“ON THE ROAD” WITH KEITH MOTT.
Three Borders Federation (Honiton Race 3).
The Three Borders Federation were at Honiton for the fifth young bird race and I must say, can’t believe there is only two more races left in the 2026 season, after this race! The time has flown by so quick this season! We lost one of our ‘legends’ of the Surrey pigeon racing fraternity, when the great Frank Carson passed away nearly two years ago. Frank’s wife, Sue and his son, John are still racing the Mr. & Mrs. Carson pigeons and won the Federation twice earlier in the season and 1st TB/S/B Amalgamation Okehampton, with their good blue hem, ‘Micky Boy’. Last year the Carson family kindle donated £200 and a new trophy, to be called the ‘Frank Carson Memorial Trophy’ and this wonderful prize will be won by the Federation winner of the fifth young bird race.
This is a tribute to the great Frank Carson and will be repeated every season! Thanks to Sue and John on behalf of the Three Borders Federation, it is a wonderful thing to do! Thank you! The convoy of 585 birds had a good morning toss at Honiton, with Dom McCoy liberating with sun on the baskets at 08.30hrs into a North East wind situation. This was the second head wind of the season for the babies, but with good conditions on rout home returns were very good. The members enjoyed a good steady race and the Esher RPC members Imran Malik and Atif Khan won the Federation for the second week time this season, recorded 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 20th, 21st Federation Honiton. This is the second year on the trot that Imran and Atif have this race and the ‘Frank Carson Memorial Trophy’. The first bird on the ETS was their dark chequer hen, now named ‘Sue’, after Frank Carson’s lovely wife. Sue Carson was Frank’s partner with their very successful pigeon racing and was and still is an important very hard worker in the Carson pigeon set up. Malik & Khan’s latest Federation winner was sent to Honiton driving to nest and is bred from ‘Orville Fin’, a direct stock bird from Tom Van Gaver’s magic all-rounder ‘Finn’, winner of 6th National ‘Ace Pigeon’. ‘Orville Fin’ was mated to ‘Golden Ace’, a direct Cornet-Nechelput and full sister to ‘Golden Ernest’, 1st world best pigeon 2024. The partner’s second bird, to win 2nd Federation was their good blue cock, ‘De 48’ and he was on the same yard as ‘Sue’, the Federation winner. Brilliant pigeon racing by the ‘Ace Lofts’.
Another partnership who needs to be mentioned being well up in the Federation Honiton result is Dave and Alan Lebby. Dave has been one of the sports great workers over many years and at present is the secretary of the Mitcham & Merton club and chairman of the Three Borders Federation. Well done to Dave and Alan!
The first ten in the Honiton Federation result were: 1) Malik & Khan 1382: 2) Malik & Khan 1382: 3) Malik & Khan 1381: 4) Malik & Khan 1381: 5) Frank & Sue Carson & Son 1380: 6) Frank & Sue Carson & Son 1379: 7) Stuart Emans 1366: 8) Frank & Sue Carson & Son 1363: 9) Frank & Sue Carson & Son 1363: 10) Malik & Khan 1362. This was race number eighteen of the season and at this point the Mitcham & Merton are leaders for the ‘Federation Points Trophy’ with 79 points and the Ashridge club are R/U on 66 points.
The Imran Malik and Atif Khan partnership call their loft, ‘Ace Lofts’ and this is the lad’s second Federation winner of the season, previously winning from Wincanton two weeks before this Honiton win. ‘Ace Lofts’ won the Three Borders Federation four times in the 2025 season, including the first Honiton ‘Frank Carson Memorial Trophy’ race. Imran and Atif’s Honiton Federation winner last season was their young Blue WF hen, ‘Frankie’ and she is bred from the very best at ‘Ace lofts’. Her sire is ‘National Ace’, the partners 1st open NFC Coutances National winner (4,161 birds) in 2019, which also won 2nd Honiton (2,408 birds) being beaten by his nest mate. ‘National Ace’ is also a champion breeder and is the sire of several pigeons to score high in the National results. The dam of ‘Frankie’ is ‘Ruby’ a newly introduced hen to Imran and Atif’s ‘Ace Lofts’ from Rudd Baker of Holland and is from his two top breeders ‘Artus’ when paired to Golden Phoenix’, who is sister to 1st NPO Pont St Maxence (6,103 birds), 1st Prov. Pont St, Maxence (11,844 birds), 2nd NPO Roye (6,987 birds), 2nd NPO Salbris (5,780 birds) etc. I spoke to Iman Malik after the 2025 Honiton race and he told me, ‘we were over the moon to win this race and be the first winners of the ‘Frank Carson Memorial Trophy’. It meant a lot to us as Frank Carson was a real good friend of ours and the Carson family made this a memorial tribute race in memory of their late husband and father, Frank Carson. We have named our winning hen, ‘Frankie’ after Frank and dedicated this result to him’.
Imran Malik and Atif Khan have enjoyed some wonderful success in recent seasons. They have won the Three Borders Federation many time with the highlights being, winning 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th Federation Blandford (1,116 birds), breaking the Federation record at that time for the most positions won in one race and then taking the first 15 position from another Blandford race, with 1,615 birds competing and breaking their own record for the most positions clocked. They have also won the ‘Fanciers of the Year Trophy’ and the ‘Ace Pigeon of the Year Trophy’ in the Three Borders Federation! Imran and Atif enjoy National racing and have an endless list of premier performances, including: 1st, 6th open BICC Alencon (4,759 birds), 1st, 2nd, 9th, open NFC Coutances (3,246 birds), 1st open BICC Falaise, 2nd, 3rd open BICC Guernsey (1,904 birds), 3rd open BICC Alencon (4,797 birds), 4th open NFC Coutances (3,200 birds), 5th open NFC Ancenis (5,577 birds), 7th, 8th, 10th open NFC Saints (3,726 birds), 8th, 10th open BICC Guernsey and 8th, 9th, 10th open BICC Guernsey (1,871 birds). What a fantastic racing record!
I have known the late Frank Carson and his wife, Sue, since the late 1970’s and have never met two nicer people. Frank is a legend in the Surrey pigeon racing fraternity and has won it all at the top level over his many years in the sport. Frank had suffered some bad heath last year and his son, John had helped his mum and dad race their pigeons, resulting in them having a wonderful 2024 season, which included them winning the Three Borders Federation three times. The star pigeon of the Carson loft in recent seasons has been the yearling blue pied cock, ‘Mr. Stoner’, and he recorded 1st open London & South East Classic Club Guernsey (800 birds), and 1st club, 1st Three Borders Federation, 1st SMT Combine Yelverton (1596 birds), being raced on the widowhood system. A nice little extra to ‘Mr. Stoner’s’ success story is the fact that his nest brother, ‘Alan’, was with him on the very same velocity from Yelverton (179 miles) and is joint 1st open SMT Combine! This wonderful cock had won other premier positions in the 2013 season including 13th Federation Honiton (1172 birds), being beaten by a loft mate. The widowhood blue cock, ‘Alan’, has a brilliant racing record in his own right, winning: 1st Federation, 1st SMT Combine Yelverton (1596 birds), 1st Federation Exeter (938 birds), 2nd Federation Honiton (1149 birds), beaten by a loft mate, 3rd Federation Newton Abbot (985 birds), beaten by loft mate, 8th Federation Wincanton (1149 birds), 14th Federation Yeovil (1106 birds) plus several other premier positions including 1st club Taunton. This fantastic nest pair of cocks were bred by Frank’s good friend, John Stoner of Mitcham. The list of ‘world class’ racing pigeons that the late, great Frank Carson bred and raced over his many year in the sport is endless. Frank was born in Battersea, South London, and his grandfather was a fancier flying as J. Carson & son in the Chelsea & South Lambeth club. Frank spent a lot of time with his grandfather and as a result became interested in racing pigeons. When his grandfather died in 1978 he moved in with his grandmother and took the pigeons over. In the early days Frank got a great deal of help from J. Langbridge who at the time flew in the Carshalton club. Frank's interest prior to pigeon racing was football for a local club as a boy, and just prior to taking over his grandfather's birds he successfully showed boxer dogs. Frank Carson was a born pigeon racer and has always been successful! Frank told me many years ago, ‘Susan is a major worker with our pigeons and must take a share of the credit for our success over the years’. He was ‘simply the best’! With the passing Frank Carson, the sport of pigeon racing has lost one of its greatest champions!
That’s it for this week! Well done to Imran Malik and Atif Khan for their second Federation winner of the season! If you win and want a write up in this space, contact me on telephone number: 01372 463480 or email me on:
TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT (www.keithmott.com)
