Lanarkshire Federation - Ripon Race 5/9/26

Lanarkshire Federation - Ripon Race 5/9/26

We arrive at Ripon in North Lanarkshire for our final race of the season with around 150  miles racing north back into lower Central, Scotland.

The weather again had been changeable in the build up to the weekend with some significant rain throughout Central, Scotland.

The weather on Saturday was good and the convoy of 835 birds were liberated at 09 15hrs in a west wind that appeared to have some North in it at the home end.

This week’s winner took 4 hrs 11 minutes with a tough velocity of 1082ypm for the winner you can expect a difficult race.

Word came through that the birds were struggling to home in decent numbers and with significant gaps on each of the club results wasn't healthy reading. 

1st North section,1st Open federation.

The winner this week was recorded into the Airdrie club for Ian Rankin who has been consistently at the top of his clubs results and also the federation averages.

Ian Rankin has had a great season and finishes in style winning 1st North Section,1st Open federation Ripon and also winner of the Gold Ring Scheme 

Ian timed a Cheq cock pigeon to win 1st North section, 1st Open federation for Ian and the icing on the cake was it was also winning the federation Gold Ring Scheme and  £520.Think he should be named "Jackpot"

1st North section, 1st Open federation Ripon for Ian Rankin

Sire of Ripon winner & Dam of Ripon winner

I contacted Ian to congratulate him on a fantastic performance and get some details of his management of his racers.

The winner has been a very steady pigeon and was sent well motivated sitting eggs. The birds are road trained three times per week and if not road training they are out three a day and called by the whistle.

Ian splits his team in the race programme with this winner not being raced the week before.

Cracking loft set up of Ian Rankin

He keeps them healthy with using Trident in the water every day from weaning.

Ian would like to thank friend Jim Wood for his help around the loft and road training.

Ian also finishes the season winning 1st North section, 2nd Overall Young Bird Averages ,top flying Ian.

Well done to Ian on a fine winner in a hard day!

1st West section, 7th Open  federation winner is David Murphy of Blantyre club, David joined the sport in 2020 his Dad raced in Cambuslang club for many,many years.

David Murphy winner of 1st West section and winner of Blantyre club & Winner of 1st West section for David Murphy

He timed a cheq cock bred from pigeons he received from his cousin Peter Murphy of Pollock in Glasgow. The Sire is a Vanloon/Stainthorpe/Davidson cross. The Dam is a Vanderabeele that was 6th section from Alnwick 2025.

The winner had five races being very steady up in the top percentage every race. He was raced on semi darkness being on his third flight. 

David's workload stops him training his birds as much as he would wish, road training is in the form of federation transporter once per week. The week leading up to the last race he couldn’t get any road training, only loft exercising his birds.

They are fed Vanrobaeys young bird exclusive with fats on a Thursday.

Well done Davie and thanks for the details and photos.

1st Centre section,2nd Open federation , Graham Bros of Carluke club, Andy timed a blue hen out of his Vandenabeele/Merlin/Custer lines that have been blended into the Graham strain. It has had five races before Ripon and was sent on the celibate system only getting to mix on a Friday afternoon for a couple of hours before basketing.

Blue Hen winner of 1st sect, 2nd Open federation Ripon for Graham Bros of Carluke club

Feeding wise she was fed a light mix in the morning with a heavier Widowhood in the evening. Fats were added on the Thursday as with a west wind and the further distance he felt they would need it.

She was lightly trained coupled with some loft fly with Andy assessing them in the hand felt they were ready for the race.

2nd Open and 13 in top 100 suggests he was bang on!

Andy finishes the season 1st Centre section, 2nd Overall in the Lanarkshire federation Combine Averages, a fantastic result and a measure of how good a fancier he is. This is the crossbar again with him finishing 2nd last season. Well Andy it shows your level of consistency and with him flying out of two race programmes, the other being South Lanarkshire Independent and winning all the top Averages this season tells you the level of commitment and quality of fancier and his pigeons.  

Andy would like to congratulate Ian Rankin on winning the Ripon Open federation race and also Billy Holland on winning the Lanarkshire Combine Averages. 

Glasgow Section winners- HBW Lofts

Chris Holloway of HBW Lofts winners of 5 x 1st section, brilliant lads.

Our Section winner this week from Ripon, 174 miles, and also 2nd Open – Lanarkshire Gold Ring, is GB26V 28505 – Cheq Cock.

He has been a very consistent cock for us this year, having raced all 6 races, winning 1st, 2nd and 5th Section.

He is bred from a son of Birthday Boy and is inbred to Brian Johnstone’s 610 hen, crossed with a Leo Hermans hen, from the lines of Newie Rossi and Olympiad 003.

Congratulations to Ian Rankin on winning 1st Open and the Gold Ring and Well done also to the Section winners, Graham Bros and D. Murphy

These lads  have had a brilliant season!

News from Blantyre club

The members would like to thank everyone who supported their Breeder/Buyer flown from Ripon on 5/9/26 ,it was won by Wullie Semple with a home bred pigeon collecting a nice £350.

Wullie Semple( Wearing dark sweater) winner of Blantyre Breeder Buyer.

Lanarkshire Breeder/Buyer flown from Ripon 5/9/26.

North Section 

1st I Rankin £180

2nd T Corrie Son G/son £98

3rd McCudden & Moffat £50

Glasgow Section

1st HBW Lofts £160

1st Glasgow section for HBW Lofts

2nd A Burns £88

3rd A Burns £44

Open Winners Gold Ringer

1st I Rankin £340

2nd HBW Lofts £187

3rd T Corrie Son G/son £95

Lanarkshire Social Circle Breeder/Buyer

1st D Hay  £490

Derek Hay winner of Breeder/Buyer in the Lanarkshire Social Circle

Final result Combine Averages

1st W Holland  1180 - 1st North section ,1st Combine Averages.

What a season for Billy Holland ,1st Combine Averages, "Champion loft" Lanarkshire federation 2026

2nd Graham Bros  1174 -1st Centre section

Andy Graham of Graham Bros hits the cross bar again finishing 2nd two years in a row in Combine Averages

3rd Gault & Quinn 1148

4th J Wood 

5th J & H Brown & Higgins

6th M Findlay

7th W Gordon -1st West section

8th J Cassidy

9th Cameron & Fan

10th D Young & Son

11th P White

Final Old Bird Averages

1st W Holland

2nd Gault & Quinn

3rd Graham Bros

4th Young & Kelly

Young & Kelly winner in Chryston club and winners of Young Bird Averages Lanarkshire Social Circle

5th J Wood

First 7 race Averages

1st  W Gordon-West section

Billy Gordon (L) winner of west section Combine Averages

2nd T Corrie Son G/son-North section

3rd  I Rankin

4th  Graham Bros

5th  W Boswell

Final Yong Bird Averages

1st B McCrindle & Son-Centre section

Congratulations to Barclay McCrindle & Son winners of Lanarkshire Young Bird Averages.

2nd I Rankin -North section

3rd Graham Bros

4th D Young & Son

5th J Sirrell

Well done to Billy Holland on winning the Champion loft of the season winning the Combine Averages.

Also congratulations to Barclay McCrindle & Son on winning the Young Bird Averages.

As already stated it was a hard race for the fanciers and birds with a significant number of birds not home by nightfall . The reasons are up for debate and all the old factors possible at play ,Head wind, falcon attacks, too big a jump, ect, ect, ect.

Well it’s all up for debate how we take this great sport forward.

Tom Corrie jnr

Lanarkshire Press Officer