Keith Mott's The Champions of Yesteryear (Part 68)

 JIMMY TOWNSEND

of New Addington

The late Jimmy Townsend was a much respected man in the Surrey area, being an outstanding fancier in Classic and National racing, also a great worker for the sport. He was born in Croydon and his father was a pigeon fancier from 1946, flying both north and south road, in the old Crystal Palace Federation and West Croydon H.S. The young Jimmy was always doing things at his dad's loft and told me, in those days his dad came in from work after dark and with no lights in the loft, Jim fed and watered the birds in the winter months. In the racing season, after school Jimmy would take the birds on the bus to Lambeth Bridge and single them up for his dad. He was 14 years old when his father built him a small shed for his own pigeons and he had been in the sport for over 55 years. When he was in the army in 1955 he was stationed at Blackpool and it was not long before he found the local pigeon club and on race nights he would go to see who had won the races. One of the top men was Tom Dugdale who flew the Grooter family of pigeons. He did well in the Manchester Flying Club and he also kept greyhounds. When Jimmy came out of the army in 1957, Tom Dugdale bred him a red cock to bring home for the stock loft and he told him, he would breed some good pigeons that would win at all distances.

In one season Jimmy sent one of his daughters to the West Croydon H.S. Bordeaux race (460 miles) and she won 3rd club and two of her children were sent to the same Federation race with the Surrey Valley HS and they recorded 1st. and 2nd. club. The hen of the two pigeons went on to breed Champion ‘Paul’, voted Best Bird in 1966 by the British Homing World, winning the Spitfire Trophy. Jimmy was a very good footballer, playing in the army team and had trials for Bury and Crystal Palace Football Clubs. He once played in a match against a team that had the England full back Jimmy Armfield in the team who also played for Blackpool F.C. When he first started to race in the West Croydon HS, they sent 400 to 500 birds every week and the premier fanciers then were, P. J. Corps & Son, who won 1st open London SR Combine from Le Mans.

Jimmy Townsend started racing at his home in New Addington, with pigeons from his father and said he had won the club averages many times with this old family. His first club was the Surrey Valley H.S. and the late Frank Cheetham of  Pontefract was a great help to him in the early years. Jimmy said his biggest mistake in those days was trying to win every race and would send them every week, but soon found out that the birds needed to be rested. His first loft was a 6ft x 6ft shed, with a wire front and the inmates were trapped through bob wires.

Jim's set up was an 18ft old bird loft, with three sections, nine nest boxes in each, but he told me not all the boxes are used. The roof was tiled with clear tiles to let in sunlight and the birds trapped into the loft via open doors. The young bird loft was also 18ft, with two sections, containing 30 box perches in each. A third section had nine nest boxes, but these were not used for young birds, as they were bred too late in the year, but were used for a few yearlings. Jimmy said the main factor in good loft design is dryness, but with good ventilation. The 12 pairs of racers and 4 pairs of stock birds were all paired at the same time on March 14th, so the first round of eggs off the stock birds could be underlayed in the racing section. He liked a nice team of about 36 young birds to race each season. Jimmy raced the natural system because he liked hens for the long distance races and his favourite nest condition for the 500 milers was sitting 12 day old eggs or feeding a small youngster. He raced south road with the longer races in mind and liked classic and national racing. The main families kept were Starview Busschaerts from Louella for races up to 450 miles and Jan Aarden / Van Geels, Van der Wegens and in recent times two pairs from the late great Jim Biss for racing up to 550 miles.

Jim had day pigeons from 500 miles several times and said they had given him his biggest thrill in pigeon racing. He maintained there was no better feeling than seeing a day pigeon from Pau or Thurso land on loft. When I asked him what his best performances were, he said,  one of his last in 2002 rates very highly on the list, when he was 3rd open Pau L.& S.E.C.C., which was a very hard race. This was recorded by his good blue chequer pied hen ‘Milne Park Faye’, who races well to a small youngster and in 2001 she was in the first few in the open result from the San Sebastian National. A wonderful hen! He also thought when he was 5th open Pau L. & S.E.C.C. in 1994, when only nine birds made it home on the day was a good performance, as was his 19th open Pau L. & S.E.C.C., when only 22 birds made it home on the day of toss. He said he must not forget his good old blue cock, 1st Thurso in 1987 and 1st Thurso in 1988, both times on the day of liberation, flying 521 miles. Jimmy's daughters were very supportive and liked to help out when they could. Once when they were small he took his young birds for a training toss from Weymouth and he asked them to make a note of the pigeon which was first home. On the way back he ran into a lot of rain, so he telephoned home to find out if any birds had made it and was told that some had come home. When he returned to his home he asked what was the first pigeon home, they pointed out a red pied hen and a week later she was the first bird on the clock from the Young Bird National.

Jimmy said he fed well and trained hard, and sent his old birds to 550 miles and the yearlings to 300 miles. He fed a first-class mixture, backed up with Red Band Conditioner and all the old bird training was off the south coast, with the longer Channel races in mind. He maintained he had no thoughts on the eyesign theory. He thought if a bird of prey is on your property, you should be allowed to do away with it, as one would with rats and mice. Jimmy was a great worker for the sport and was the secretary of the Bromley Common Club and the i.c. for the London & South East Classic Club Clock Station. He told novices to visit a premier fancier in their area and make friends with him and learn as much as they can about pigeon racing from them. If a novice starts right it saves a lot of heartbreak in the beginning.

Jimmy maintained the number one pigeon fancier passed away six years ago and there's no one at the moment to take his place. He was talking about the late, great Eric Cannon of Godalming, whose national performances over a number of years were second to none. He maintained that he was not a showman, but got asked to judge and liked the handling classes although through the wires seems to attract a bigger entry. In the breeding section Jimmy liked line breeding, mother to grandson and father to granddaughter, and he liked his stock birds to be his old racers that have done the work for him. When he bought in a stock bird it was always paired to his old race birds first and the stock bird must have be from the very best long distance bloodlines. He thought the moult was very important and fed linseed three times a week up until Christmas, and also kept the birds in until the last flight was up. Jimmy never bred latebreds, as young birds would have to be trained and raced to be over wintered, he never kept unraced young birds. He maintained he didn’t like to go into lofts that use deep litter, as he had always had a clean floor in his loft, which was cleaned out every day in the racing season and every other day in the winter months.

I hope you have enjoyed this insight into the pigeons of the late Jimmy Townsend, he was a great fancier and a gentleman. I can be contacted on telephone number 01372 463480. See yer!

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT. 

9/9/07