“ON THE ROAD” WITH KEITH MOTT.

Three Borders Federation (Wincanton Race 2).

The Three Borders Federation held its second young bird  race from Wincanton in mid-August and Dean Watson, the Federation assistant convoyer, liberated 800 birds at 08.15hrs in to a north east wind situation. Although the weather conditions were ‘spot on’ and the young birds cleared the liberation well, the members experienced a testing race, with the northeast head wind. The Esher ‘master’ Vic Emberson won the Federation and increased his tally to five times 1^st Federation in the 2022 season. Vic’s fantastic performance in Federation this season is: (old bird) 1^st, 9^th, 10^th, 11^th, 12^th, 13^th, 17^th, 24^th, 25^th Federation Wincanton, 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 7^th, 17^th Federation Wincanton, 11^th, 12^th, 16^th, 17^th, 18^th, 19^th, 22^nd Federation Yeovil, 17^th, 22^nd Federation Honiton, 1^st, 9^th, 18^th, 22^nd Federation Exeter, 1^st Federation Blandford, 5^th, 23^rd, 24^th Federation Wadebridge, 11^th, 13^th, 14^th, 15^th, 16^th, 25^th Federation Honiton, 3^rd, 17^th, 19^th Federation Okehampton, 16^th Federation Kingsdown, 3^rd, 6^th, 7^th, 11^th, 13^th, 22^nd, 23^rd Federation Exeter, 21^st, 22^nd, 25^th Federation Yeovil, 7^th Federation Penzance, (young bird) 1^st Federation Wincanton. The Ashridge club had a brilliant race, recording 20 pigeons in the Federation result! Brilliant pigeon racing by the Emberson loft and Ashridge club, and still more to come!

The first ten in the Wincanton (2) Federation result were: 1) Vic Emberson 1398: 2) Terry Goodsell 1392: 3) Terry Goodsell 1392: 4) Terry Goodsell 1392: 5) Terry Goodsell 1392: 6) Terry Goodsell 1392: 7) Terry Goodsell 1392: 8) Terry Goodsell 1390: 9) Frank & Sue Carson 1384: 10) Frank & Sue Carson 1383. This was race number sixteen of the season and at this point the Esher club are leading for the ‘Federation Points Trophy’ with 68 points, with the Ashridge club being R/U on 56 points.

Vic Emberson had pigeons as a child, but really started racing in 1988 at the Banstead lofts. His late uncle is, Fred Emberson, who has been an outstanding channel racer in the London area for many years and he was a great help in getting Vic started in the sport. The Emberson loft has won the Federation countless times through the years and has recoded 1^st open National several times, including 1^st open NFC Fougeres (old hens) in 2004. Vic and his wife, Lou have won many major prizes in National racing in their years in the sport, but rated highly their performance in the 2005 season by recording 1^st open BICC Alencon National. Vic’s recent account of the Alencon race was; “On the day of the BICC Alencon race the wind was strong westerly and we were expecting the winner to be in the East Section. On arrival, the cock came out of the east, confirming our belief that the winner would be in that section, but what a pleasant surprise we had when we were informed we had the leading pigeon, which was named ‘Valiant Leader’. This cock was half-brother to our 2000: 1^st open Alliance of Specialist Clubs Millennium National race and car winner, ‘Alliance Leader’ and was also related to ‘Ellie’, our 2004 NFC Fougeres old hens winner”. A great family of winning pigeons!

Vic Emberson races 20 cocks on the widowhood system and pairs up in mid-January with the Federation sprint races in mind. The racers are put on the widowhood system after the first round of youngsters and are broken down from Saturday until Tuesday morning during the racing season. Vic mixes his own corn and the main family kept is Staf Van Reet because he likes sprint racing. The widowhood cocks are not trained during the racing season, just exercised around the loft twice a day to keep them fit. The partners have two very smart self-built lofts and the stock birds have a nice wire flight, to get out into the weather. The race team are trapped through ETS traps and sputnik traps. Vic’s wife, Lou, and his sons, Carl and Neil, have been great workers with the pigeons through the years and he says a lot of his success years ago were down to their help, but now races on his own.

Vic’s late uncle was the racing ‘ace’, Fred Emberson, who resided near Canterbury in Kent, but prior to that was one of the leading long distance racers in the London area for a great many years. The origin of Fred’s family of racers were, four birds obtained from A. H. Bennett, including a son of Champion ‘Andre’ and Fred told me all his birds could be traced to these original stock birds. Another good introduction was two late breds, gifted to him by his nephew, Vicky Emberson of Banstead, and these were bred from pigeons obtained from Lol Green.

Alex Fleming of Esher.

The late Alex Fleming was in the sport of pigeon racing for over 70 years and said that at the age of five he used to wait at his dad’s loft for several days, while his dad was at work, to clock in birds from 600 mile races. In those days he raced in his native county of Durham and the only breaks he had from the sport was during the war. Alex was premier prize winner in the Esher & Dist. R.P.C., winning six firsts in 1979 and finished up a great season by winning 1^st open SMT Combine Plymouth (young birds). His Combine winner, a Busschaert dark chequer cock called, ‘Mick’, was a gift egg from Matthews & Longman of Ashford and had won 1^st club, 9^th Surrey Federation Exeter the week before the Plymouth Combine win. Alex had his own family based on Gooters, Gits and Alf Bakers, which were good right through to 500 miles. His 18ft three section loft was set in his fantastic prize winning garden and his birds alighted on to low drop boards, being trapped through drop holes. The loft was kept spotless, being cleaned out every day. His wife, Anna, was very keen on the pigeons and was the brains behind the incredible garden. Alex never used deep litter and said from what he had seen; it could cause trouble in the loft. On my visit to the Fleming loft I noted the nest boxes which had a small perch in the corners so the hens could get away from the cocks when pairing up. The smart loft had a fence along the front to ensure that the birds alighted directly on the drop boards. The 1979 Plymouth Combine winner was Alex’s second 1^st open Combine, previously winning from Penzance in 1968. At that time, in 1968, the Fleming loft made history in the very strong Surrey Federation by winning: 1^st, 2^nd club, 1^st, 2^nd Federation Exmouth, 1^st, 2^nd club, 1^st, 2^nd Federation, 1^st, 2^nd open SMT Combine Penzance, 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd club, 1^st, 5^th, 6^th Federation Exmouth, in three successive weekends. A brilliant loft performance! Alex always said his most disappointing experience was in a race when he should have taken the first four positions, but his clock stopped.

Alex maintained that the key factor behind success with racing pigeons is to look after the birds every day of the year and not just in the racing season. He raced on the natural system and trained very little with the old birds getting a few tosses up to Petersfield (40 miles) and youngsters getting about ten training tosses from 6 to 40 miles before the first race. He fed on a mixture of beans, peas, maize and wheat, with Red Band for trapping. When selecting producers he looked for good eye, feather and body and liked one or two latebreds for stock. He always line-bred and his family were a wonderful type of pigeon. Alex kept 20 pairs of old birds, which raced up to longest old bird race from Bergerac, and bred 20 youngsters which raced up to 180 miles. The highlights of Alex’s season in 1979 were: 1^st club, 1^st Surrey Federation Exeter, 1^st club, 5^th Surrey Federation Weymouth, 1^st club, 9^th Surrey Federation Exeter and 1^st club, 1^st Surrey Federation, 1^st SMT Combine Plymouth. Many fancier had outstanding success with the Fleming pigeons, including Nora Major of Putney, who founded her fantastic loft in the 1970’s with his pigeons. Alex Fleming and his pigeons are one of the most respected teams in the Surrey pigeon fraternity of all time!

Dick Brooker of Claygate.

You will quite often hear me say that the sport of pigeon racing is losing all it’s great ‘character’ and one of those ‘character’ was the late Dickie Brooker of Claygate. My ol’ mate Dick was ‘Mr. Pigeon Racing’ and loved the sport! Dick maintained pigeon racing is full of disappointments and to be a pigeon man you have to accept these and carry on. Dick must have had many disappointments in his 60 odd years in the sport but his outstanding performances over the years more than outweigh the disappointments.

Dick had been racing pigeons for over 60 years, joining Cobham & D.R.P.C. in 1932, flying pigeons from his late cousin, Bill Palmer, and Dick's then next door neighbour, the late Harry Lusty. Dick said he used to see pigeons while still in his pram as his neighbour flew in the local clubs and Dick actually had his first pair of birds in 1925 when he was eight years old. He kept them up to his death in the late 1990’s. Dick was a sergeant in the Army Pigeon Service during the war and served under Major Claude Hill. He would sit for hours telling a tale or two about the pigeon service when he served at home and overseas.  When he started up in pigeons Dick said he learned his trade from great fanciers like Frank Taylor, Harry Branch and Frank Kightly. Dick obtained birds from Frank Taylor and Harry Branch, and once he got a team together he took some beating. His first loft wasn't very practical in fact it was an old chicken house, but it was kept clean and well ventilated and the inmates raced well.

One of Dick's best racers was his dark chequer Busschaert cock 'Mighty Mack' which had won many good positions including six times first in London Coly Midweek club. 'Mighty Mack' was pigeon of the year in London Coly in 1983 winning four races and untold pool money. This great pigeon strayed into Dick's loft as a youngster and since Mr Richards of Ilford gave him to Dick, he has won six firsts for the Brooker loft. The Brookers' team were raced on the Natural system being paired up on 14^th February and his two lofts housed two pairs of stock birds, 15 pairs of racers made up of the Fleming, Dordin, Busschaert and Cattrysse strains. His old bird loft was 18ft x 8ft with two sections and the birds were trapped through drop holes. Young birds were raced to an 8ft x 4ft loft and trapped through bob holes. Dick scraped the lofts most days and loft white was used on the floors to dry up any damp. Dick said good ventilation and air flow are very important in a loft and you should not smell pigeons in the loft. Dick says the best fancier in his area was undoubtedly the late Alex Fleming of Esher, who was at the top level in the Surrey area for nearly 40 years. Dick had great admiration for the late Eric Cannon of Wormley and Ron Wasey of New Addington. Dick had held many top posts in the racing pigeon sport but said his biggest thrill was when he was voted in as president of London Coly, following in the footsteps of many great fanciers, including the late Wing Commander Lea Rayner and Col Patterson.

Another of Dick's best pigeons was the six year old Dordin blue cock, ‘The 13 Cock' and he had won many prizes including seven firsts and bred race winners with three different hens. He was bred from a stock pair obtained from his good friend, Vic Wise of Richmond and was bred from the best Dordin bloodlines. Dick's good blue cock '51' was a son of 'The 13 Cock' and he had chalked up 1^st Club Exeter and 1^st Club Nantes.

Over the years Dick had won at all distances, and one old pigeon that came to mind was NURP52KT887 and he was 4^th Barcelona (698 miles) in the first Barcelona International organised by London Coly. '887' was the first pigeon into the London area from Barcelona in 1956. The year 1972 saw another good pigeon from Barcelona when Dick's blue chequer cock NU68P14286 was 2^nd Sect, 6^th open, 788^th open International. He said he had won races at all distances, his first winner being from Marrenes in 1933, but he had always maintained that one must not keep harping on what you have won, but keep looking forward to what there is to be won. Dick's late wife, Margaret, although not able to handle the pigeons was always able to note birds' arrivals and help Dick keep records. Dick said that pigeons should be dealt with as individuals as every bird has its own best racing condition. Any pigeon two years old or over depending on its breeding should be able to fly any distance, but one should not generalise on this, as some strains excel up to 150 miles, some up to 300 miles and some at any distance. He liked to give the birds plenty of work, but knowing how much is necessary for the individual pigeon is the keyword. Many pigeons are ruined by over training and young birds need to be schooled well over the ground for club racing, but many long distance men do not train youngsters at all in the year of their birth. Dick firmly believes they must have a certain amount of training in their first year.

Dick's introduction to eyesign was by the late Henri Rey during the war, with the late Tommy Buck. Dick had also visited Belgian lofts but from what they taught him a little knowledge can be dangerous, he said. A lot of eyesign judges don't use a glass, but a glass was a must for Dick, although he didn’t confess to be an expert, and would never judge an eyesign class.

Another of Dick's best racing Dordin cocks was the handsome blue 'Treble One' and he had three times 1^st Club and 1^st Surrey Federation to his credit. He was another son of the Vic Wise stock pair and brother to 'The 13 Cock'. One of Dick's best stock birds was a Dordin blue hen which he calls 'The Wasey Hen', bred by Ron Wasey of New Addington and she had bred a Federation winner when mated to ‘The 13 Cock’.

No one did more for the sport than Dickie Brooker, he was always out at some meeting or something and how Margaret stood for it all those years, God only knows. He was chairman and past president of Surrey Federation, chairman of SMT Combine, president of London Coly, chairman of Esher & Dist. RPC and chairman of RPRA Southern Region. He was also a much sort after show judge, but said he was not a showman, although showing in the winter months brings fanciers together and can be a good thing socially. We all still miss ol’ Dick, although he has been gone a few years now, he was a wonderful man!

Wally Dann of Cobham.

When Wally Dann passed away, aged 91, a few years ago the sport of pigeon racing lost another of its great fanciers and characters. Wally was a natural flyer, through and through and was a winner, right up to the end, recording 1^st club, 13^th Federation, 18^th Combine (3,281 birds) Fougeres, 1^st club, 7^th Federation, 11^th Combine (2,746 birds) Messac and 1^st club, 3^rd Federation, 3^rd Combine (2,498 birds) Messac in his last season

When you asked Wally what his best performance was, it was hard for him to answer, as in a life time in the sport he won just about everything in the Federation, Combine and Classic racing. He started racing in the early 1900’s, when he raced with his father as W. Dann & son in the Wimbledon club. He always raced on the natural system, but tried widowhood for about five weeks; he hated the system and in spite of winning several races, went back to natural. His loft housed several strains of pigeons, but mostly Van Winckel which raced well for him, from the shortest to the longest race. When he was fit, he used to take the birds training most days and liked to toss at about 25 miles in the early morning. He liked any race, long or short distance, but he told me, you don’t stand much chance racing natural against the widowhood cocks in sprint races. Wally won his fair share in the sprints, but really excelled in the Channel events. . One of his best racers in recent years was, ‘Wally’s Girl’, a natural De Klak blue hen bred by his good friend, Vic Johnson of Kingston. She chalked up, 1^st club, 7^th Federation, 11^th Combine Messac, 1^st club, 13^th Federation, 18^th Combine Fougeres, 16^th open L.&S.E.C.C. Sennen Cove and 1^st club Weymouth.

One of Wally’s best seasons was in 1989, when he recorded 1^st Surrey Federation (2,005 birds) Tours, 1^st Surrey Federation (1,517 birds) Niort and chalked up 2^nd SMT Combine. The 1992 season saw him win nine races in the very strong Esher club, including Wadebridge (young birds), Tours and the longest old bird race from Bordeaux, with the only bird recorded on the day of liberation. His natural racers won ten firsts in the 1993 season, including the longest young bird race from Wadebridge. Wally Dann won the sprints through to the longest events, every season.

Wally was our local corn chandler and enjoyed a chat with the fanciers when they called at his Cobham home, to pick up their pigeon feed. He was a retired carpenter and did a lot of site work through the years, being general foreman on several big jobs. His smart loft set up was all self-built and he favoured the old fashioned type drop hole trapping and doweled nest box fronts. Wally’s son, Tony Dann, is one of our premier local fanciers and his very smart widowhood loft at his Leatherhead home was also made by his dad. There you have it, Wally Dann, one of the Surrey area greats!

Charlie & Arthur Maycock of Hersham.

One of the premier lofts right through the 1970’s and early 1980’s in the Surrey area was that of Charlie and Arthur Maycock of Hersham. I visited the father and son partnership in mid-October and they had just enjoyed a great 1976 season, recording 13 times first, 10 times second, 14 times third, 2^nd Hersham Open from Weymouth (245 birds), 2^nd London Coly Open from Wadebridge (349 birds), winning the London Coly ‘Brooker Gold Cup’ and many premier Federation positions. On my arrival, Arthur invited me down to the loft, which at that time was undergoing extensive alterations. Charlie said the loft was too high and wide, and the birds were hard to control. The ‘L’ shaped loft was 30ft long, 4ft wide at the young bird end, widening out to 5ft. at the other end where the old birds were housed. The Maycocks kept 30 pairs of old bird racers, bred 50 youngsters each season for racing and no stock birds were kept. The inmates were trapped through open doors and a sprinkle of sand was used on the loft floor after every clean out. The main families raced were Blackaby / Putman and the Newman / Cattrysse pigeons which were introduced in 1976. The partners didn’t do much training, as the birds raced mid-week with the London Coly, but they got training up to the first Federation race, when it all stopped and the birds got an open loft all day, weather permitting. The team was paired up at the end of February, although they were paired a bit earlier in 1976, which was very successful for the Maycocks.

The first pigeon we looked at on my visit, was the favourite of the loft, ‘The Mealy Pied Cock’, and this handsome 1969 bred pigeon had won three Open races and seven firsts in the club. He had bred some really good winners for Charlie and Arthur and his sire won £1,000 racing. In fact the next pigeon we handled was a strawberry mealy son of ‘The Mealy Pied Cock’ and he had won £500 racing, which was a lot of money at that time, ten firsts in the club, and 2^nd Hersham Open from Weymouth in the 1976 season. This cock was the same stamp as his father in the hand, medium-deep and had been flown through to the longest race from Bergerac (460 miles). Another premier pigeon at the Maycock loft at that time was the 1967 bred red chequer cock, ‘Red Splash’, and he was a champion racer and bred Federation winners for the Hersham loft.

Charlie had been racing pigeons for 50 years at that time and was a firm believer in changing his methods with the times. Charlie started up with a pair of Bob Chitty pigeons and won his first race from Templecombe in the old Walton club. He only sent one pigeon to this, the first race he competed in. The loft had won the Federation many times through the years and had been in the Combine result out of turn. The partner’s best performance at the time was 1^st club, 2^nd Federation, 2^nd London Combine Rennes and they came home and found their grizzle cock bathing in the garden! Arthur told me, the basket was the only pedigree they were interested in. They were hot on feeding their birds, with inland racers being fed on the tin, with a good mixture and the channel racers on the hopper with extra beans and peas. Many outstanding pigeons were bred at the Maycock’s loft for other fanciers and good winners were always being reported to them.

To say that Charlie and Arthur had a good season in 1978 would be an understatement, as they won three firsts in the very strong Surrey Federation. The partners won 1^st Surrey Federation (2,013 birds) Plymouth, which was the longest young bird race, with a Barker dark chequer cock, which they named ‘Pinocchio’. The 1978 Bergerac race, 460 miles, proved a good race for them, recording 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd in the Molesey club and 3^rd in the Hersham club, with four birds clocked on the day of liberation. Another of the 1978 Federation winners was a nice dark hen purchased at the 1976 Surrey Federation Transporter Auction, being bred by the Federation President, Stan Chandler, and she won from Exeter with 2,699 birds competing. That great season produced some outstanding performances in the SMT Combine for Charlie and Arthur, recording 11^th open Vire, 47^th open Angers, 11^th open Bergerac and 27^th open Vire (young birds). The Maycock’s third Federation winner of the 1978 season was a blue hen named, ‘Joanna’s Pet’, and she won from Weymouth against 3,330 birds. A brilliant loft performance!

Charlie’s daughter, Josephine, took a big interest in the birds; in fact, she purchased £150 worth of Newman / Cattrysse pigeons for the partners in 1976 and she clocked the London Coly birds in on Wednesday afternoons. Arthur didn’t like showing much, so Charlie and Josephine went off to the shows in the winter months and were very successful. Charlie told me at that time that he admired a successful small team man and maintained that many good fanciers don’t score in the Federation and Combine because of where their lofts are situated. The next Maycock generation pigeon racer is Arthur’s daughter, Jo Cuthbert and she is a British Homing World scribe, and races her own successful team of pigeons. The late Charlie and Arthur Maycock, one of the great Surrey partnerships of the past!

Arthur Coxon of Surbiton.

We lost the great Arthur Coxon of Surbiton in 2005 and when I write that the sport of pigeon racing has lost one its nicest characters, with the passing of this great champion, it is an understatement on my part. I’ve known Art ever since I started in the sport nearly 50 years ago and before that, he knew my father when they were school boys and played football together. He was a first class fencer by trade and had to retire from the sport, as in recent years he couldn’t manage his pigeons. Arthur Coxon was the premier pigeon racer in the Surbiton area for all of the 1970’s and many seasons before. He came in to the fancy in 1951 and won scores of first prizes at all distances, but was outstandingly consistent in the long distances races. He won his first race from Weymouth in1952 and won his first major long distance award from Bordeaux in 1952, taking 2^nd club and the Continental Average Cup. Art won the Young Bird Average six years on the trot from 1956 and had his best year in 1962, winning eight firsts, three of which were from France. The pride of the Coxon loft was his famous 1970 black cock, ‘Cyrano Di Bergerac, who had to his credit, 1972: 2^nd club, 5^th Surrey Federation, 11^th SMT Combine Bergerac, 1973: 1^st club, 15^th Surrey Federation, 25^th SMT Combine Bergerac, 1975: 1^st club, 14^th Surrey Federation, 30^th SMT Combine Bergerac (451 miles), and in 1976 this great pigeon peaked to early and won 1^st club Exeter the week before Bergerac. A fantastic pigeon! In 1972, ‘Cyrano’ was beat from Bergerac by his loft mate, ‘Stevie Boy’, who recorded 1^st club, 1^st Surrey Federation, 2^nd SMT Combine, with a punchy velocity of 926 ypm. ‘Stevie Boy smashed himself up on some wires in late 1975 and was put in to the stock loft. The 1967 dark chequer cock, ‘Simon’, flew the channel 23 times for the Coxon loft and won 12 diplomas, including 1^st club Bergerac and 1^st club Nantes. Another ace racer at the Surbiton loft was, ‘Elliot’, who won 1^st club Niort (twice), 2^nd club Rennes and 4^th club Bergerac. A wonderful loft of pigeons!

Art was always ever ready to help anyone and was always keen to give a gift pigeon to a novice. Many pigeons bred at the Coxon loft done well for other fanciers. A dark chequer, half-brother to ‘Simon’, won three firsts for the outstanding Trussler Brothers partnership of Molesey, including 69^th open NFC Nantes, 1^st club Niort (352 miles) and bred winners. I remember talking to the late Dick Trussler in the 1970’s and he really rated Arthur’s dark family, which were based from a 1957 dark chequer hen. We used to call Arthur Coxon, ‘Mr. Bergerac’, and no wonder; he was the number one fancier at that 450 miles distance in the Surrey area for many years. His achievements over the years are far too many to list in this article!

Arthur wasn’t much of a strain man and said his birds were many strains, with his original birds being obtained from many premier south of England flyers. He was a firm but not ruthless basket fancier, when proving the quality of a bird, this being the only pedigree that he was interested in, the basket and not paper. The birds were mated up the first weekend in March, with birds wanted for the longer races held until the end of March. Arthur’s 25 pairs of racing and stock birds were housed in his two self-built garden lofts, consisting of a 12ft x 6ft old bird loft and an 8ft structure for the young bird team. He flew the natural system and fed on a good sound mixture of 50% beans, 30% maize, and 20% wheat, when racing and fed mostly barley when resting in the winter months. Art was a self-employed fencer and liked to take his birds to work every day for training, but when this wasn’t possible he gave them a 25 mile toss twice a week. He liked his young birds to fly the full programme and then slow them up as yearlings. An interesting point is that he never raced latebreds until they were two years old, and he maintained by using this method, he produced some good pigeons. His advice to novices was always the same, get some stock from a consistent loft and be patient.

Arthur’s ‘golden’ memory was, when in 1972 he and two club mates returned to his loft after clock checking to verify ‘Stevie Boy’, when he had won 2^nd open Combine Bergerac. They were standing by Art’s back door to his house, in the dark, talking, when one of them thought he saw a pigeon pitch on the loft in the darkness. Art went to the loft to investigate and there was ‘Cyrano’ hanging on the front wire of the loft! He clocked him, having had a reset and he was 2^nd club, 5^th Surrey Federation, 11^th SMT Combine, and the rest is pigeon history. Arthur had so much respect for that great old black cock, ‘Cyrano De Bergerac’ and he said he had so much guts, and was a once in a life time pigeon. Arthur Coxon’s black family were all small to medium in size and very nice in the hand. They were handsome looking pigeons, with wonderful feathering. He kept the two families of birds, the darks and the blacks, and both were outstanding from 80 miles through to Bergerac, 450 miles. Although Arthur had brilliant pigeons in his loft, he was always willing to introduce a good bird and give it a try. There you have it, the late, great, Arthur Coxon of Surbiton.

That’s it for this week! Well done to Vic Emberson on yet another great Federation winner! If you win and want a write up in this space, contact me on telephone number: 01372 463480 or email me on: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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