Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past & present

Bob & Anthony Besant of Worcester Park (2010)

Bob and Anthony Besant are still just picking their races these days and only competed in seven in the 2010 season recording: 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th Esher & Dist. RPC Wincanton (trainer), 3rd, 15th, 136th, 137th sect, 11th, 56th open BICC Falaise, 24th, 160th, 166th sect E. NFC St Malo, 48th, 54th, 61st, 62nd sect E. NFC Messac, 1st, 2nd Esher & Dist. RPC, 10th, 11th Three Borders Federation, 10th, 11th SMT Combine St Nazaire, 18th 72nd, 102nd sect E, 25th, 161st, 250th open NFC Saintes, 17th sect, 32nd open L&SECC Guernsey (old hens). The Besant’s star pigeon of the 2010 season was their outstanding De Klak / Janssen blue chequer cock, ‘Vic’s Cock’, and he was bred by Vic Johnson of Kingston from a long line of Federation and Combine winning pigeons. Bob and Anthony only sent to three National Flying Club races and ‘Vic’s Cock’ was first bird on the ETS system from all three recording: 18th section E, 25th open Saintes, 24th section E St Malo, 48th section E Messac, and to finish off a brilliant year won 2nd club, 11th Three Borders Federation, 11th SMT Combine St Nazaire (beaten by a loft mate). This wonderful cock was raced on the round about system and previously won 59th open NFC Messac in 2009. Another of the Besant’s premier racing cocks, ‘Big 23’, also had a good season chalking up: 1st Esher & Dist. RPC, 10th Three Borders Federation, 10th SMT Combine St Nazaire, 54th section E. NFC Messac and 102nd section E. Saintes. The best racing cock in the loft at present is the two year old blue cock, ‘Classic Near Miss’ and he has a brilliant racing record, winning six premier positions in the National and Classic including: 2008: 2nd SW section, 2nd open L&SECC Guernsey (1,590 birds): 2009: 2nd SW section, 2nd open L&SECC Bergerac (1,135 birds). This champion racing cock was bred by Page Brothers of Yorkshire and is down from their ‘Gladiator’ bloodlines.

Bob and Anthony have a very smart new 26ft self designed racing loft, which has four spacious sections and ETS clocking, which Bobby enjoys very much. He says the main factor in good loft design is dryness, good ventilation and plenty of light. Deep litter has been used and Bobby maintains that if it is kept dry there are no problems, but it can be a bit dusty. The old birds were raced on the roundabout system in the 2009 season, because with new families the partners had to find out how good the hens were. The system is very simple, with the cocks and hens being keep separate during the week and allowed to run together before going in to the basket for marking. The racers are paired up just after the BHW Blackpool Show in January and after rearing their youngsters are given training off the south coast, before going on regular exercise around the loft. Bobby has been a Postman for 35 years and because of his work has only a limited time with pigeons, so only lets them out for one hour fly each day, but would prefer two one hour stints. The feeding is basic widowhood, but the Besant partners do use a breakdown mixture when needed and are not shy of training during the season if it was necessary. Bobby says, ‘the birds tell you if they are in good form and as we have one day pigeons we tend to set our loft up for the 450 mile National and Classic races’. During the moult period the birds are given as much variation in the feeding as possible, with plenty of quality seeds.

Bobby has been a very good friend of mine for many years and as I’ve written many times before, he is one of the best pigeon fanciers I’ve ever met! Bobby is a pigeon fancier of the highest order, but always knew where to draw the line where his family were concerned, always putting Angela and the kids first. Bobby is a great guy and a brilliant pigeon fancier. I was highly delighted to see him re-enter the sport at the beginning of 2008, after a fifteen years lay off and at that time I predicted he would set the sport alight and he already has! Racing only nine National and Classic races in the last two seasons prior to 2010, the father and son partnership, have recorded: 2008: 16th, 17th, 18th, 21st, 25th, 28th, 33rd open BICC young bird Guernsey (2,316 birds), 2nd, 4th, 38th, 50th, 54th, 60th open L&SECC young bird Guernsey (1,590 birds): 2009: 87th, 88th, 91st, 92nd, 93rd, 100th open L&SECC Alencon (2,513 birds), 54th, 86th, 135th open L&SECC Tours (2,253 birds), 35th, 121st, 215th, 310th, 334th open BICC Poitiers (2,596 birds), 59th, 118th, 125th, 209th, 362nd open NFC Messac (7,000 plus birds), 2nd, 24th open L&SECC Bergerac (1,135 birds), 456th open NFC Saintes (single entry) (4,417 birds), 14th, 51st, 53rd, 56th, 80th, 94th, 95th, 98th, 99th, 102nd, 108th, 111th, 112th, 113th, 114th, 116th, 118th, 119th, 120th, 121st, 154th, 155th, 156th, 164th, 218th open L&SECC young bird Guernsey (2,000 birds). What a come back!

Imran Malik & Partners of Tolworth (2010)

In recent weeks I’ve featured some of very best performing lofts in the Three Borders Federation in the 2010 season and once again young Imran Malik is up there in the first few in the roll of honour. The Imran Malik partnership of Surrey has extended their run of outstanding performances in the Three Borders Federation and have set them alight again in the 2010 season. Their 2010 Federation prize list is remarkable and reads: (OB) 11th, 12th Federation Wincanton (1,584 birds), 13th, 17th, 18th, 20th Federation Wincanton (1,916 birds), 4th, 7th, 8th, 18th Federation West Bay (2,163 birds), 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th Federation Kingsdown (1,623 birds), 9th Federation Wincanton (1,736 birds), 1st Federation West Bay (2,016 birds), 12th, 19th Federation Messac (758 birds), 20th, 21st, 22nd Federation Kingsdown, 8th, 12th Federation St Nazaire (577 birds), (YB) 22nd Federation Blandford (1,693 birds). I must say, it’s great and very refreshing to witness three young lads do so well, with their pigeons! Congratulations to Imran, Dean and Samir on their wonderful season in 2010. Fantastic pigeon flying!

The Three Borders Federation has had a very successful 2009 young bird season, with good birdage and a new young star has emerged from Tolworth, in the form of Iran Malik. Although the racing name is I. Malik & Partners, there are in fact three partners, including his best friend, Dean Shah and his cousin, Samir Khan. The three lads have worked very hard with their young birds and taken the Federation by storm, winning: 1st Federation West Bay (2,183 birds), 1st, 2nd Federation Kingsdown (1972 birds), 5th, 6th, 7th Federation Wincanton (1991 birds). The last weekend of the 2009 season saw the Three Borders Federation hold it’s longest young bird race from Yelverton (175 miles) and Imran, Samir and Dean won 1st Federation, 1st open SMT Combine. The Federation sent 1,409 birds to Yelverton and with the convoy being liberated at 09.00hrs in a very stiff East / North East wind, made the partners performance even more outstanding. Fantastic young bird flying by any ones standards!

Imran started racing pigeons in the 2004 season with a team of young birds purchased from Louella Pigeon World and in the 2005 season Janssens were introduced from Imran’s uncles, Khan Brothers of Kingston.  The 2005 young bird season saw him smash his novice status and recorded 1st, 2nd, 9th, 10th Federation in that season. He races 16 old bird cocks on the widowhood system. The old bird’s racers are paired up in January to rear a pair of youngsters and are trained on their second round of eggs, before going on the widowhood. The cocks are trained twice a day for eight day from 25 miles and are only sent to sprint races. Imran only likes short racing and has no interest what so ever in long distance pigeon racing. Whether it be the old bird or young bird widowhood system, the birds are broke down for several days each week and the hens are shown on marking night, but if it looks like being a very easy race, they might only be shown the nest bowls. The cocks get their mates for a couple of hours on their return from the race.

One of the partner’s best seasons was in 2006 winning: 12th, 21st Federation Blandford (1831 birds), 1st, 2nd Federation Lulworth (1) (1620 birds), 4th, 7th, 14th, and 17th Federation West Bay (1404 birds), 1st, 2nd, 23rd. Federation Lulworth (2) (2101 birds), 5th Federation Exeter (1327 birds), 2nd, 7th Federation, 6th open S.M.T. Combine Yelverton and finished up the season by winning the Federation Individual Points Trophy. The Malik loft came off the ‘darkness’ on the 12th June that year and they paired ten young cocks to old hens and allowed them to rear a youngster each. The old hens were taken away when the youngsters were 15 days and the young cocks finished rearing the squeakers, and once they were weaned, the cocks were on widowhood. The next time the young cocks saw the hens, it was the marking night of the first young bird race from Blandford, but Imran says, they didn’t come to well. The following week three of those widowhood cocks were well up in the Federation result. There you have it, Imran Malik, Dean Shah and Samir Khan, three new up and coming young star in the pigeon racing world!

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT.