Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past and present...

RAY HAMMOND OF ALBURY

2nd Open L&SECC Tarbes 2011

Ray Hammond was up to his usual winning ways at the London &South East Classic Club Tarbes race again this year, by recording 2nd and 40th open and carrying on his brilliant consistency in the ‘Blue Riband’ event. If Ray had won the race he would have recorded his fourth Classic win, which I think I’m correct in stating, would have been a record in the L&SECC. He clocked his four year old natural hen early on the Saturday morning to win 2nd open and she was sent to Tarbes feeding a small youngster. This game hen had two 25 mile training tosses and a Kingsdown (120 miles) race on her build up to Tarbes, and her dam was second pigeon on the clock from the Tarbes Classic to record 40th open. The dam was first pigeon from Tarbes in 2010 to win 13th open and these hens are bred close to Ray’s 2005 L&SECC Pau winner, ‘Simply the Best’. Well done to Ray on yet another great Tarbes Classic!

Ray is one of the ‘all time greats’ of long distance racing in the Surrey area, having put up many outstanding performances over many years and has won the longest old bird race in the London & South East Classic Club three times, including 1st. open Pau (550 miles) in 2005. His Pau Classic winner was the dark cock, ‘Simply The Best’, and he is a firm favourite at the Albury loft, and now resides in the stock loft. Again, the 2005 Pau Classic was a very hard race and he won it well, being only the fourth race of his life. ‘Simply The Best’ was a latebred youngster in 2003 and had no racing as a young bird or yearling. I handled this great pigeon recently and I must say he was a perfect long distance type, being long cast in the hand, with very good silky feathering. Darran Mc Fadden’s 2008 Tarbes L&SECC winner, ‘Razor’s Girl, is a nice two year old pied hen, bred by the Albury long distance ace, Ray Hammond, and is a direct daughter of Ray’s 2005 L&SECC Pau winner, ‘Simply the Best’. A wonderful pigeon!

Ray’s record in the long distance races over many years is second to none, winning: 1st open L&SECC Dax (twice), 3rd open L&SECC Dax, 5th open L&SECC Dax, 1st open L&SECC Pau, 1st open SMT Combine Bergerac, 6th open L&SECC Pau, 9th open L&SECC Pau, 1st section, 2nd open BBC Palamos (665 miles), 2nd open BBC Barcelona (685 miles), 3rd open BBC Barcelona, 5th open BBC Barcelona, 1st section BBC Nantes, 1st section, 2nd open BBC Tours (only four birds home on the day of liberation), 2nd open BICC Perpignan, 19th open NFC Pau, 36th open NFC Pau and has won Bergerac at club level four times. A fantastic loft performance in the very best competition!

In mid-July 2006 the S.M.T. Combine sent 1,012 birds to Bergerac, in south west France, for it’s longest old bird race and just managed to beat DEFRA’s latest closure of racing from the Continent, due to be imposed on 31st. July. With very high temperatures and a stiff north east, the pigeons encountered one of the hardest Bergerac (450 miles) races ever, and certainly the hardest event of the 2006 season. Only five game pigeons were clocked on the day of liberation, with only two making over 900 y.p.m. and both theses were at the Godalming club in the Surrey Federation.

Ray won the Combine doing 954 y.p.m. with his good yearling blue cock, ‘Simply Wonderful’, and he was sent to Bergerac sitting seven day old eggs. This game cock had three inland races on his build up to the Bergerac race and took two weeks to come home from the Truro Combine event. When I asked Ray about his build up, he said, ‘I think he went to Ireland on his way home from Truro, as on his return he had Shamrock between his toes and he was singing, ‘It’s along way from Tipperary’. His sire is an Eric Cannon / Tom Gilbertson cross and has been in the clock many times on the long distance, including being first bird clocked from the L.& S.E.C.C. Bergerac race, on the same weekend as when he won the Combine. The grandsire of ‘Simply Wonderful’ won Bergerac twice in the old Dorking club. I handled the Bergerac Combine winner two days after he won and I noticed how well he was feathered, being nice and silky, and was half way up on his second flight.

Ray races 15 pairs on the natural system, with the long distance events in mind, and pairs up in mid-February. He likes to get the youngsters weaned before the old birds start training, but stressed to me that he trained very little, with the race team getting only four tosses through to Petersfield (30 miles) this season. Ray is only interested in the long distance, but says his birds need the distance on a hard day to do well, as recent races from Pau and Bergerac have proved. Ray’s Bergerac win is the second S.M.T. Combine winner in the very strong Godalming club in the 2006 season, with Darran and Des McFadden topping the Combine from Yelverton. He told me he couldn’t keep up with the young ‘hot shots’ like Darren on the sprint races, but likes to send to those inland races to get the birds race fit. The main families kept are Eric Cannon, through Ron Dodd of Selsey, and Malcolm Parker has let Ray have some good long distance bloodlines, including the best of Tom Gilbertson. He told me he has had some very good results with sending pigeons to the distance races feeding a two day old youngster, but says every pigeon is an individual with different fades and the fancier must find out, in which nest condition each individual performs best. Ray is a heavy feeder and gives all the birds ‘Cranleigh Number 1” mixture all the year round. He de-worms twice a year and some times puts a little cod liver oil on the mixture. The old birds go through to Pau (550 miles) and he is a great believer in testing pigeons, so also sends a few yearlings to the south of France race point.

Ray has an 18ft.x 6ft. Kidby loft, which was paid for with winning from a young bird National race and he has a garden shed which was purchased for £10, and this houses his Pau Classic winner, ‘Simply The Best’, plus a couple of other stock birds. The old bird racers have 12ft. of the main loft, which is kitted out with nest boxes and the young birds are housed in a 6ft. section. The trapping is through the open hole and sputniks, and Ray has never used deep litter, with the loft being cleaned out once a week. Most of the stock birds he has kept through the years have been retired premier racing pigeons and if he has ever brought in a new bird it must be from the very best long distance bloodlines. He handles the bird, and his hands tells him the rest of the story.  He only keeps two stock cocks, one being the Pau Classic winner, and tells me he likes to show at the local club shows, saying it’s a great social thing for the members in the winter months. Ray says he breds 30 youngsters for racing every year and races the old fashion natural system to the perch, with the darkness never entertained. He is a semi-retired bricklayer and maintains he is a lazy trainer, and never trains his old or young birds very much, but gives them an open loft as much as possible. Where he live is very rural and he has a lot of problems with the Hawks and Falcons attacking the birds in the garden. The young birds start training three weeks before the first race, going down the A3 in stages to Portsmouth and race the whole programme, including the L.& S.E.C.C. and N.F.C. races in September.

Ray had his first pigeons as a school boy and had to pack them up when he joined the R.A.F., then after a few years he got married and had his family, he then decided to start up a second time in 1970. His original birds came from Ron Dodd of Cranleigh and on joining the British Barcelona Club, became very interested in long distance pigeon racing, with his ambition always being to win the Palamos National. One of Ray’s best pigeon days was when he won the Dax race in the morning and 2nd. open B.B.C. Palamos in the afternoon. What a thrill! He has lived at his present address in Albury 30 years and tells me, the ‘Simply The Best’ bloodlines go back to his 2nd. and 5th. open Barcelona pigeons, which in turn go back to the late, Fred Seaman of Woking pigeons. He maintains, that not a enough young people are coming in the sport, because we are living in a computer age and they are not interested in sports like Fishing and Pigeon Racing any more. Ray is very interested in Horse Racing, visiting many premier race tracks around the U.K. with his son, Micky Hammond, who was a very successful jockey, winning many major races including the Scottish Grand National. Micky is a trainer these days and it seems he has inherited his good stock sense from his father! Ray is not to keen on the ETS system and says he likes to see his birds come home from the long races and thinks it not right that they clock them selves in while the fancier is down at the Tesco Superstore doing their shopping. He told me that he rated Mick Tuck of Whitley the best local fancier and says he races a brilliant pigeon on the long distance and is a great worker at the Godalming club.

London & South East Classic Club (Tours Yearling Derby)

The second race of the 2011 L&SECC season was flown from Tours in late May and this event incorporates the annual Yearling Derby. Ken and Lyn Wise of Isleworth won the Classic in great style! Their winning pigeon was their yearling Gaby Vandenabeele blue chequer pied hen, ‘DE A3’, and this game celebrate hen won it all, 1st open Classic, 1st open Yearling Derby, £500 Jackpot and the ‘Brooker Gold Cup’. Brilliant pigeon racing! She was sent to Tours paired to Ken and was so keen; she fell over when she hit the landing area on the loft. ‘DE A3’ has been raced un-paired all this season, flying the Alencon Classic two weeks earlier and has been trained off the south coast, plus one north road toss from Stevenage. Her sire is Ken’s outstanding blue Gaby Vandenabeele stock cock, ‘DE 195’, which has bred several premier racers for the Isleworth loft including: ‘DE A3’ winner of 1st SW section, 1st open L&SECC Tours, her nest mate ‘DE 008’ winner of 1st SW section, 4th open L&SECC Guernsey (young bird) and ‘DE 130’ winner of 1st Three Borders Federation Yelverton (993 birds). This fantastic stock cock was bred by M. & D. Evans directly from there champion breeder, ‘Benneton’ and he in turn was bred from the very of Gaby Vandenabeele’s loft. The dam of the Tours Classic winner was ‘DE 159’, another M. & D. Evans / Vandenabeele, bred by Dave Hawkins and she is a daughter of his great breeder, ‘One So Wonderful’. Outstanding pigeons breeding outstanding pigeons!

L&SECC Tour Yearling Derby Result

• Ken Wise of Isleworth – 1555.
• Packer & Clarke of Grays – 1540.
• Mr. & Mrs. Streatfield of Snodland – 1516.
• W. & J. Cheeseman of Snodland – 1506.
• Gladwin & Jarvis of Leigh on Sea – 1496.
• P. Costas of Cuxton – 1484.
• D. Turner of Capel – 1449.
• Mr. & Mrs. S. Wakerley of Basildon – 1443...
• J. Salt of Rudgwick – 1441.
• D. Turner of Capel – 1435.

Congratulations to Ray on his fantastic performance! If you need to contact me please ring: 01372 463480.

TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT