“ON THE ROAD” WITH KEITH MOTT.

Three Borders Federation (Kingsdown Race 2)

The Three Borders Federation held its second Kingsdown race at the beginning of June and what a race it turned out to be! Dom McCoy, the Federation convoyer, liberated the 629 birds at 11.15hrs in to a strong west wind and at the home end the first 14 Federation positions were gone in only ten second. What a ‘banger’ race! Richard Kent of Walton-on-Thames won the first ten positions in the very strong Spelthorne club and 1st, 2nd, 10th, 14th, 17th Federation. The Ashridge club ‘ace’, Terry Goodsell was right there with Richard and recorded: 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th Federation. Richard’s first two birds on the ETS were his widowhood cocks, ‘Logan’ and ‘Lewis and they are both Gaby Vandenabeeles bred from the original Brian Trussler stock birds.

The first ten in the Kingsdown (2) Federation result were: 1) Richard Kent 2202: 2 Richard Kent 2201: 3) Terry Goodsell 2200: 4) Terry Goodsell 2200: 5) Terry Goodsell 2200: 6) Terry Goodsell 2200: 7) Terry Goodsell 2199: 8) Terry Goodsell 2199: 9) Terry Goodsell 2199: 10) Richard Kent 2199. This was race number ten of the season and at this point the Ashridge club are leading for the ‘Federation Points Trophy’ with 88 points, with the Mitcham & Morden club being R/U on 82 points.

After a desperately bad start to 2018 racing season weather wise, the Three Borders Federation sent 513 birds to Blandford (80 miles) for the first old bird race and member of the Spelthorne club were back at the top of the Federation result sheet, with club members recording 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 14th. Richard Kent had three pigeons come from the race together and recorded 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th Federation. He had changed his old bird racing system for the new season, coming off widowhood and is racing all completely natural. What a brilliant start on the new natural system! The Blandford Federation winner was the three year old Gaby Vandenabeele blue cock, ‘Richard’s Boy’, bred by Brian Trussler and he was sent driving his hen to nest, and he had previously won a race as a young bird in 2015. Richard’s 2018 positions won in the Three Borders Federation were: (Old Bird): 1st, 2nd, 3rd Federation Blandford (513 birds), 14th, 16th, 22nd Federation Yeovil (752 birds), 10th Federation Kingsdown (855 birds), 8th Federation Kingsdown (630 birds), 12th Federation Yeovil (737 birds), 2nd, 21st Federation Honiton (647 birds), 5th, 6th, 7th Federation Kingsdown (687 birds), 20th Federation Exeter (525 birds). (Young Bird): 17th Federation Yelverton (365 birds). Brilliant pigeon racing!

Richard Kent is a born racer and in recent years has raced his Ducati motor cycle at a lot of the premier race circuits in the UK, including Brands Hatch in Kent and Oulton Park in Cheshire. He tells me he has been around the race circuit on the Isle of Man on his bike several times. These days he gets his sport by racing his pigeons and has enjoyed some outstanding success in recent seasons. The Three Borders Federation sent 1,211 birds to Blandford (80 miles) for the first old bird race of the 2017 season and Paul and Rube Johnson of the Spelthorne club won the race, beating club mate, Richard Kent, into 2nd Federation on decimal point. After that Richard never looked back and had a brilliant 2017 season, recording many top positions including 1st Three Borders Federation Yeovil (740 birds) with an old bird and 1st Federation Blandford (769 birds) with a youngster. His old bird Federation winner was his yearling blue chequer widowhood cock, ‘Alex’ and he was bred from stock birds obtained from Brian Trussler and Danny Allison. The top racer in the Kent loft is a tiny little blue cock named ‘Champion Roo’ and he might be very small but he can race, winning 2nd Federation Blandford, 7th Federation Yeovil, 10th Federation Exeter, plus 1st club Blandford and 1st club Kingsdown. Richard Kent’s performances in the 2017 season were: (OB): 2nd Federation Blandford (1,211 birds), 6th, 7th, 10th, 11th Federation Exeter (1,018 birds), 3rd Federation Kingsdown (649 birds), 1st, 8th Federation Yeovil (740 birds), 10th, 19th, 20th, 21st Federation Honiton, (YB): 1st, 2nd, 3rd Federation Blandford (769 birds), 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th Federation Yeovil (1,023 birds), 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th Federation Yeovil (918 birds), 19th, 20th, 21st Federation Blandford (1,148 birds), 4th, 5th, 9th, 10th,11th, 14th, 18th 19th, 20th Federation Kingsdown (1,108 birds), plus eight firsts, eleven seconds and nine thirds in the very strong Spelthorne club. He finished up the season by winning 3rd section, 21st open BICC Guernsey (YB) and won the Old Bird Inland Average, Young Bird Average and Combined Inland Average in the Three Borders Federation. Brilliant pigeon racing!

Richard lives in Walton-on-Thames and he enjoyed a wonderful 2016 young bird season racing in the Three Borders Federation. The Federation had 1,207 birds at Yeovil (101 miles) for the second young bird race of the 2016 season and Richard Kent of the Spelthorne club had seven babies hit the ETS in 12 seconds to win 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th Federation. Fantastic pigeon racing! Richard’s winning pigeon was his Koopman blue cock, ‘Jake’, sent racing to the perch and his parents, which were both big race winners before going to stock, were both Brian Trussler bloodlines. ‘Jake’ went on to win 7th Three Borders Federation Exeter in the 2017 racing season. Two weeks after Richard’s Federation win in August 2016, I visited his home and as I expected, his loft and garden was a picture to behold. Like me he worked in the building trade and he is a retired electrician. His very smart 18ft old bird racing loft was self-built, with a pan tile roof and sputnik trapping for his ETS. At the back end of his garage he had a brick built workshop and he has converted this into his magnificent young bird and stock loft. His stock loft, which houses only ten pairs, is a bit special, with really big nest boxes and loads of room for the inmates. He pairs up in late December and all his birds have come from Brian Trussler and Danny Allison. He is racing his old birds on natural, but will be moving over to widowhood shortly and the birds are fed on a top quality widowhood mixture. Richard is a hard trainer and the old birds get tosses mainly off the south coast, with racing from France in mind.

Richard tells me he started the 2016 season with 40 youngsters, 20 bred by himself and 20 bred by Brian Trussler, and has enjoyed one of his best young bird seasons ever, winning several firsts in the strong Spelthorne club. He started by winning the first six positions in the Spelthorne club from the first young bird race, flown from Blandford, then the next week took the first seven in the Three Borders Federation from Yeovil and also recorded 2nd, 3rd, 6th, in the Spelthorne Breeder / Buyer Kingsdown Open Race (396 birds), being beaten on a decimal. He was second in the Spelthorne Open with a beautiful blue chequer pied hen and she was Frank Bristow bloodlines, coming from Brian Trussler. He puts his young birds on the ‘darkness’ system and races to the perch, having no success with paired up babies over the years. Richard is a very hard trainer, with them going down the road on most days and starts them training very early in May. The youngsters are not staved, but kept in line and are fed on a good widowhood mixture. On being weaned they get their PMV jab and are cankered before going on the ‘darkness’ system.

It was good to meet up with Richard again, as I hadn’t seen him since about 1982. At that time we both flew in the now disbanded Molesey and Hersham clubs and soon after Richard left the sport because of his chest problems when he was around the birds. I enjoyed our time together on my visit to his loft and I must say he looked really well! Richard has been back in the sport for about three years, starting with six babies and has now climbed back to top of the result in that time.

The Hersham RBLFC joined the Three Borders Federation at the commencement of 1981 and what a great season the club enjoyed, winning top positions including two firsts. Les Penycate won the Federation from Plymouth and Richard Kent stormed the Federation and won the Seven Counties Combine from Laval. The Combine sent 7,348 birds to the Laval (2) race and at that time that birdage was a record for this young and up and coming Combine. Richard’s Combine winner, doing 1415ypm, was his yearling blue pied cock, ‘90’, and he had previously won 5th Hersham Weymouth Open at the beginning of the 1981 season. He started up in the sport of pigeon racing in 1965 with birds obtained from Louis Massarella and Richard told me the late, Fred Elliott of Sunningdale was a great help to him in those days. Richard joined his local club, the Molesey & District HS and raced to a 6ft x 4ft loft. His Combine winning loft in 1981 was a more plush 18ft affair, with anti-bolt and open door trapping. Richard told me he tried deep litter, but being asthmatic, it up set him and had to use an inhaler before cleaning out the birds. Richard was only a small team man and paired his 12 pairs of old birds up on 14th February and bred 20 youngsters to race each season. The birds raced on the Natural system and after he had reared a pair of squeakers from each pair of old birds they were trained as much as possible.

Richard raced the Burgers pigeons and his best performances up to winning the Combine were: 1st club, 3rd Federation, 5th SMT Combine (4,268 birds) and 1st club, 6th Federation, 8th SMT Combine (5,498 birds) Rennes. He always fed De Scheemaecker ‘Natural’ corn with a little ‘Red Band’. The old birds started training at ten miles and worked up to 40 miles before the first Federation race, and then got 15 mile tosses twice a week through the racing season. At that time, Richard, rated his good friends, Dick and Brian Trussler of Molesey, the best local fanciers and said they were totally dedicated to the sport. Those were the days and look at those wonderful birdages in the Combine races in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. Just brilliant!

That’s our article for this week. I can be contacted with any pigeon ‘banter’ on telephone number: 01372 463480 or email me at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT (www.keithmott.com)