Established 1979 Company Number: 11693988 VAT Registration Number: 284 0522 13 +44 (0)1606 836036 +44 (0)7871 701585 [email protected]

Llanover Lady & The Don Raced By Frank Perry & The Padfield Family

 

 

 

TOP RACING PIGEONS

LLANOVER LADY & THE DON

RACED BY FRANK PERRY & THE PADFIELD FAMILY

In the August of 2001, when Editor of the BHW, I took a drive down to Pontypridd, South Wales to meet Frank Perry and to see the great Llanover Lady who earlier that summer had won 1st Open British Barcelona Club Palamos at over 700 miles. This was in fact the second time I had gone out of my way to handle a 1st Open Palamos winner as in the mid 1980s, whilst a student, I hitchhiked from Lancashire to Meare near Glastonbury in Somserset to write a report on Ted Vowles and his wonderful Truman-Dicken based hen Gwendolin Supreme.

A photo of Llanover Lady taken a couple of months after her 2001 Palamos triumph

Frank’s loft was on a raised level in the small yard at the rear of his terraced home and it was clear straight away that his pigeons were his pride and joy. He had cultivated a family paying due homage to some of the great pigeons and lines which had stood the test of time for him and others through earlier decades be it into South Wales or further afield.

The pedigree of Llanover Lady

Llanover Lady was a beauty plenty of length and a little above medium in size (as has most often been the case when it has come to the extreme distance UK pigeons I have handled, which is contrary to the oft proffered belief that you want them like swallows). She had a great head, too, as you can see in the close up of the photo I took that day. As a bonus, Frank still had her sire and dam. The dam was a blue hen with a gravel eye and of medium and neat build whilst the father was one of those rugged, green-eyed cocks one finds in lofts from time and which start to come to the party when you get upwards of 600 miles, particularly when the going gets tough. He was the iron ore, the blue hen was the finesse and together they produced a champion.

The beautiful Llanover Lady

I was informed of Frank’s passing over Christmas 2013 by his good friend Joe Headley, and in fact it was with Joe on the border of Mid Wales that Llanover Lady ended her days. I asked Joe to pen a few words about the great hen and here is what he had to say. Cameron Stansfield.

Joe writes: ‘When the late Frank Perry became too ill to look after his birds Llanover Lady was entrusted into my care and finished her days here with me. She was one of a nest pair of hens. Frank said on many occasions he never knew which was the better of the two. Both had scored good open positions with the WSRNFC from Saintes and Pau and both have left a considerable dynasty of long distance descendants.

They were the product of a lifetime’s breeding and testing at distance events such as Lerwick and later south-east to Geissen and south to Palamos on their dam’s side and their sire was a son of the great Cambrian King. Together with his full sister Cambrian Queen both achieved the coveted 1st Open Lerwick for Bowen Bros in the WGNFC in 1973 and 1981.

It was Frank’s ambition to emulate this great achievement with these two hens. Alas it was not to be as Llanover Lady’s sister failed to return from a 30 mile training toss just a few days before basketing for Palamos in 2000. Llanover Lady’s achievements thereafter are now well and truly placed in the annals of long distance racing. At the time of her success she was perhaps the greatest long distance racing hen in Europe.

Llanover Lady's sister. Frank held her to be the equal of her illustrious sister but she failed to return from a 30 mile training toss when being prepared for Palamos.

Llanover Lady died at sixteen years of age in 2012. She laid fertile eggs in her final year and raised a single YB. I’m absolutely sure that could she have remained in her old home in Pontypridd she would still be here today. Whilst with me, if she could have gained her liberty she would have been back in “Ponty” to her old master without any doubt… or would have died in the attempt! She always watched me in the loft, my every move, no doubt waiting for the chance to make hers but never in a wild way just cool, calm and calculating. She was never a big eater, she would even with Frank, come and have a few grains and then go back to her nest box and that she would repeat several times. Frank had to feed her in her nest box when she was being prepared for Palamos because she just would not leave her nest, certainly not for food. When sitting she was like a lion, often drawing blood if you attempted to clean her box whilst she was sitting. Her offspring in the main very much retain this trait and I have the scars to prove it!

Her genes continue to provide pigeons of merit. Three grandchildren have scored in the BICC, 8th Open St Vincent, 13th Open Barcelona and 9th Open Pau for Terry Johnson and another descendant was 3rd Open BICC for John Lane. A g.g.son was also 7th Open WSRNFC from Tarbes for me so the blue blood continues to flow and for exponents of long distance racing her genes will, I am sure, continue to be a much sought after asset.'

Llanover Lady pictured after her first trip to Palamos when she finished 6th Open

Runner up to Llanover Lady from Palamos was another great Welsh pigeon, the Padfield Family’s The Don. It was a little while later that I returned to South Wales to meet the Padfields Vince, Dave and Albert. Contrary to what I wrote earlier about extreme distance pigeons tending to be over medium in build, The Don was quite a small, compact cock… but that’s pigeons for you in a nutshell you try and fit them into stereotypes and they come back and bite you on the bum!

I gave Dave a call and asked him for his memories of 2001. Here is what he had to say.

'Hi Cameron, As requested, some more pleasant memories of the past. What a great day for the Welsh Distance Flying Fraternity with 1st Open Llanover Lady and 2nd Open The Don. I remember the day well. It was a hot sultry one with no real wind, a day when even the wild birds were resting rather than flying. When I looked at the weather map it showed a baking hot Europe with temperatures well above 30C and across the complete map it showed a light 2 to 5mph east wind, just enough to give the Taffs an edge. The scene was set and the Perry/Padfield show duly transpired. If I am not mistaken, some time later an advert from Mr McLaren stated “1st bird from BBC Palamos in to England”. A proud day for the Welsh indeed!

The Don - Padfield Family's old warhorse who enjoyed his finest hour from Palamos in 2001.

To follow this up, on the Presentation Night, the best secretary in the world as was, Jim Hooper, set ourselves and Frank up on the same table which was covered in Welsh Dragon flags. Frank Perry gave a speech from the heart which was fantastic to listen to and there was not a dry eye in the house. What a night.

Back to the birds, the winner LLanover Lady was 6th open BBC Palamos a year earlier and now she was a worthy winner and in second place was The Don taking the red ribbon in the Single Bird NFC. The Don had previously scored on 3 or 4 occasions from Pau and that year due to no racing from France, was sent to Hersal in Belgium as his prep race. When it was confirmed there was to be no racing from France we just re-paired all the birds and moved them off the roundabout. He was sent to Palamos sitting eggs 10 to 14 days with a single youngster that must have been 4 weeks old when he returned. On that scorcher of a day I think Frank clocked at about quarter to 4 and we clocked about twenty past 4.

Pedigree of The Don

The breeding of the Don was our classic lines. His sire was off the father of Old 89 when paired back to the Original Hen the mother of Padfields Perfection 1st, 3rd, 23rd 39th WSRN Pau and his dam was out of Old 89 when paired to his niece. Yours in sport, Dave Padfield.'

There you have it, happy memories of two great pigeons who came to the fore from traditionally the most difficult racepoint in the calendar. If you have a story to tell about a top pigeon, drop us an e-mail here at Elimar and we’ll do the rest.

---

Elimar - January 2014