Gill Bros and Son of Penycraig by Gareth Watkins

Since entering the sport in the mid 1980s both Mike and Brian Gill have enjoyed consistent success with their pigeons. Both raced separate teams for a number of years and both then left the sport for a short while due to their increased involvement in the family business. On re- entering the sport in the 1990’s the brothers decided to combine forces, and they were joined at this time by Brian’s teenage son Jason, who was as keen as mustard and full of energy.

If the brothers early foray into the sport was successful, then their second stab at pigeon racing has been nothing short of phenomenal, as between 2002 and 2007 [old birds] the partners have won no less than 111 x 1sts in club and Federation racing. These positions have been won competing with two clubs in two different Feds with duplication only allowed in National races. I will append the full list of wins at the end of this report so that readers can see for themselves the incredible consistency of performance achieved by the Gills’ race team at all distances and in any weather. What is most striking is the fact that they do not have to rely on one pigeon keeping their name at the top, but consistently record multiple timers to win top prizes. It really is a case of team performance both by the partners and the pigeons. I give you for example the result of the first race of the season from Swindon, racing with the massive Welsh North Road Fed. A total of 5,880 birds were liberated in this 72 mile race and the Gills’ team romped home to take 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th & 6th Open, truly outstanding pigeon racing and yet fairly typical of the high standards attained by these dedicated fanciers.

The present team of racers are a blend of the best sprint/ middle distance bloodlines to be found in Europe. Pigeons have been purchased direct from Houbens, Herbots, Pouw Bros, Walter Docx, plus some Vandenabeele bloodlines via Jos Deno. These have been selected by Mike when visiting the above lofts or in auction sales in this country. The stock birds are immaculately housed in a series of lofts at the brothers’ business premises. All lofts have aviaries attached and the inmates radiate health and vitality. The race team are housed in separate lofts at the rear of Brian’s home and enjoy panoramic views north, east and south, out over the lower Rhondda and Upper Ely valleys. The manufacture and maintenance of the range of lofts is Jason’s responsibility and as an apprentice carpenter of the highest calibre, it’s a task he undertakes with ease. The main racing loft is a 32 ft x 8ft four - sectioned structure which faces east south east. A 3 ft wide corridor runs the length of the loft allowing access to each of the internal sections. Two sections house the 40 pairs of old bird racers whilst the other two sections house the 80 strong young bird team. Ventilation points on all four sides of the loft ensure that there is a constant flow of air within the loft whichever way the wind blows. A large overhang at the front prevents any rain entering the loft and with the addition of skylights in the roof of each section, the interior is snuff dry, light and airy – a perfect environment for pigeons to thrive in. Aviaries at either end of the loft also allow the birds, both young and old, to enjoy sun, rain and wind at their pleasure. Each section has grid flooring. Grids are also fitted in each nest box and the youngsters perch in boxes that are designed so that the droppings fall into a tray beneath them. As a result the birds need only be cleaned once per week but are in fact cleaned daily throughout the year.

Old birds are raced on the natural system and are mated at the end of February. They are allowed to rear a round of youngsters and then race on a natural cycle throughout the old bird campaign so far as losses allow. The team are kept fit with twice daily exercise periods of 45 minutes to 1 hour and every bird in the loft must go out, even those sitting. In addition they are tossed daily in any weather from 35 miles. It really has to be bad for them to miss a toss!! With such a heavy workload the birds must be fed well and this is certainly true of the Gill team. Five different commercial mixes and straights are mixed to the brothers’ own requirements. This mixture is then fed to the birds in hoppers, which are replenished throughout the day. Any food remaining in the hoppers at the end of the day is removed, and replaced with fresh corn after each morning’s exercise period.

Drogba, the champion yearling cock.

The young bird team receives an extensive education before the first race starting at 5 miles working in an arc out to 35 miles in the direction of the first race point. Thereafter they are kept at it in the same manner as the old bird team with twice- daily exercise and daily tosses at 35 miles, they are also well fed on the same mixture as the old birds. In past seasons the youngsters have been raced naturally with great success, but in 2007 a team of 35 babies have been put on darkness in a bid to improve on their already formidable successes. These are housed in a separate loft just to the front of the main loft.

During my visit I handled winner after winner, not just club winners but Federation winners and section winners with up to 5,800 birds competing. The hens were particularly impressive. To mention just a few of so many top class racers I’ll start with a chequer Houben hen which has 1st club 1st Welsh North Road Fed, 3rd National Lillers to her credit. Next to hand was another chequer hen, this time a Herbot, which has won 1st WNR Fed Swindon 5,800 birds. Yet another hen, a Herbot x Janssen, has 6 x 1sts to her credit. Remember, these hens are competing against and regularly beating, the best widowhood cocks in Wales. All the above mentioned hens were extremely powerfully built with broad shoulders and strong arched backs. All also possessed extremely strong eyes with richly coloured irises.

The reader should not think that the loft’s reputation is built solely on hen performances, as I also handled some terrific racers amongst the cock birds. Included amongst these was a yearling Herbot dark chequer which has 1st [two clubs], 3rd WNR Fed, 1st Rhondda Valley Fed, 1st sect 4th Open National, 4th Open Combine Huy 386 miles to his credit. In the Oudenaarde race [315 miles] this same yearling also won 1st [two clubs] 3rd Sect 34th Open WNR Fed [2,304 birds], 15th Open RV Fed [2,304 birds] 9th sect 43rd Open National [4,279 birds]. Not bad for a season’s work from a yearling. A number of other multiple first prize winners were also handled, and these came from all the families mentioned earlier.

To finish this report I include some of the partners’ 2007 old bird Fed results racing with the massive WNR Fed and the 240 loft strong Rhondda Valley Fed. In the latter they finished as top points winners old birds. What stands out from reading these results is the incredible consistency of team performance throughout the season at all distances. This point was emphasised in the longest young bird race of the season from Lillers 267 miles when the partners clocked 8 on the day in terrible conditions to win 1st, 2nd 3rd & 4th Club with all featuring well up on the Fed result. The season ended with the Gills as top prizewinners in both their local clubs and in the top half dozen in both their Federations competing against thousands of birds weekly. Finally, I should point out the fact that the good yearling cock mentioned earlier in this article was judged to be the best bird in the UK in races between 250 and 450 miles. Truely remarkable flying at the highest level lads. Congratulations.