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

ROY BARNETT OF KINGSTON

Roy Barnett enjoyed another great season in 2010 racing with his small team of pigeons in the very strong Esher & Dist. RPC, following his wonderful success of 2009. His main success last season was winning 1st club, 4th Three Borders Federation, 4th open SMT Combine (1494 birds) Messac with his good hen, ‘The 72 Hen’, to follow up her brilliant performance of 2009 when she recorded 3rd open SMT Combine from the same race point. This game little hen is daughter of another of Roy’s top racing hens, ’21 Les’ Hen’. Three other premier performer in the 2010 season were: ‘38361’ bred by Rookledge & Mearns and winner of 18th Three Borders Federation Messac, ‘38318’ another daughter of ’21 Les’ Hen’ and winner of 19th Three Borders Federation St. Nazaire and the good young bird, ‘27783’, bred by Andy Kyriacou of Richmond and winner of 15th Three Borders Federation Wincanton. The 2010 season saw yet another of the Barnett loft’s top hen win again in the form of ‘Champion 10’ and she recorded 1st club, 13th Three Borders Federation Kingsdown, which is her favourite race point having won the Federation from there in 2008, plus lifting the BHW George Slade ‘Swing Clear’ Memorial Trophy.

This is an article that is well over due, as the fancier in question has put up outstanding performances ever season in the Three Borders Federation and has had very little credit in the fancy press. Having said that, Roy Barnett is the first person to tell you that is purely down to him, as he is a very private person and has always walked away from publicity. Roy is an Esher club mate of mine and after months of verbal battering from me, has brought some birds around home and had them photographed for this article.

The Three Borders Federation sent 1008 birds to Messac at the back end of May 2009 and Roy Barnett won the Esher club and recorded 2nd Federation, 3rd open SMT Combine (3174 birds), with his little two year old blue chequer hen, ‘The 72 Hen’. Four weeks later the Federation sent 825 birds to Tours for it’s fourth channel race of the 2009 season and Roy was back at the top of the result sheet, winning 1st Esher club, 2nd Three Borders Federation, 15th open SMT Combine. His winner from Tours was one of his favourite pigeons, ‘ 21 Les’s Hen’, and after the race Roy told, ‘the pied hen has finally won a race, having previously won several seconds in the club, plus 18th Three Borders Federation, 24th SMT Combine (3174 birds) Messac, 24th Federation West Bay (1691 birds), 2008: 23rd Federation (2404 birds) West Bay. She was sent to the last old bird race of the 2009 season from Bergerac and recorded 2nd Esher club, 11th Three Borders Federation, beaten by his good mate, Chris Slight, who won 1st open SMT Combine in that race. This game dark chequer pied hen was bred by Les Penycate of West Molesey and Roy purchased her at the 2006 Three Borders Federation Breeder / Buyer sale and she returned the compliment by winning £300 for the two lads. The 2008 season saw Roy win the BHW George Slade ‘Swing Clear’ Memorial Trophy with his good blue chequer hen, ‘Champion 10’, which recorded 1st Three Borders Federation (1079 birds) Kingsdown and recorded a velocity of 2035ypm, which was the fastest in the UK that Saturday. This wonderful hen had previously won 6th Three Borders Federation (2494 birds) West Bay. Roy favourite pigeon is his ten year old blue hen, ‘The Old 80 Hen’, and she has won several firsts, including 1st club, 2nd Federation, 2nd open Combine (3174 birds) Sennen Cove.

Roy is good worker at the Esher club and is a second generation pigeon fancier, with his late father being the Kingston ‘ace’ of the 1970’s and 1980’s, Roy Barnett senior. He was never in partnership with his dad, but as a lad helped out around the loft, cleaning out and training the birds. In the 1970’s the Barnett loft had several outstanding pigeons, one being ‘Billy’, winner of ten times second prize and won the £5 pool in the very strong Kingston club most weeks. The loft also housed several Federation winners. Roy senior had pigeon 50 years, starting up at the age of 16 and Roy junior has been involved in the sport all his life. Roy’s sister is Sue Barnett, mother of the ten year old pigeon ‘hot shot’ kid, Tyrone Buggy of Kingston, so good pigeon fanciers run right through the family. Roy still has his loft in his dad’s garden and although it is a new loft it is the same design as the old Barnett loft. Roy senior was very successful with pigeons from the late, great Fred Meale of Hounslow. The present day loft is self built and is very smart being 24ft feet long, with four sections, ETS timing and the drinkers are in little boxes on the front of the loft for easy replenishment. Roy is not a fan of deep litter and cleans out the loft two or three times a week. The main family kept is the Rex Doe / Herbot pigeons, but Roy tells me he has had one or two good crosses from his good friend, Chris Slight, who is the chairman of the Esher club and won the Three Borders Federation three times in the 2008 season.

Roy races eight pairs on the roundabout system and pairs them up in early January, with Federation racing in mind. The racers rear one pair of youngsters, then are split and put on the system before they lay their second round of eggs. The birds are not broken down, being fed a good widowhood mixture and Roy is only interested in Federation and Combine racing from 90 miles through to the longest old bird race from Bergerac, 450 miles. He tells me his success has all come from racing hens and apart from his first winner after his dad’s passing, all his wins have come from hens. Roy’s profession is a welder and works on classic cars, and say he works long hours, with his time with the birds being very limited, so goes for Federation racing as it is very straight forward and not time consuming. He maintains his roundabout system is very simple, with the birds getting a few training tosses at the beginning of the season and then they are exercised around the loft twice a day for an hour. He has two good friends in Chris Slight and Mike Charlton and says the three of them help one another with their pigeons and Chris being the driver, dose the pigeon training.

Although Roy has one or two old stagers in the race loft, he has no stock birds, breeding one round of babies each year and never adds to them through the season, because he says younger ones hold back the older youngsters. His 24 young birds are kept natural and are not put on the ‘darkness’ system, as Roy believes it is detrimental to them in later life. They are given lots of training down to Winchester (50 miles) and race the Three Borders Federation programme, and race to the perch, although they are allowed to pair up for motivation if they want. The babies are fed on the same mixture as the old birds and Roy says his pigeon management is based on simplicity. His management has no hard and fast rules, and has won good races when feeding in the nest boxes and on the hopper. He sends all his old birds to the early Federation races and once the French races start they are split into two teams, with the older bird going over the Channel and the yearling staying inland. The old birds race through to Bergerac and never go beyond that to Pau or Tarbes. Roy likes the ETS and says he is not the quickest clocker in the sport, and enjoys having nothing to do, including writing out a race entry sheet.

I hope my readers have enjoyed this week’s article; it features a great fancier who has put a lot of work in to the sport over many years. I can be contacted with any pigeon comments on telephone number: 01372 463480.

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT.