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Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past & present...

RICHARD BRUNGER

OF KIRDFORD

 

Richard Brunger has been a premier flyer in the Sussex area for the last few years racing in the local very strong Horsham RPC and has won the South Coast Federation several times. The village of Kirdford, near Billingshurst, is famous for being a racing pigeon ‘black spot’, with none of the local fanciers being able to win prizes racing into the area through the years, but when Richard moved in he turned this notion around and has won many premier positions in the Federation and Classic. He works with racehorses and his livestock experience has kept his in good stead with his racing pigeons, with him recently telling me, ‘as a horse man I don’t agree with pedigrees in horses or in pigeons. I believe in winners paired to winners and try and keep the strain pure. All my working life I have worked with thoroughbred horses and found the hobby of pigeon racing has fitted in well with the work’.

 

Richard loves both short and long distance racing, but maintains he seems to do better at the shorter races, probably because of his racing system. He races 36 cocks on the widowhood system and these are paired up on 19th January, weather permitting. The racers are fed on ‘Gem’ Breeder Mixture, pellets and ‘Beyers’ Widowhood Mixture. His racing system is very straightforward and simple; he never trains the widowhood cocks, just exercises them twice a day around the loft, and he shows the hens on marking night and on the cocks return from the race and this practice is carried out for the whole programme through to the longest old bird race. The very smart 36ft racing loft has four sections, open door trapping and grilled floors, which are cleaned out once a week. The loft at Kirdford is mostly founded on Richard's good blue cock ‘Turkey’, so named because he was a big pigeon and he was a champion breeder after winner five firsts and 1st Federation on the road. Two of Richard’s best racing seasons were 2008: seven times 1st club and three times 1st Federation, and 2009: seven times 1st club and 1st Federation. In the 2005 season he had a Silver cock which recorded 6th SW Section, 9th open L&SECC Pau (550 miles) with only nine birds clocked on the day of liberation and in 2010 Richard won 2nd Section, 2nd open BICC Alencon.

 

Richard’s main families of pigeons are Morris Mattheeuws and Busschaerts. The stock birds are paired up and fed the same as the race birds and he told me recently that his present stock team are outstanding and have bred over fifty first prize winners. The stock birds are housed in a nice spacious stable on straw litter and I must say they looked in brilliant condition when I visited Richard’s home in December. He maintains a well ventilated loft is essential and likes to see sunshine in the loft if possible. Richard breeds about fifty babies each season to race and has had them on the ‘darkness’ system, but is not happy with their general condition when taken off. They are fed on ‘Gem’ Young Bird Mixture, which has no maize and starts to train them six weeks before the first Federation race. They are trained well and race the whole young bird programme.

 

The Richard Bunger loft has recorded many top positions in recent seasons, with the highlights being: 2005: five times 1st club, 9th open L&SECC Pau: 2006: eight times 1st club (Top prize winner in the Horsham club), several premier prizes in the Federation including three times 4th, 45th open L&SECC Wadebridge, 46th open L&SECC Bergerac, 17th open BICC Bergerac, 13th open BICC Yelverton: 2007: four times 1st club, 40 cards won in the Federation, 75th open L&SECC Guernsey: 2008: seven times 1st club (Top prize winner in the Horsham club), 1st, 2nd, 3rd Federation, 41 cards won in the Federation, 7th, 61st open L&SECC Tours, 20th open L&SECC Guernsey, 68th, 73rd open L&SECC Alencon, 9th open SMT Combine Messac: 2009: seven times 1st club, three times 1st Federation, 30 cards won in the Federation, including 1st Federation, 7th open SMT Combine Fougeres: 2010: five times 1st club, 1st, 2nd Federation (ten young birds dropped together), 8th, 13th, 15th, 34th L&SECC Guernsey, 27th open L&SECC Bergerac, 2nd, 9th open BICC Alencon, 34th open BICC Falaise, 17th open BICC Falaise (old hens), 20th open BICC Falaise (young birds): 2011: Raced very little, but recorded three times 1st club and won young bird average plus £900 breeder / buyer.

 

Richard was born on a farm in Lewes and has been in the sport 42 years. When he was 14 years of age he bred rabbits and took them to Heathfield Market, naively thinking they would be sold as pets! He came home that day with four Fantails and after that started to catch the strays and feral pigeons off Battle Abbey and Hastings sea front. The young Richard left home at 15 to start work on a thoroughbred horse stud and didn’t start pigeons again until he was married at 27 years of age. His hobbies then were football and horse racing. While working at ‘Littleton Stud’ in Hampshire he met a pigeon fancier who lived in the village and gave him his first stock birds, which bred his first winner, plus several then after. His first loft was a small self built structure and the Winchester RPC was his first pigeon club. Richard moved with the job to Biggin Hill and enjoyed some good success in the local club, and at this time he started the widowhood system with several good cocks. He moved in to his house at Kirdford 15 years ago and has enjoyed his best success racing in the very strong Horsham RPC.

 

He is the chairman in the Horsham RPC, which he tells me is the very best pigeon club in the south of England! He says the competition is ‘red hot’ in the club with several premier southern fanciers being members, including Clive Turner, A. & M. Light and Darran McFadden. The club is currently celebrating its 65th year, being formed in 1947, with founder members including Dave Francis, Jim Sweet-Escott and Henry Light, grandfather of one of the club’s present day workers, Adam Light. In the early days the club basketed their birds at the goods inwards bay at Horsham Station as they went to the race points by train and the clocks were set at a near by pub called ‘The Bedford’. When pigeon road transport came in the club moved its H.Q. to a pub. The club has been at the YMCA Football Club for approx. 35 years and enjoys the first class facilities there, including a nice bar and hall to hold their prize presentation and pigeon shows. I’m told that Horsham RPC members have up some good performances through the years, including four times 1st open London & South East Classic Club, 1st Section NFC, 1st Kent & Sussex Palamos BBC and many premier positions in the Federation and Combine.

 

Richard says he doesn’t enjoy showing his birds, but likes to see a nice eye sign on a pigeon, especially on stock birds and only breeds late bred youngster for stock. He maintains there aren’t any young people coming in to the sport and they should be encouraged by giving them free club and Federation membership. His advice to new starters in the sport is to obtain stock from some one who is winning regularly at a good level and adopt a ‘military regime’ type loft management system, and keep to it. Cleanliness in the lofts is essential! He likes to keep two families and breed them pure for the stock loft, and cross them together for racing. Richard told me he thinks the moult is one of the most important times of the year and gives his birds plenty of rest and linseed in the winter months. He said, ‘next years races are won this winter with a good moult’. Well that’s the Richard Brunger story, a great pigeon man!

 

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT.