Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past and present

Keith & Sue Arnold of Leamington Spa 2010

It seems I have been writing annual up dates on the performances of Keith and Sue Arnold for many years, but their sprint performances with their fantastic Staf Van Reet pigeons over the last five seasons must rate as some of the best ever in the UK, up to 160 miles. With no let up with their Federation winning ways, 2010 has been one of their best seasons ever! Keith and Sue have had another fantastic season competing in eighteen races and winning eighteen times 1st Club and fourteen times 1st Warwickshire Federation with their team of Staf Van Reet sprinters. Some oftheir Federation results were: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th Bath (1764 birds), 1st, 2nd, 3rd Taunton (1333 birds), 1st, 2nd, 5th, 7th Newton Abbot (1308 birds), 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th Taunton (1131 birds), 1st, 2nd, 3rd Taunton (1144 birds), 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th Newton Abbot (1006 birds), 1st, 2nd, 3rd Yelverton (829 birds), 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th Bath (1781 birds), 1st, 4th, 5th, 7th Yeovil (1327 birds), 1st, 4th, 9th, 11th Bath (982 birds), 1st Messac, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th Yelverton (892 birds).

The star performer in the Arnold's loft in the 2010 season was ‘Flash’, a two year old Pencil Pied Cock, who topped the Federation twiceas a young bird and was not racedas a yearling, a regular system which is practised by the partnership, not racing the yearling cocks. This wonderful champion Staf Van Reet then won eight times 1st club, five times 1st Federation and twice 2nd Federation in the 2010 season, including 1st Federation Bath, 1st Federation Taunton, 1st Federation Taunton, 1st Federation Newton Abbot and 1st Federation Yelverton. ‘Flash’ is a son of Keith’s champion 1999 blue stock cock, ‘The Parry Cock’, which has produced many Federation and ‘Gold Ring’ winner for the Warwickshire loft. He was purchased from Steve Parry in 2002 and was bred from his number one Staf Van Reet stock pair, which were a super breeding pair. Keith was lucky enough to also purchase a blue pied sister to ‘The Parry Cock’ at that time and she has also produced many Federation winners, including ‘The Slade Cock’, winner of the BHW ‘George Slade Swing Clear Trophy’ in 2007.

The British Homing World awards this trophy every year to the pigeon that puts up the highest velocity in the UK on a certain Saturday and the Arnold loft won it in 2007 when they won the Warwickshire Federation from Newton Abbot, doing 1713ypm. The dam of ‘Flash’ is one of the old favourites at Keith’s loft and she is ‘The Combine Hen’, winner of 1st club, 1st Section, 1st Warwickshire Federation, 3rd Heart of England Combine (4521 birds) Plymouth. She is bred from the best Mardon / Staf Van Reet bloodlines and now resides in the stock loft where she is breeding Federation winners. ‘Flash’ is brother to many widowhood cocks that have won the Federation, but one of his most famous sisters is, ‘Golden Girl’, and she won the Warwickshire Federation ‘Gold Ring’ from Yelverton in 2006.   

The partnership only competed in the last four young bird races in the 2010 season and like 2009 season they topped the Warwickshire Federation in all four races! The highlight of the young bird season was the last race from Yelverton (165 miles), when ten youngsters dropped on the loft together to win the first six positions in the Federation and 1st, 2nd and 4th Federation Gold Ring. I wrote about Keith and Sue Arnold’s ‘Perfect Pair’ earlier in the year and they have proved to be just that in the stock loft this season! The blue Staf Van Reet cock, ‘Mr Perfect’ who won six times 1st Federation in the 2009 season and was the winner of the RPRA UK Sprint Award. ‘Mr. Perfect’ is a five year old cock who was bred from the early Mardon / Staf Van Reet lines, with his sire being retained for stock and his dam won the Federation as a young bird. His nest mate was put into the Federation breeder/buyer and purchased back, and went on to win the race. Keith and Sue Arnold have won the RPRA West Midland Region Sprint Award four years on the trot and won 1st RPRA UK Sprint Champion in 2006 / 2007 / 2009 and 2nd RPRA UK Sprint Champion in 2008. Brilliant fanciers with fantastic pigeons! In the 2010 season ‘Mr. Perfect’ was mated with the champion blue Staf Van Reet hen, ‘Miss Perfect’, who won three times 1st Federation and a 2nd Federation as a young bird last year. She flew the four young bird races in 2009 on the double jealousy system, with two hens being mated to one cock bird. This fantastic hen recorded: 1st Club, 1st Federation Bath (2151 birds), 1st Club, 1st Federation Taunton(1840 birds), 1st Club, 1st Federation Newton Abbott (1271 birds), 2nd Club, 2nd Federation Yelverton (968 birds) beaten by a loft mate and finished up the season by winning an RPRA West Midland Region Award. When I asked Keith about the breeding of ‘Miss Perfect’ he told me, ‘She is bred from Champion ‘05’ our 2007 RPRA UK Sprint Champion when paired to ‘Gold Again’ our 2007 Warwickshire Federation Gold Ring winner, who in turn is a daughter from Champion ‘39’ our 2006 RPRA UK Sprint Champion. A big winner paired to a daughter from a big winner breeds a big winner, its not rocket science mate is it?’ From the last young bird race of the 2009 season from Yelverton ‘Miss Perfect’ was beaten by only 45 seconds, by a loft mate, stopping her recording a tally of four young bird races, winning four times 1st Federation. Well they really are the ‘perfect pair’, producing in their first year breeding in 2010, a nest pair of youngsters that have won the Federation three times between them. The hen of the pair won the Federation twice, including 1st Federation, 1st Warwickshire Federation ‘Gold Ring’ from the longest young bird race flown from Yelverton.

Keith Arnold’s present racing loft is 48ft long and 6 ft wide with a flat roof. It is divided into eight equal compartments, which are a mirror image of one and other. The front of the loft is covered with Filon, a fiber glass material which lets in plenty of light and absorbs the heat in the racing months which brings the birds into superb form with an abundance of down feathers coming away all of the time. The days of dark lofts for widowhood racing are long gone as far as Keith is concerned. The floor is scraped every day of the year. The vents are open during the breeding season but once the hens and youngsters are removed the vents are closed with very little air flow if any in the loft. The air is changed twice a day when the birds are exercised with the windows open which works very well for him. The breeding loft is 25ft long and 10 ft wide which houses 28 pairs, which are kept on a grilled floor with again plenty of sunlight getting into it. Keith also has an 18ft by 9ft young bird loft, which again has a grilled floor. He used to race the youngsters on a deep litter system with excellent results often winning most club races and the Federation many times but he now believe that the grilled floor is a better way of keeping the youngsters healthy.

He races his old birds on the widowhood system and at any one time he has 38 cocks to choose from. Keith pairs all his pigeons in early January and the youngsters are taken away with hens at about sixteen days old, just before the hens relay again. Once the hens are away the cocks are exercised twice a day for an hour each time. The first half hour of each session the windows are closed and then they get 30 minutes with the windows open to come and go as they like and this is when Keith observes the birds for any little quirks that they might have. This is when they get the fitness but not form or condition, which comes a little later. He repairs them to have them sitting for 5 days one week before the first race and during this time he trains the pigeons as many times as possible but only to a distance of 15 miles. They are widowed for a second time one week before the first race and are allowed to sit the eggs for a maximum of 2 days after which the nest bowl is removed. They then get the same one hour exercise session in the morning but now have an hour open loft in the evening with no more training. This is when he starts to see the form and condition coming into the pigeons and maintains, ‘you will not get that by training the guts out of your pigeons every day’. He shows the hens on the Friday with some sections seeing their hens for a few minutes without contact and others getting their hens for up to half an hour and allowed to tread the hens if they want. Keith then observes the results on the race day and makes a note of the bird’s arrival and bears this in mind for the next race. The hens are left with the cocks for 15 minutes for every hour flown in the race. With regards to feeding for the sprint races he reduces the fats and proteins at the start of the week and introduces them mid week onwards and also increases the carbohydrates at the same time. For the past few seasons he has concentrated on the sprint races flying to a distance of 170 miles but has topped the Federation from every channel race point that he has flown from through to Saintes, a distance of 450 miles.

Well that’s your ‘ON THE ROAD’ for this week! Congratulations to Keith and Sue on yet another wonderful season. I can be contacted with any pigeon banter on telephone number: 01372 463480. See yer!

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT.