Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past & present

The Champions of Yester Year (Part 22) 

Jim Fisk & Son

of Guildford

Jim Fisk had only been in the pigeon sport for eight years, but more or less from the outset he has won out of turn in Federation, Open and National races. He was a self-employed plumber and heating engineer and he once had a job at the home of the late Arthur Bridgewater of Godalming. Arthur got talking about the Bridgewater pigeons and told Jim that his son Paul had won the 1st. open National Flying Cub from Nantes. This got Jim interested and he borrowed books from the local library to get further information before taking the decision to take up pigeon racing. On the advice of the books to purchase good quality stock, he went to Les Davenport and obtained six pairs of the famous Davenport Cattrysse pigeons.

Chas and Stacha Blachuta of Guildford helped Jim out a lot in those early days and in the first season youngsters were obtained from local fanciers to race, so that he could breed from the Cattrysse. The Davenport Cattrysse were the main family kept, with only two crosses, which was a Reg Barker grandson of 'The Leader' and a pied hen which was purchased from John Keane of Godalming. 'The Keane Hen' had no pedigree, but had bred some first class racers including Jim's best racer, the blue hen 'Hot Gossip'. Jim said the Cattrysse were very consistent, but the crosses have given him his top performers. 'The Keane Hen' won 1st club as a youngster and 3rd club, 13th Three Borders Federation in 1972, but had revealed her best at stock. 'Hot Gossip' a small 1975 bred blue hen was a champion racer in the truest sense winning -1975: 4th club Avranches (only 7 birds on the day). 1976: 1 st club Bergerac (only 4 birds on the day). 1977: 1 st Sect E. (1,603 birds) (only 3 birds on the day in the section) 99th Open (9,243 birds), 1 st Surrey Championship Club Nantes (NFC), 5th club Bergerac. 1978: 11 th Sect E. (1,631 birds) 79th Open (8,659 birds) Nantes (NFC), 52nd Sect E. 224th Open Pau (NFC). 'Hot Gossip' had won over £ 1,630 at the time of writing. Her sire was a Davenport Cattrysse blue cock, the winner of three 1sts on the road, and was a full brother to Jim's great racing cock 'Stoughton Star'. Jim said 'Hot Gossip' gave him his greatest thrill by winning 1st Section E. in the Nantes National, his biggest disappointment was to find his best Cattrysse stock bird dead in the stock loft. This cock was only three years old and had bred three 1st Federation winners and a pigeon that won 10th Open Young Bird National.

The highlights of Jim's racing career are-1973: 10th Open Avranches (8,947 birds) NFC, 1st club Bergerac. 1974: 4th & 7th Three Borders Federation Exeter. 1975: 1st & 2nd club, 3rd & 4th T.B. Federation Exeter, 1st club, 12th Surrey Fed. Blandford, 4th Hersham Open

Weymouth, 6th Hansur Open Guernsey, 1st club, 5th T.B. Fed. 7th S.M.T. Combine Avranches, 1st club, 1 st T.B. Federation Plymouth, 1st Hansur Open Guernsey (Y.B.), 1st club, 1st Surrey Federation (3,415 birds) Blandford. 1976: 1st West Farnborough Open Season, 1st club, 7th Federation Exeter, 1st club Bergerac, 1st club, 9th Federation Exeter. 11th Sect E., 209th Open Pau (N.F.C.). 1977: 1st Sect E., 99th Open, 1st Surrey Championship Club Nantes (N.F.C.), 1st & 2nd Hersham Open Weymouth, 1st club, 1st T. B. Federation Seaton, 1st club, 1st T.B. Federation Weymouth, 1st club, 2nd T. B. Federation Seaton, 1st club, 8th Federation, 27th S.M.T. Combine Laval. 1978: 1st club, 1st Surrey Fed. (2,902 birds) Blandford, 11 th Sect. E, 79th Open Nantes (N.F.C.), 224th Open Pau (N.F.C.), 18th & 26th Open L. & S.C. Wadebridge, 3rd club, 8th Federation, 22nd S.M.T. Combine Angers. Jim has been top prizewinner in the club several times and was premier prizewinner in the very strong Godalming club in 1978.

Jim's son, Jeremy, was his partner with the pigeons and said his wife just counts the winnings. The partners had two lofts, which were in a wire fenced compound which had two live wires around the top of it to keep out the cats. The three section 18ft loft was 4ft off the ground on brick piers and all trapping was through open doors. The stock birds, seven pairs in all, were housed in the end section of the loft, the middle section housed the widowhood cocks and the third section was where the approximately 30 youngsters which were bred each year are kept. The other loft was 12ft with two sections and bob wire trapping, this housed the natural and yearling pigeons.

The first pigeon I handled on my visit to the Fisk lofts was a four year old Reg Barker / Cattrysse blue cock called 'Recap' which had won 1st club, 6th T.B. Federation Weymouth, 1st club, 1 st T.B. Federation Seaton, 1st Hersham Open Weymouth on widowhood. This ace handled above medium-long cast and had a pearl eye. Jim was very interested in eyesign and said he thought it has something to it, but when people laugh at him, he didn’t push his views. He said at that timet the birds were winning with good eyes, it's when they keep losing he would change his views on eyesign. Another good widowhood cock I looked at was a Cattrysse pencil blue cock named 'Riccochet' and he was a full brother to the great 'Stoughton Star'. This seven year old cock handled above medium­long cast with a yellow racing eye and he won 1st club Exeter, 1st club, 1st T.B. Federation Plymouth. Jim didn't fly widowhood in 1978 as he said it wastes good hens and when you own hens like 'Hot Gossip' I can see his

point. Jim went to the stock section to get the great 'Stoughton Star', as although he had won 1st Surrey Federation Blandford in 1978, he had been retired. This Cattrysse pencil blue had won many major positions on the road including, 10th Open Avranches (N.F.C.), 67th Sect E. Nantes (N.F.C.), 1st club Weymouth, 1st club Exeter, 6th Hansur Open Guernsey, 2nd Hersham Open Weymouth, 1st club, 4th Federation Weymouth, 1st club, 3rd Federation

Exeter, 1st club, 1st Surrey Federation Blandford. He handled medium-long cast and his nestmate was the sire of 'Hot Gossip'.

The stock birds were paired up on February 14th. and the twenty pairs of racers on the first weekend in March. The main diet was a mixture of 50% beans and 50% maize, with maples being added in the racing season. A seed mixture was used for trapping. The old birds got five 20 mile tosses before the first race and the channel team got two tosses from the coast each week during racing if possible. The youngsters got regular tosses from 20 miles and some race through to 190 miles, with yearlings racing to Bergerac 450 miles. The local fanciers Jim rated, were Mick Worsfold of Woking for his Bergerac performances and Eric Cannon of Wormley for his outstanding National successes. Jim said he seleced producers mainly on eyesign, but likes some performance and pedigree to back it up. The stock loft housed some choice birds including, a chequer hen direct from Mons. Beuselinck in Belgium and a direct son of Les Davenport's champion 'Blue Ariel'.

Another Fed. winner we inspected was a five year old blue cock named 'Roulette' and he was a half-brother to 'Hot Gossip' and 'Stoughton Star'. He won 1st club, 1st T. B. Federation Weymouth and he had a nice violet eyesign. One of the Fisk's best channel racing cocks was 'The Combine Cock' and he has recorded 1st club, 5th T.B. Federation, 7th S.M.T. Combine Avranches, 4th club Niort, 2nd club, 12th T.B. Federation Avranches.

The B.T.B. Combine changed its name in the close season of 1979 and it was then known as the Seven Counties Combine. An amazing 5,353 birds were entered in the Combine's first event of the 1980 season from Laval and were liberated at 8.00 in a light N.E. wind. The Combine winner was clocked at 13.23hrs by Jim Fisk and won the Three Borders Federation by a clear 7 y.p.m. Jim and Jeremy's star bird was a four year old Cattrysse blue cock called 'Hazard' and was raced on the widowhood system. From Laval this grand pigeon won the Guildford Club by 79 y.p.m. and had previously won: 1977 -1st Club Exeter; 3rd Club, 19th Federation Weymouth; 1978 -1 st Club Exeter, 3rd Club, 8th Federation, 22nd S.M.T. Combine (3,520 birds) Angers. 'Hazard' was a brother to the partners' good blue cock 'Recap', winner of 1st Three Borders Federation Weymouth, 1st Hersham Open Weymouth, being bred from a Reg Barker Cattrysse cock and a Belgian rung Cattrysse hen.

Jim told beginners to be patient and if their stock have it in them they will show it. I thought Jim was a man the novice could take heed to, as his lofts and pigeons were a credit to him.

There you have it, Jim Fisk, one the greats of the Guildford area. My phone number is: 01372 463480. See yer!

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT