith English and Grandson Liam complete the result, Liam is the club expert on the Bricon Ets. Doing a good job to.
Over to Nantymoel, where J.Gripton edges Denny Phillips into 2nd club, first bird takes 9th fed, Denny takes 13th fed, back over to the Rhondda where Keith Goodenough back flying with the Rhondda Valley wins his new club at Treherbert, with the Stanton boys in for 2nd club 12th fed on the same yard as Keith. Staying at the top end of the valley at Maerdy, G.Prowle wins here and takes 24th fed, with M/M Gareth Downes just edged into 2nd club 30th fed, this one was purchased in the Maerdy breeder Buyer as a young bird from Dunn Son Seal, its already won a good few positions as a young bird.
Back down to the bottom of the Rhondda Valley and to Trebanog, where Bernard Lawrence clocks a 2 yr old cock for 1st club 17th fed, with Chris Jones taking 2nd club 22nd fed and M/M Phillip Cowell taking 3rd club. Up to Cambrian and Tony Southwood has them in good form here, he clocks 2 quick ones for 1st/3rd club, first pigeon taking 20th fed, 2nd club this week is Mike Bull flying as Bull/Green and Bill Moon in for 4th club.
Back to the shortest flyers where T.Gibbons wins at Newport, taking 23 rd fed, back to Tylorstwon, where Ronnie Slatter gets 3 cocks together to clean up here, 1st,2nd and 3rd club. Final club is up in the Cynon Valley and A good pigeon here to John Adams with a Mel Green Janssen, 11th fed , Philips and Wilkins are 2nd club with a youngster that won Ramsgate as a young bird and Amy and Richard Evans in for 3rd and 4th club.
The following week we were at Maidstone with the Welsh National and Combine, The Rhondda Valley had 4072 birds included in the approx 15000 Welsh Combine entries. The Birds were liberated at 09.35, with a variable wind through the race route, this turned out to be a tricky race with big losses. The birds were reported all over the U.K, from the South Coast to Scotland with no real answers to what went wrong.
Anyway, back to the winners and taking 1st Fed, Probable 1st Welsh South East Combine are Enoch,Son ,Enoch of the Glyncorrwg club, this partnership clocked a yearling 5 minutes clear of 2nd fed, showing how far in front this pigeon was. Congratulations on an excellent performance.
Runner up this week was last weeks fed winner, White and Son, with the same Yearling roundabout Marcelis cock, this pigeon would have been 2ND Welsh South East National but fell foul of the 2hr phone in rule. Anyway 2 excellent results for this cock 1st fed 4585 birds, 2nd fed 4072 birds in 2 weeks.
Taking 3rd fed was Tonypandy’s Dunn son Seal, they clock a yearling M&D Evans Vandena beele hen from Obryan and Jones crossed with their good racing cock that has won 6 x 1st and been 5th national Maidstone himself .This hen was sent sitting 6 eggs paired with 2 other hens. Taking 2 nd and 3rd club at Tonypandy was Brian Fitzgerald who clocked 2 Janssen hens flown on Roundabout, these 2 take 4th and 6th fed, putting Brian in line for the Best 2-bird average in the Fed.
Over to Aberdare in the Cynon Valley for the next pigeon, this one to Amy and Richard Evans who time a yearling cock bred down from Curtis Wall and Lunt Bloodlines , they also take 4th club, with Tenny Tipper in for 2nd club with A Belgium rung cock and John Adams taking 3rd club. Whilst in the Cynon Valley, Clive and Carwyn Harris, register one on the Ets to Win Abercwmboi, this takes 13th fed, with Morgan and Bennet 2nd club 29th fed, Bryn Holmes 3rd club and Phillip Sheldon 4th club.
Tylorstown next and Ike Jones wins here, 7th fed, Gwyn Humphries, son, Faulkner get 3 quick ones for 2nd, 3rd, 4th club, 10th,12th, 22nd fed, Gwyn has been flying a consistent pigeon all season. From Tylorstown we drop down to Ynyshir, where Roger Webb wins here at 8th fed and back over to Glyncorrwg where Lewis and son are in for 3rd club 9th fed, finishing the result at Glyncorrwg are G.Thomas at 4th club 20th fed and the Lewis Bros 5th club 23rd And Sparrow & son 6th club 30th fed. With all the Lewis’s in Glyncorrwg no wonder I was getting them mixed up last season, hopefully I won’t make the same mistake in 2008.
Next are the shorter flyers down in Newport where Jake Fletcher wins the Ferns, 11th fed and T.Gibbons wins the Newport club for 28th fed. From the shortest to the longest where Obryan and Jones clocks another of their M&D Evans Vandenabeeles for 1ST CLUB, 15th fed, just edging M/M Hookings into 2nd club 17th fed and Roy Edwards taking 3rd club, 25th fed.
Working our way backwards we come to Kenfig Hill, where Richard Stokes keeps his good run going, timing again to win the club and this weeks he’s 18thfed, closely followed by the ever present Dai Gore and Payne Parry and Davies with the next two.
From Kenfig Hill we head up to Maesteg, where Raymond son Howe wins Maesteg Park, 24th fed and over the top of the mountain into the Rhondda Valley and up at Treherbert where Keith Goodenough wins for the 2nd week on the trot, again just edging the Stanton Bros & Evans, this won has won Bonn previously, they also take 4th club, with Lee Hughes & Harris taking 3rd.
Down the Valley to Cwmparc, where the Butler Bros are 1st club, Tucker and son 2nd club, Thomas son Stevens 3rd and Street and Hughes completing the result for 4th club. From Cwmparc down to Cambrian, where Tonypandy’s quickest Taxi Driver has got his birds matching his driving skills, Billy Moon takes 1st and 2nd club,21st fed, first pigeon is from Mick Deller of Swindon Bloodlines, 2nd one is a Vandenabeele. Taking 3rd club is Les Vaughan and Tony South wood 4th
From here we go to Penygraig, where Dunn son Seal complete a good days racing, they clock their good blue pied hen for her 3rd first, this is a grand daughter of their Maidstone National Winner, she takes 26th fed, with Brett Jones in again for 2nd club and the Gill Bros, Mike and Brian taking 3rd and 4th club.
Finally up to Trebanog, where Bernard Lawrence wins, 16th fed, by all accounts this is the same cock that won Epsom the week previous, 2 good fed positions to go with it, taking 2nd club are the Williams’s and Jones and Roberts in for 3rd club.
RAMSGATE
Following week we were at Ramsgate, 210 miles plus to the Rhondda, again with the Welsh South East National and Combine, with around 11000 pigeons in transit, we again had heavy losses. The problem being is that it’s easy to blame the race controllers, but we could all see it was going to be a strong North East wind and this was going to push the birds down the West country. With this type of wind we only have ourselves to blame for sending them, traditionally we have big losses in these types of wind, the race controllers can only liberate on what’s in front of them, we would have all been moaning if they had been held over, so nobody wins on these days.
Back to the winners and it’s congratulations to Tonyrefail’s Adrian Ware & Dtr, they not only top the fed but also win the Welsh South East National to go with it, I think this is Adrian 3rd Welsh South East National, to go with his 1st B.I.C.C. in 2007, Adrian has a Formidable record at the top level, today he clocks one of his Widowhood cocks on a velocity of 1846, this 2 yr old cock is a blend of Adrians old Staff Van Reet x with pigeons from Adrian’s friend Paul Moorcroft of Aberdare, this cock has won previously and has been 6th National from Ramsgate as Youngster.
The Runner up this week is surprisingly to one of the shortest flying lofts, Newports T.Gibbons, he’s been flying well and has won the club 3 weeks in succession, this week he’s doing a rapid 1828, and second club, 13th fed with his 2nd pigeon.
Next in is Penygraig’s Brett Jones, Brett gets 2 together, both 2 yr olds, the 2 year olds have been flying well for Brett on Roundabout, he takes 3rd and 4th fed. Brett joined Penygraig this year flying young birds from his new location, unfortunately the council have denied him permission to erect the loft at this address and he’s had to take the loft down for his young birds. Hopefully he’ll be back in 2009 with young birds.
The Gill bros were 3rd club 5th at Penygraig, Brian and Mike clock one of their Houben cross natural pigeons, and another for 17th fed, although this was a trainer in the club.4th club was Dunn son Seal, who clock a yearling M&D Evans Vandenabeele from Obryan and Jones stock, this hen was 11th national Ramsgate as a young bird.
Denny Phillips of Nantymoel gets a cracker, this 2 yr old wins the club, and 6th fed for Denny, who’s been flying well so far and starting to move up the results now his favoured channel races are about to start. 14 year old Josh David takes 2nd club 29th fed with a 2 year old.
Mal and Darron Woodland also have 2 together, they take 2nd/3rd at Tonyrefail, 7th/8th fed, these 2 have had a cracking inland series of races, having bunches together most weeks. Amesbury, Akers and Humphries were 4th club 14th fed. Hugh Jones clocks 2 yearlings for 18th/21st fed, National Secretary Graham Thomas complete the result at Tonyrefail when taking 24th fed
Next we go to the bottom of the Rhondda, where Dean Webb gets an early one, he wins Ynshir club and takes 9th fed. Jeff Owens keeps his good run going, clocking early again at Pontypridd and taking 10th fed.
Next are Tonypandy, where Layton and Lorna Isle’s manage to Hold off Gerald Honeyfield by 0.1 of yard to take 1st club, with a Kuypers bros bloodlines roundabout cock which scored previously as a young bird, Gerald clocks a Brasspenning xJanssen cock for 2nd club, fed positions of 11th/12th.Dunn son Seal were 3rd club with a yearling M&D Evans Vandenabeele hen.
Next we go to the longer flyers at Kenfig Hill and there’s no stopping Richard Stokes, he’s hardly missed a fed result and today he takes 1st club and West section in the fed when winning 15th fed with W.Thomas 2nd club 27th fed, followed home by Dai Gore who takes 3rd/4th club.
At Port Talbot Bernard Oleary gets an early one 1st club, 2nd west section, with M/M Diamond 2nd club. From here we go back to the Rhondda Fach and Tylorstown, where the Ramsgate specialists Lewis and King, win for the second year in Running, the mighty ‘Tweed’ slot’s a 3yr old in for 16th fed. Ronnie reckons you may start Pooling now Tweed. The consistent Gwyn Humphries are second club 25th fed.
Up to Cambrian next and Tony Southwood gets another win, 19th fed, and also takes 2nd club with Les Vaughan 3rd club, Trebanog next and Glyn Sibley takes the Red cad with Bernard Lawrence back in for 2nd/3rd club, rumour has it that Bernard had the same cock that won the two weeks previous.
Fred Tucker wins Cwmparc and takes 26th fed, with Thomas son Stevens 2nd club, Hughes 3rd club and Butler Bros 4th club, from here we go up to Maerdy, where the 2 Bryns’S, Davies and Evans, just edge Morris Pugh and Whitcombe into 2nd and Rogers and James 3rd club, fed positions of 22nd/23rd and 28th.
That completes this weeks effort, if you have any information than let me know, I can be found on my Mobile, 07920 101980, home number 01443 440953 or E-MAIL me -
