RHONDDA VALLEY FED
Reports by Martin Dunn
DENNY PHILLIPS OF NANTYMOEL
CHANNEL AVERAGE WINNERS IN 2007
For my final write up of the 2007 season winners, this one covers Denny Phillips form the Nantymoel club in the Western Valleys of South Wales. Denny’s loft position makes it an even more remarkable achievement in winning not only the Channel Averages, he also won the most points from the channel races to go with it, leaving no doubt that Denny was the top Channel loft in the fed 2007. This isn’t a one off performance either as Denny has been clocking good pigeons from over the water for a number of seasons. He’s a previous winner of the Silver Pigeon in the Welsh North Road fed, no mean feat where Denny flies from.
ADenny is situated at the back end of the Federation, flying 25 miles further than the first drop in the fed. His top performances starting off at the first race point Oudenaarde, which was like all the channel races, a real test. Denny clocked his yearling widower cock for 1st club, 3rd fed, 11th combine 9442 pigeons, 314 miles. Next up was Huy and Denny clock's the same yearling cock for 2nd club, 7th fed, 39th combine, 391 miles. Two top notch performances from this young cock in one season.
Left Jake, right Denny Phillips'
From Huy and it was onto Bonn. This was real tester with only 22 birds home into Wales on the night. Denny gets three early ones the following morning for 10th, 16th and 23rd fed, excellent flying from 471 miles.
Final race of the overseas programme was the young bird race from Lillers, 271 miles to Denny’s loft and he clocks a natural young bird for 1st club, 21st fed, again a very good pigeon on the day as South Wales was blocked out with rain and mist all day, so this youngster had to work to get to its loft on the day. This shows the calibre of Denny’s results, so let’s take a look at the background of the birds and how he races them.
Denny first started way back in 1963, joining the Nantymoel club, flying in the Welsh North Road Fed. Success came early winning from Nantwich in his first season. Denny did receive help from his son until, like most, he discovered another type of bird. These days he says youngest daughter Kelly helps out with vaccinations and wife Maria spends time over at the allotment where the birds are kept with Denny, enjoying the birds being out. It's not just pigeons at Denny’s, you can find chickens and budgies, all help keep the grandchildren quiet he says.
At this point Denny asked me to thank Jake Kristaps for his help during the year with the birds. Jake pops across when time allows to help out at the lofts. Second person is Alan Smith from Treherbert who will also give a hand if anything needs doing at a drop of an hat, so thanks to you both for your help, he says.
What about the birds? Well one thing's for certain, no fancy strains, just an excellent family of pigeon based on 3 introductions spanning 40 years. The base of the loft came from Chambers Bros of Scotland in the late 60s, which were the Logans. Blended into these were the Alf Bakers, direct from his No Fluke lines. These stood the test of times until in 1987 when Denny bought a Herman Van der Weyer stock cock from Mr Nicholas of Doncaster. This eight year old cock was a top stock cock at the time and carried on churning them out for Denny. These 3 families can be found in the pedigrees of all the birds, with Denny stating it takes him all winter to work out his pairs to make sure they aren’t to close to each other.
Lt chq hen 3 times Bonn – 11th, 16th & 55th national and breeding winners.
Denny keeps around 14 pairs of stock. The old stock cock is a beautiful blue cock who looks good enough to win in a show pen even though he’s 15 years of age. This cock was a wonderful racer winning through the programme from 60 miles to 600 miles, and one season alone this cock topped the section in the fed from Ludlow and Lerwick, plus another twice in between, this with around 3500 birds in the section at the time - some pigeon.
The main stock cock at the moment is a chq w/f clock which is outstanding to look at and is a direct son of the old blue cock. This cheq w/f cock is breeding winners out to Bonn for fun. One dtr has flown it 3 times and been well up in the national. Denny rates this cock so highly he got 6 sons at stock. This is another feature of Denny’s loft - how he will stop a pigeon as a young bird and put it to stock, and more often than not it will turn out to be an excellent breeder. He’s knows this family of birds inside out.
Denny’s set up.
Currently he races 30 widowhood cocks and has 10 hens for the distance races. The birds are paired the week after Blackpool show, allowed to rear and then separated, as at most lofts. The birds are fed on a mixture made up by Denny, which will consist of barley, beans and peas, mixed in with a traditional widowhood mix. The birds are fed on the floor in the tray and Denny did say he feeds well and they get what they want. When the birds are right they will only eat what they want to take anyway.
When the birds are separated they go out twice day, 1 hour morning and evening. He as no problem with them exercising, they go well around the lofts. They receive 2 training spins before racing and no more when racing starts. One point with exercise, Denny will throw the hens out with the cocks to make them go. He did say as soon as the door opens you must make sure you lock them straight up or you’ll be there all day trying to get them in.
Denny rears around 60 young birds and are all raced natural, no Darkness here and doesn’t like to see them pair up, he prefers to see them race to the perch as young birds. He trains them well and gives them a good education before racing starts. They are fed on a mixture of Bucktons and peas until racing starts then Versele Laga Young Bird given when racing.
I must say it was a pleasure to take a look at the birds and lofts and the strength in depth of the team should see Denny chasing top honours again in 2008.
13/3/08
