Keith Mott's London & South East Classic Club “Forum”

TARBES CLASSIC

Darran & Des McFadden win 1st Open

Now the dust has settled on the Classic’s longest old bird race from Tarbes it would appear that every one enjoyed a great race, with plenty of pigeons recorded on the day of liberation. We, the Classic committee, gave Tarbes a try this season on my recommendation that the Pau site was a very poor liberation site and it proved to be a good move, as it was one of the best sites in France that I’ve visited. Although I will not be convoying for the L&SECC next season, it would be very disappointing to see them go back to the Camping Municipal at Pau, which I think is no where as good as the Supermarket car park at Tarbes. That’s enough said about that, I’m doing a full report, with photos, on the Tarbes liberation site next week!

Two very happy fanciers after the Tarbes classic are Darran and Des McFadden of Godalming who won 1st open with their champion blue chequer pied hen, ‘Razor’s Girl’. The 2008 season has been a dream come true for the Surrey partnership, previously winning twice 1st open SMT Combine from Fougeres and Messac and now the L&SECC Blue Riband event from Tarbes. Darran told me the 2008 campaign started off a bit shaky, with Sparrowhawks attacking his pigeons every day around the loft and his wife, Jo, having to have spinal surgery, and restricting his time spent with the birds down to a bear minimum. He says it was a very worrying time with Jo’s problems and he had to train his Tarbes pigeons off the south coast at 04.00hrs to fit it in. I’m happy to report that Jo is recovering very nicely and Darran has had the old bird racing season of a life time!

Darran’s Tarbes classic winner, ‘Razor’s Girl, is a nice two year old pied hen, bred by the Albury long distance ace, Ray Hammond, and is a direct daughter of Ray’s 2005 L&SECC Pau winner, ‘Simply the Best’. Ray Hammond is one of the ‘all time greats’ of long distance racing in the Surrey area, having put up many outstanding performances over many years and has won the longest old bird race in the London & South East Classic Club three times, including 1st. open Pau (550 miles) in 2005. His Pau Classic winner was the dark cock, ‘Simply the Best’, and he is a firm favourite at the Albury loft, and now resides in the stock loft. The 2005 Pau Classic was a very hard race and he won it well, being only the fourth race of his life. ‘Simply the Best’ was a latebred youngster in 2003 and had no racing as a young bird or yearling. I handled this great pigeon recently and I must say he was a perfect long distance type, being long cast in the hand, with very good silky feathering. A wonderful pigeon! His daughter, ‘Razor’s Girl’, is a nice apple bodied hen and when I handled her three days after her Tarbes win she was a quarter up on her first flight, being sent feeding her first every youngster, which was two days old. Her breeding is 100 per cent long distance, with her dam flying Pau as a yearling and her grand sire won Bergerac twice in the Dorking club. The Tarbes winner was paired up in April and after sitting eggs for five days, flew out with the widowhood hens every day. She was given the first two BICC races of the season from Falaise (135 miles) and then was left alone for four weeks, when she was repaired and sent to the Tarbes classic feeding a two day old youngster on the Tuesday marking day. In 2007, as a yearling she had Falaise and Messac and then was stopped in readiness for the 2008 Tarbes Classic. When Ray Hammond presented her to Darran as a squeaker he joked that because she was out of ‘Simply the Best’, she would win the long distance classic as a two year old and she has! Darran and Des have asked me to publicly thank Ray for their wonderful gift pigeon, which they have named after his nick name, ‘Razor’ Hammond. What a great story!

Darran decided to put all his efforts in to channel racing this season and not worry about inland events, which he now uses to get his birds race fit for National, Classic and Combine racing. He has rested the birds more this season and changed his feeding methods this year, with channel racing in mind. Apart from one pre-season Capel toss the racers have had no training, only inland racing with the Federation. Darran says after talking to Keith Arnold last winter, he was convinced this was the way to go and with recent results, it has proved to be correct. With minimal training, Darran told me he has fed heavier this season, with ‘Cranleigh Number 1.’ being the base feed, with Maize and Peanuts added when necessary. The partner’s first SMT Combine winner of the 2008 season was a yearling mealy pied widowhood cock named ‘Kelly’s Eye’ and he was bred by Karl Kelly of Glasgow in Scotland. He won 1st Combine from Fougeres (2736 birds) and was one of a batch of Marden / Staf Van Reets sent down by Karl for the McFaddens to try out. Darran says another of the Kelly youngsters won the Federation as a young bird and recorded 6th open L&SECC Tours (2472 birds) this season. Brilliant Staf Van Reets! The McFadden’s second SMT Combine winner of the 2008 season was the yearling widowhood blue cock, ‘Gladiator’, and he won from Messac with 2145 birds completing. Darran calls him ‘Gladiator’ because he is a monster sized pigeon and is always fighting, and his grand dam is a full sister to ‘Sparrow’, the partners 1st SMT Combine winner of 2006. His sire was Darran’s best yearling widowhood cock in 2006, winning multiple prizes including several firsts inland racing and they are closely related to the two magnificent birds that won BIS and BOS at the CHASE Charity Show in January 2008. Darran’s 2008 change of management tactics have seen the loft win many premier positions including, 58th open BICC Falaise (4417 birds), 6th, 11th, 74th, 119th  open L&SECC Alencon (2472 birds), 6th, 66th, 97th, 111th, 112th open L&SECC Tours (1921 birds) and several good firsts in the very strong Godalming club.

 Darran McFadden and his father, Des, were the Godalming club’s premier prize winners in 2007, winning a wonderful list of position in the Surrey Federation and SMT Combine. Darren tells me his best pigeon in the 2007 season was his three year old blue Staf Van Reet hen, ‘71807’, and she recorded: 1st club, 1st Surrey Federation Portland, 1st club, 12th Surrey Federation Truro, 2nd club Portland, 4th club Portland, 83rd open BICC Falaise (2627 birds), 193rd open BICC Alencon (4658 birds), 329th open BICC Falaise (3473 birds) and 531st open BICC Falaise (4294 birds). A brilliant 2007 performance! The McFadden’s enjoyed a great season at both Federation and National levels, winning 44 positions in the Godalming club, including 5 firsts, 1st Surrey Federation (twice) and a list of excellent performances in the NFC, BICC and L&SECC, including 14th, 29th and 58th open L&SECC Pau (recording the three birds on the day of liberation).

In my opinion, Darran and Des’ best performance of the 2007 season was winning the L&SECC Diploma of Merit with their good white hen, ‘Cameron’s Snow Queen’, when she was clocked on the day to complete her trio of positions in the first 50 open, 19th, 39th and 29th open. This wonderful pigeon is bred from the ‘Stan the Man’ Kirkpatrick bloodlines obtained from the Louella Stud and she has a list of other outstanding positions including, 1st club Lulworth, 1st club Exeter, 2nd club Nantes, 2nd club West Bay, 3rd club Messac, 168th open BICC La Ferte Bernard, 204th open BICC Falaise and 278th open BICC Falaise. A great hen! ‘Cameron’s Snow Queen’ is mated to the McFadden’s good Eric Cannon blue chequer cock, ‘56851’, and he has a very impressive racing record too, winning 268th open NFC Guernsey (YB), 1st club Exmouth, 1st club Poole, 37th open BICC La Ferte Bernard, flew Bergerac (450 miles) twice on the day of liberation and was clocked on the day from Pau in 2007 to record 58th open L&SECC. This game cock is a grand son of Mick Tuck’s ‘Pau Star’, winner of 9th open NFC Pau (on the day of liberation) and is closely related to ‘Tucky’s Delight’ and ‘Tucky’s Choice’ both day pigeons from the NFC Pau National.   

In my 35 years as a pigeon racer, I’ve had a good and long association with the Godalming club and must say, I’ve always rated it as one of the strongest and best outfits ever. It has a marvellous tradition of producing great fancier and I would think their record of Federation, Combine and National winning lofts over the years would take some beating. A quality run club, with a quality membership! The latest ‘young gun’ to hit the headlines in the Godalming club is Darran McFadden, who has his loft in the leafy Surrey village of Cranleigh. Darran has only been in the sport a few years, but has set the Godalming club alight in recent seasons, with his first major achievement being 1st. open S.M.T. Combine Yelverton, in the first Combine race of the 2006 season. The McFadden’s winning pigeon was their little widowhood blue pied hen, ‘Sparrow’, named because of her size and her nest mate was 2nd club to her from Yelverton (175 miles). The parents of this great nest pair are two of the McFadden’s premier stock birds, in the form of ‘The Meuleman Cock’ and ‘Chloe’s Girl’ and both these pigeons were outstanding racers before being put in the stock sections. Another outstanding yearling this season for the Cranleigh loft is the blue hen, ‘The Jealous Hen’, and she has won two races from Portland and Kingsdown on the widowhood system.  

Darran McFadden flies in partnership with his father, Des, and their loft is at their home in Cranleigh. Back around 1983, Des, flew pigeons for a couple of seasons, but due to working shifts in the Police Force he found that he could not give the birds the time that they deserved. Darran was only eleven years of age so could not race on his own, but even when Des packed up the pigeons he would still go over to Godalming pigeon club with his uncle, Pat McFadden, who was the secretary at the time. Darran told me, there were loads of great fanciers in that club at that time, not that he knew just how good they were, as he was just a young lad. Great fanciers like Eric Cannon, Arthur and Paul Bridgewater, Stan Edgington, Alec Martin, Ron Cox and even then though listening to all the pigeon banter on a Saturday night, he reckons he had the pigeon racing bug. In 1999 his mum and dad bought the pet shop (Pets Pantry) in Cranleigh, from where many fanciers in the area bought there corn. The late great Eric Cannon of Wormley was one of these fanciers and any time he visited the shop, when Darran was there, he would ask if he had convinced the ‘old fella’ to start pigeons again. His reply always being, ‘not yet, but soon I hope’. Darran had always had the intention of starting up in pigeons again but he was not quite sure when that was going to be. In the 2000 he moved into the house next door to mum and dads as it was closer to his wife’s work, with him still having to drive over to Camberley every day to HSBC bank, where he worked as a computer systems administrator. One day in 2001 he came home from work to be greeted by his dad asking what he thought about racing again, why not he thought, they had a nice big garden out the back. There has always been pigeons on the ‘Pets Pantry’ site, as Ron and Chris Cox flew them there when they owned the shop, when it was a butchers. The previous owner, Ron Dodd, also raced successfully there.

After he told his dad he thought it was a good idea, Des then informed him that we had five pairs of stock birds (mainly Marcellis) up the garden in an old loft that Ron Dodd had left behind. Des had obtained these through Fred Skull of Hersham, from someone packing up the sport, and that was that. A week or so went by and Des told him a customer of his had offered them more stock birds and would he like to go and get them. Little did he know the friendship he was about to make would not only give them some good birds, but with his help the McFadden’s would get my first taste of winning races. The man in question was Wally Cable of North Chapel. Wally started them off with five pairs of Van Den Bosche stock to breed from and plenty of young birds to supplement the McFadden’s first team. One of the best birds he gave them was a Meuleman cock which not only won races but bred winners too. Darran retired him to stock at three years old, as he was breeding more good pigeons than he can win races. In 2003 Wally bred Darran a half sister to this Meuleman to win two firsts, one of them 1st Club, 2nd Federation, 7th S.M.T. Combine Fougeres. Another very special cock, Wally bred the McFadden’s was a van Reet cock from Dean Pallett lines which had not only won on the road but also breeds winners. One of this cocks sons last year was 9th Open B.I.C.C. Alencon (3000 plus birds) and 12th Open B.I.C.C. Saran (2700 plus birds). Another son from him (yearling) last year picked up eight prize cards, two of them being firsts. Incidentally his nest mate also picked up a red card last season. Every year Wally and Darran swap birds off their best. He also gave the McFadden’s lots of advice on feeding and care etc when  they started but it didn't stop there. When racing commenced the first race came and went, Darran was full of excitement and anticipation then he went to the club to find he was miles behind. He told me, ‘it was back to the drawing board for the next week’. Another race went by and he probably looked like he was needing help now.  Then it was Wally to the rescue, with some tips on feed training and preparation. Darran won his first race soon after and he said, ‘that felt magic’.

He also got some good Eric Cannon birds from Les Swann of Reigate, one of which turned out to be ‘Megan's Lad’, the cock he clocked from the 2005 N.F.C. Tarbes National, his most memorable moment to date. Darran told me, ‘the feeling I got when that cock bird swung round the loft at 20.45pm after flying 15 plus hours was amazing’. The original Marcellis they got from Fred Skull are still in the stock loft and have bred numerous prize winners, the best one being ‘Chloe's Girl’, a winner on the road and in the show pen. She herself now resides in the stock loft, again retired at three years old to continue breeding future winners, including ‘Sparrow’, the Yelverton Combine winner.

The other major additions were from a fancier packing up called Keith Edwards who had some Van Berkels that he had paid some serious money for from places like Ponderosa Stud. These have bred some marvellous pigeons with results like 15th. S.W. Section, 35th. Open London and Southeast Classic Club Pau and 300th. Open N.F.C. Pau to name a couple. With additions from friends like the three times London and Southeast Classic Club winner Ray Hammond, Paul Bridgewater the 1961 Nantes National Flying Club winner and select birds from places like Louella Pigeon world. The McFadden’s are not trying to hang on to strain names or keeping so called pure lines, but trying to create a loft full of birds that can fly 50 through to 600 miles. Darran likes to race birds well before being put to stock but once he find one that does breed good ones it comes off the road straight away. He told me, he has heard it said many times from some of the top fanciers in interviews and he really is in agreement with the statement that Racing is Silver, but Breeding is Gold.

Another good friend Darran has made since joining the sport is Michael Tuck from Witley. He is in his mind, one of the finest small team channel flyers he knows and has some superb results over the water with what can only be described as simple pigeon racing. Mick flies Natural only with a team of about 14 pairs, and his main goal each season is the National Flying Club Pau. In 2004 Mick was 9th. Open N.F.C. Pau with his 8 year old Eric Cannon hen clocking her on the day, but due to him being completely over the moon at clocking her, he never checked the loft again. Mick had the clock read and by the time he got in it was dark, on checking the loft at 05.00hrs next morning he found his first arrival’s daughter asleep on the loft next to a load of droppings. So from that it was pretty clear that he had two of his three entries on the day. Then in 2005 Mick clocked this same hen on the day of liberation as well as her sister to take 41st. Open and 102nd. Open N.F.C. Tarbes, again two out of three entries sent clocked. Mick and Darran regularly train together off Hayling Island on Sunday mornings for the channel racers. Since Darran started, Mick Tuck has given him plenty of sound advice on training and feeding for the long events, and if things are not going quite right Mick is a great sounding board on the phone.

The 2002 season was their first old bird season and for the main channel team they raced natural, but did try a team of Widowhood cocks for some of the shorter races. Darran didn't really like this system as I felt it was wasting some good hens, even though it did bring them some good positions in the club racing this way. So from then on the McFadden’s raced natural only even for the inland programme. Once they got across the water they more than held their own, but inland even though they did pick up a few cards, they felt that they lacked those few extra yards. In 2005 Darran decided that he wanted to try a team of Widowers not just for the inland programme but also for the B.I.C.C. Nationals to see how they compared against his channel pigeons. So he set up a small loft around the side of his stock loft, away from the main team to experiment with and so they would be undisturbed. He felt that this time however, it would be a total widowhood method with the emphasis being on the hens.

They were paired up in mid February being left to rear a single baby. The Cocks were exercised twice a day at 06.30hrs and 17.00hrs for one hour and the hens were out for two hours between 15.00hrs and 17.00hrs. They were all trained two weeks before the first race and then just exercised around home. The hens he found would fly off for a half hour then come by and go off in another direction for another half hour and to be honest flew like cocks displaying all over the place. Some days they were up for two hours and when he would go and call them in carried on flying for another 30 minutes making his cocks late to come out. The hens were raced every week only getting a rest just before Bergerac when he repaired, but definitely went at least eleven weeks straight and he told me, they thrived on it. Most of the cocks on the other hand were kept for inland with the odd one going over the water in the B.I.C.C. so they had plenty of rest. They were all fed a Widowhood mixture from Gems with the hens getting plenty of peanuts supplemented in with the feed as the distance increased. One product that the McFadden’s use regularly through the week to keep them in peak condition is Gemthepax and Darran would not be without this product. It really does give the birds wonderful condition. The naturals were paired in the middle of March and  left on open hole as usual and trained 3 or 4 times a week from the coast, being hopper fed Cranleigh No1 a mix of beans,  peas and maize. These birds were only sent over the channel really, as they were mainly for the long races like Pau and so had plenty of rest in between races.

Up until 2006 he has always paired his stock birds up on December 6th, so he bred in the winter which when young bird racing comes around they are always in good feather, similar to darkness babies. However due to his interest being more in the long races and the McFadden records are showing that they best birds are bred later in the year, he did not pair up the stock birds until 20th. January. The young birds are all weaned at 28 days on to nothing but maple peas for two weeks. Then once the two weeks is up he introduce a young bird no maize mix from Gems with peanuts as a treat to tame them down. Again he uses the Gemthepax about four times a week to give them lovely feathering and help their growth. They are exercised at first in the evening until he is sure he has them hooked on peanuts and totally under control, and then they are left on open hole with the naturals for the rest of the summer so they see the countryside. Due to the fact they do anything for peanuts Darran can go and get them in at any time of the day so they won't interfere with the widowers. He trains the young birds three weeks before racing starts at 15 miles, moving out to about 40 miles where they stay at. Once racing starts he trains them four times a week at about 25 miles. The young birds generally race the programme.

Darran’s biggest ambition is to win the Pau National and he admires those that have won it or that are up there at the top of the result year in year out. The likes of John Puddephatt, Jimmy Shepperd, John and Rose Wills, Gary Inkley, Mark Gilbert and J. Nicholson and sons. There you have it, Darran and Des McFadden, the 2008 L&SECC Tarbes winners! I can be contacted on telephone number: 01372 463480. See yer!

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT.