Keith Mott writes...

TERRY HALEY OF

ABBOTS LANGLEY

I think I have known Terry and Karen Haley nearly 30 years and all that time the ‘Watford Wizard’ has always been at the top of the game, being one of the premier North Road fanciers in the U.K. He has been a good friend of my family for many years, in fact he is my son, Mark’s godfather. His pigeons have won countless major positions through the years and have won 1st. Federation from Leicester (68 miles), through to Lerwick (600 miles). He recently tried to count up his Federation wins and tells me they are about 25 firsts, but has won the Federation at least three times from Thurso (492 miles). Terry has won 1st. Thames Valley Federation Champion race from Berwick, Perth, Banff, Fraserburgh and Thurso, as well as 1st. in the young bird Federation Championship. He has won 17 R.P.R.A. awards and London Region trophies and medals, and of course 1st. open Combine with his champion blue hen, ‘Misty Lady’. This wonderful hen died of old age in the autumn of 2005 and has left a dynasty of winners in the Haley loft. The 2004 season saw Terry win 1st. open North Thames N.R. Combine from Arbroath, with his good blue cock, ‘The Pimpernel’ and this champion pigeon went on to record 2nd. open North Thames N.R. Combine Stonehaven in 2005. He is from a brilliant winning line of pigeons, with his dam being one of Terry’s good racing hens, ‘The Ghost’.

In recent seasons he has put a lot of effort into south road racing, with outstanding success. He had a go at the Dax International, racing with the N.F.C. in 2004, and his little dark hen, ‘34’, recorded 6th. section, 26th. open N.F.C. (529 Miles). This game natural hen is a granddaughter of Champion ‘Misty Lady’ and previously won as a yearling: 6th. open L.& S.E.C.C. Dax (552 miles), 10th. open U.B.I. Combine Fougeres (234 miles), 163rd. open N.F.C. Nantes (311 miles) and 275th. open N.F.C. Saintes / Pau (411 miles). A brilliant little hen! Another premier south roader at the Watford loft is the blue chequer hen, ‘The Ripple’, another granddaughter of Champion ‘Misty Lady’ and she won in 2004: 70th. open N.F.C. Dax International (529 miles), 164th. open N.F.C. Pau (576 miles) and in 2003: 59th. open L.& S.E.C.C. Dax (552 miles). Both these class hens were in the British team for the 2005 Portugal Olympiad, keeping up the long tradition, of pigeon that Terry has had in different teams over the years.

Terry Haley’s pigeon career stared at the age of 11 and was greatly encouraged by some school friends who kept pigeons. This was in 1959 and Terry recalls that his first stock were from local farm buildings and anywhere else where pigeons could be caught at night. He says it was a hobby catching them as well as keeping them. In the early days he admired the performances of the late Wally Brewer and Jack Payne of Bedmond, who were winning races regularly at the time. Wally Brewer helped many Watford fanciers and he sold Terry a pair of Barker / Gits pigeons in 1966 for £3, which Terry says proved to be a real bargain. The Haley loft still houses some pigeons bred from the original farm building strays, one of which was the old blue chequer cock, ‘Nunnies’, which flew from Scotland over 30 times, including eight times Thurso (593 miles). This wonderful old cock was born in 1966, and was in the Guinness Book of Records for his record mileage in racing, winning 1st. club Leicester, 2nd. club, 5th. Federation, 10th. open Combine (3,111 birds) Perth, 2nd. club Thurso, 2nd. club Newark and three other major positions from Thurso. ‘Nunnies’ is more or less the sire of Terry’s loft with 1st. Federation and 1st. Open winners being bred from him.

Terry maintains that pedigree forms don’t win races and says his loft is based on Channing, Barker, Gits and Westcotts mixed with his original birds to produce winners. His wonderful blue hen, Champion ‘Misty Lady’, must rate as one of the greatest long distance racing pigeons in the U.K., when she was alive. The last race ‘Misty Lady’ flew was Thurso (492 miles) and she was the only bird on the day in the Federation, being clocked in darkness at 21.55hrs. Terry retired her after that race at nine years of age, although she still looked and acted like a yearling. As a yearling in 1990 she won 1st. club, 1st. Thames Valley Federation, 3rd. open North Thames N.R. Combine (2,412 birds) Thurso (492 miles) velocity 980 ypm. Just three weeks later she was put back to Thurso and once again won 1st. club, 2nd. Thames Valley Federation, 2nd. open North Thames N.R. Combine (2,200 birds). In 1992 she was 29th. Thames Valley Federation Banff, beaten by five loft mates, all of which figured in the first 20 of the Federation result, with 1,051 birds competing. Three weeks later she was sent back to Thurso and recorded 3rd. club, 9th. Thames Valley Federation, 39th. open North Thames N.R. Combine (1,749 birds) velocity 620 ypm, in a south east head wind. This wonderful hen was entered in to Thurso in 1993 but due to bad weather the Combine brought the convoy back to Berwick and after a five day holdover was liberated from the 288 miles race point, and she arrived home late on the day. In 1994 ‘Misty Lady’ won 1st. club, 1st. Thames Valley Federation, 1st. open North Thames N.R. Combine (1,914 birds) Fraserburgh (419 miles) velocity 1024 ypm. Champion ‘Misty Lady’ is a daughter of Terry’s good blue cock, ‘Gold Dust’, who won on the road: 1st. club, 2nd. Federation Fraserburgh, 1st. club Doncaster and bred many outstanding racers including ‘The Lerwick Cock’. This brilliant cock was half-brother to ‘Misty Lady’ and won 1989: 2nd. club, 3rd. Federation Thurso (loft mate won the Federation), 1991: 1st. club, 1st. Federation, 4th. open Combine Lerwick, 1992: 1st. club, 2nd. Federation, 3rd. open Combine Lerwick. A wonderful family of long distance racers. Terry tells me ‘Misty Lady’ won in different nest conditions, but thinks she was at her best sitting 14 to 17 day old eggs. This champion hen is the dam of many outstanding winners and grand dam of many premier racers including ‘Miss Ripple’, ‘The 34 Hen’ and Terry Robinson of Cheshunt’s 2nd. open London N.R. Combine Berwick in 2001.

Terry only usually keeps 14 pairs of pigeons, no stock birds or prisoners if possible, and races on the natural system. He has several lofts, with various trapping systems and uses sifted ballast on the floors, which is raked clean each week. He feeds on the floor amongst the sand and says he has found this satisfactory for the last 35 years. He maintains he feeds beans, peas and tares because the birds fly well on it and you don’t change a winning system. The birds are paired up on 14th. February and rear one batch of youngsters and these are weaned off while the old birds are competing in their first Federation races. The pigeons are mostly raced on eggs only, thus ensuring all birds can be sent through the old bird programme, as no more youngsters are required. Terry is a fencer by trade and quite often takes his birds to work with him, if he is down the road a bit, for training. The cocks go almost every week and the hens are only left at home if they are due to lay. The loft is usually almost empty on Saturday morning and is cleaned out whilst the birds are away. The Haley young birds are trained well and race the programme, through to 200 miles. He likes to show his birds in the winter months and has won at all the major National shows, including the B.H.W. ‘Show of the Year’ Blackpool, the ‘Old Comrades’ show and the R.P.R.A. Southern Region show. He has had pigeons in the British team for the Olympiads for many years and has won ‘best bird’ in the team. Every winter he is in demand to judge shows and has judged at all the major National events. Terry says his family take an interest in the pigeons and his son, Ryan, races his own pigeons to his own small loft. Terry flies in the Watford N.R.F.C. and his wife, Karen, has been the Secretary for 30 years. Karen is an outstanding fancier pigeon fancier in her own right and won the Federation many times when she raced with her late father, Bryn English. A really great pigeon family!

Well that’s it for this week’s ‘ON THE ROAD’. I hope you have enjoyed this little up date on the latest performances of my ol’ mate, Terry Haley. I can be contacted on Telephone: 01372 463480. See yer!