Keith Mott

Writes about winning fanciers past and present

The Best of Long Distance in Scotland (Part 8)

Whenever I sit down to write an article on Scotland, I always think of the great video tours that Albert Taylor and I went on, north of the border, and the brilliant times we had. Scotland, the home of haggis, the long distance 'doos' and wonderful people!

GEORGE & GARETH RANKIN

of Glasgow

For many years the name Rankin has been at the top of the Scottish National Flying Club long distance results with outstanding consistency. The Rankin loft won 66 S.N.F.C. certificates from 1975 to 1996 and over £11, 700 in national racing. The loft was the only one in the S.N.F.C. to be in the first 25 open positions from the Niort (673 miles) races in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1995 and 1996, with the same bloodlines. The loft's star performers from Niort in the S.N.F.C. races are: 'The Old Grizzle Hen': 1989 3 rd . West Section, 23 rd . Open S.N.F.C. Niort: 'Westbound', son of 'The Old Grizzle Hen',1989 20 th . West Section, 88 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort, 1990 1 st . West Section, 4 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort: 'Hat Trick', daughter of 'Westbound', 1991 3 rd . West Section, 17 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort: 'The Blue Hen', granddaughter of 'Red Rocket', George's S.N.F.C. Gold Award winner and 'The Old Grizzle Hen', 1995 5 th . West Section, 25 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort: 'Westbound Junior', son of 'Westbound, 1995 7 th West Section, 36 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort, 1996 1 st . West Section, 24 th . Open S.N.F.C. Niort. What a family of pigeons!

George Rankin was born in Bangor , County Down , in Northern Ireland and as a lad kept all sorts of pigeons on his father's farm in Drumawhey. He sold his tipplers and tumblers and at the age of 11, he purchased his first racing pigeons, including a wonderful black hen from Robert Smith of Newtonnards. Her sire had won Penzance three times to three different addresses. George joined Donaghadu R.P.C. in 1956 and raced 13 young birds, lost two and won a 6 th . prize from Bray. In 1954 , the 11 yearlings won the old bird average, winning the last old bird race from Penzance (310 miles), 14 hours on the wing, with a black cock from the Smith black hen. This game cock had reared seven youngsters before going to Penzance . In 1955 he won the coveted 'Miller Gold Cup', then valued at £32,000 from Landerneau (427 miles) in a north east wind, liberating at 07.00hrs and clocking the only bird on the day at 21.04hrs, velocity 913 y.p.m., and winning six other trophies and a Gold Medal. A wonderful performance by the young George, as there were only 17 birds clocked in the three days of the 'Miller Gold Cup' race. Sire of his Gold Cup winner, 'Landermeau Express', was a gift from the top national loft in Ireland of Sloan & Whytes and George said he learned how to race pigeons from 600 miles from Leslie Sloan, a master of racing on the long distance. From 1948 to 1970 Sloan & Whytes were on the Irish National Flying Club , Northern Ireland and Co. Down Federation results from France every year, and the system that George works today is just about the same as the Sloan & Whytes winning system. Leslie Sloan died suddenly in 1971 and George sold his pigeons for his wife in the Muckamore Clubroom in Co. Antrim. In 1968 George won 7 th . Open Young Bird I.N.F.C. Penzance (310 miles), 1 st . Open East Down Combine and in 1969 won 11 th . Open I.N.F.C. Nantes (550 miles), 1 st . East Down Combine, with only 99 birds clocked in three days.

The Rankins had several old bird lofts in their Blantyre , Glasgow set up, which totalled a length of 34ft., but only housed 35 natural racing pairs. The 50 young birds were housed in their own 16ft.x 7ft. loft and although they had a small stock loft, they liked to pair stock birds to the best racers, so all were flying out. George's son, Gareth, said, 'Good ventilation is very important in a loft and a fancier must keep using a hammer and saw until it is right'. The partners breed about 76 youngsters each year, with about 20 going to charity and club sales, and the rest race through to the young bird national (260 miles). All the old birds are paired about March 10 th . each year, as in Lanarkshire in Scotland where they live they have cold Easterly winds early on and they are only interested in the National races from France , in June and July. The young birds fly out to 160 miles with the Lanarkshire Federation, which is the largest in Scotland and about ten are sent to the young bird Worcester National. All two year old and other pigeons are sent to the main four Channel races, if fit, with the S.N.F.C. Sartilly (500 miles) twice, Rennes (540 miles) and Niort (673 miles).

George moved to Scotland in June 1872, with his wife, Marcia, and children, Richard, Gareth and Sharon. In 1984 the racing name was changed to, G. Rankin & son, when his son Gareth became very interested in the birds, at the age of 13, and he is a very good pigeon fancier. Gareth, a 6ft. 6in.tall 30 year old, when I visited the Rankin home, was very keen on long distance racing and had never missed a day at the lofts. The partners' present family of pigeons has been blended together by themselves to produce pigeons that can fly 16 hours on the day and get going again the second day if needed to finish the job from the long distance. They are nearly all bred down from pigeons flying into Lanarkshire from 500 and 673 miles for the past 45 years. In 1993 they received, as a gift from Joe Murphy & son of Kirkcaldy, Fife , a son of 'Mystical Rose', 1 st . open S.N.F.C. Sartilly. In 1992 and 1994 he was paired to a daughter of 'Red Rocket', and result was the Rankin's S.N.F.C. Gold Award winner and they bred, 'Double Delight', winner of 1 st . West Section, 13 th . Open S.N.F.C. Sartilly in 1996. A young blue cock from David Mawhinney, in 1996, won 1 st . open Strathclyde Combine, a total of six Federations, from Stafford (220 miles), lifting £641 and a gallon of whisky. George said that it's a thrill to clock pigeons in from France after 16 hours on the wing, but many of his good birds have been killed by Sparrowhawks and Peregrines, including some with three certificates in the S.N.F.C.

He feeds high protein for racing and a super widowhood mixture with best peas for the long distance events. The old birds get lots of safe 18 mile training tosses south of the loft, then after that there are hundreds of Hawks and Peregrines for the next 33 miles to Lockerbie. The young birds get training for only one week before the first race, because of the Hawks, then, just fly out around the loft daily. Most of the birds are sent to the long distance races sitting 14 day old eggs, due to hatch the day of the race. George told me on my visit to his loft, 'You have to find out what each individual pigeon likes to race to'. He has been Secretary, Treasure and President of the Lanarkshire Social Circle and has been Vice President for many years. They do their stint marking at the local club and Gareth was on the clock committee.

RALSTON GRAHAM

of Langhom

Another name that is at the top of the Scottish National Flying Club results every season and is fast becoming a household name north of the border, is that of Ralston Graham. He lives in a hotbed of pigeons, racing at Langholm and unlike most pigeon fanciers in Scotland , he likes sprint Federation racing. Ralston is outstanding in the long distance Channel races, but is brilliant in the sprint events. When I visited him, back in the mid 1990's his best performance from France was 10 th . Open S.N.F.C. Rennes and had been the Solway Federation Champion for six years on the trot up to 1996 and had won 1 st . open Federation countless times in his 35 years in the sport. Ralston had 'doos' as a school boy and at the age of 20 was keen on Rugby, but suffered too much damage to his person, so went for a safe sport and took up pigeon racing. In recent seasons his performances in the Scottish National Flying Club have been outstanding.

Ralston races cocks and hens on the widowhood system and says it's not roundabout as the pigeons paired to the racers don't race. The cocks are raced to two lofts at the bottom of his hillside garden and the hens to a loft at the top, with all lofts having sputnik trapping and grilled floors. The racers are shown their mates on marking night, with both sexes going to the same race and the racers get their partners for about one hour on their return home. Ralston's team is on a three phase feeding system, with breakdown and the racers are trained before the first Federation race only. The widowhood racers are paired on 14 th . February and rear a nest of youngsters before going on the system. While in Ralston's racing loft he showed us some of his premier prize winners, first being a handsome Soontjens blue cock winner of 4 times 1 st . club, 3 times 1 st . open Federation, also being the sire of many winners. This cock was bred by David Page, from the very best Soontjens bloodlines. Another champion racer that Ralston showed us was a Herbot blue cock bred by Mr. & Mrs. Lynn and this pigeon was clocked from 500 miles, three times in one season to record 33 rd . Open S.N.F.C. Sartilly (1), 176 th . Open S.N.F.C. Rennes and 43 rd . Open S.N.F.C. Sartilly (2). A fantastic pigeon!

Ralston kept mainly Janssen based families obtained from David Page and Van Hee from his good friend, Derik Nordon, who lives in the same road. He breeds 80 young birds and these race up to 200 miles, only being trained prior to the first race. In the 1999 season Ralston won the first seven young bird races. He races on the natural system to the perch, with his youngsters and says they don't pair up very often because he breeds them late and they are not old enough. He houses nine pairs of stock birds and these are paired the same time as the racers, so their eggs can be underplayed. Ralston has been a pigeon fancier's lung sufferer for many years, but says by using a mask, coat and hat every time he goes in with the 'doos', he has it in full control, which is great news.

Well that's it for this week's "ON THE ROAD", featuring two of the very best from north of the border. I can be contacted on Telephone: 01372 463480. See yer!