Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past and present

BRIAN AND ANGELA GOODWIN OF HANWORTH

In spite of recent health problem, Brian Goodwin, tried to kick them into touch and enjoy his pigeon racing hobby in 2008. He installed the ETS system, but could only race four young bird races and scoring in all four. As in previous seasons Brian racing activities were short, but very sharp recording: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, 25th, 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th Federation from the longest young bird race from Yelverton, setting a new Berkshire Federation record and 1st club 4th Federation Lulworth. Brian’s 2008 Federation winner was his good Maurice and Gregory Casaert pencil blue cock, ‘ETS’, and he was raced to the perch. Right behind ‘ETS’ on the trap to take 2nd Federation was the handsome blue cheq pied cock, ‘Claire’s Boy’, and he is a son of one of Brian’s favourite Federation winners, ‘My Claire’, and she was bred by Willy Thas. The Lulworth winner was the Litherland / Casaert blue pied cock, ‘Peanut Boy’, and he recorded 4th open in the very strong Berkshire Federation.

While I was convoying for the London & South East Classic Club in 2008, my assistant for three of the old bird races was my good mate, Brian, and I must say he has worked out of his skin for the three Classic races he has covered with me last season. The life of a pigeon convoyer is a very hard one and Brian did a brilliant job as my assistant, in spite of his recent health problems. He told me, he really enjoyed the experience, especially going to Tarbes, but would never do it again!

For many years now my good friend, Brian Goodwin, has be threaten to arrange some Continental loft visits for us to enjoy and finally the month of February 2008 saw us get on the Euro Tunnel train to kick off a two day pigeon trip of Belgium and Holland. The weather was freezing and to beat the traffic hold ups we caught the 03.00hrs train out of Dover. Brian has been commuting to the Continent and purchased the very best racing pigeons available in Belgium and Holland for the past 30 years, so he was the best man to arrange the trip. He is not a guy who messes around and in past years has purchase whole rounds of youngsters from the very top loft on the Continent, including Willy Thas, which have produced several Federation and Combine winners in recent seasons. Through the years he have been well known for racing the direct Emiel Deweerdt pigeons with brilliant success, but in recent seasons Brian has been over to Belgium and brought back several new strains, which have also performed very well. Our good mates, Darren Watson and Peter ‘Fat Wallet’ Mercer, came along for the trip and I must say they were a great laugh and their good company made the two days extra special. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve been over the English Channel to Belgium and Holland, but had never visited pigeon lofts out there, apart from spending two days at the ‘Ponderosa’ in Holland, with Hans Eijerkamp and his family in the mid 1990’s. We visited several premier lofts including Schoors & DeWaele of Maldegram and Ronald Heesen of Laren.

I think in this great sport of ours, there are many fanciers who achieve success, but fancier who consistently achieve success over many years are not so common. One such loft that has achieved outstanding success at the highest level for well over 30 years is that of Brian and Angela Goodwin of Hanwoth, near Feltham in Middlesex. In spite of one or two health problems, Brian, had a few races in 2007 and won the Berkshire Federation twice with old birds, winning ten of the thirteen old bird club races he competed in. One of his 2007 Federation winners was the blue chequer hen, ‘My Claire’, bred by Willy Thas of Melle, Belgium. These Thas pigeons are certainly racing well for the Goodwin loft and this game hen has a string of prizes, including 1st Federation Yelverton and 20th Federation Kingsdown. His other 2007 Federation winner, bred by Foxwood Lofts, was the chequer cock, ‘Mercer’, and he topped the Berkshire Federation from Yelverton.

The Goodwin’s breed many winners for other fanciers and in the 2007 season the Charlie and John Cudmore partnership of the Bedfont club won the Federation twice, once with an old bird which also topped the UBI Combine and the other was a youngster. The young bird was a Willy Thas blue hen named, ‘Katie’, which won the Federation from Kingsdown and she was bred by Brian Goodwin from direct Belgium stock birds. The partner’s old bird UBI Combine winner was a Willy Thas blue chequer hen named; ‘Christine’ and she won the combine from Fougeres in France, being sent sitting 12 day old eggs. She was also bred by Brian Goodwin and on her build up to her Combine win she had a couple of inland races, recording 2nd club Kingsdown. The Cudmores have brother to ‘Christine’, bred by Brian and he has been to Bergerac (450 miles) four times with the Classic and has been home four times on the day of liberation, flown natural.

Brian and Angela race in the very strong Spelthorne club and have won many firsts every year, including 1st. Berkshire Federation four times in the last four seasons with young birds. When I asked Brian if he raced on the ‘dark’ system, he replied ‘I tried the system one year and didn’t like it, so race the young birds completely natural. They don’t look as good in the feather, but he finds the natural birds race just as well as those he put on the ‘darkness’. The partner’s champion blue cock, ‘The 22 Cock’, recorded 1st. club, 1st. Berkshire Federation, 2nd. open UBI Combine Poole, 1st. club, 4th. Berkshire Federation Wincanton in the 2005 season and was the champion young bird in the Spelthorne club. Brian and Angela won the Berkshire Federation twice with young birds in the 2006 season and the first was their little Casaert blue chequer cock, named ‘The Casaert Cock’, and he topped the Federation from Lulworth. Brian has had several outstanding racers from Maurice and Gregory Casaert who live at Nichin, on the Belgium / French border. The second Federation winner of the 2006 season was bred by Brian’s good friend Freddy Vandheede of Zingem in Belgium and this handsome blue white flight cock, now called ‘Freddy’, won from Exeter. The Vandheede loft is outstanding on the Continent in middle distance racing, but Brian has had young birds off him every season since 2003 and they have been outstanding at all distances.

Through the years the Goodwin’s have been well known for racing the Emiel Deweerdt pigeons with brilliant success, but in recent seasons Brian has been over to Belgium and brought back several new strains, which have also performed very well. In the 2006 season, Spelthorne club members, Don Herbert and Peter Mercer, won 1st. and 2nd. open UBI Combine Wadebridge and both these two young birds were bred from Brian and Angela’s Willy Thas stock birds. The Goodwin’s have several Schoors – De Waele of Maidegem in Belgium stock birds which have bred some good winners since they imported them. Brian bred a blue pied cock from these birds, now named ‘Bert’, for A. Hand & son of Feltham and in won 1st. club, 1st. Berkshire Federation, 4th. open UBI Combine Saintes. The Hand partnership are relations of the late Feltham fancier, Bert Hand, who was well known many years ago for his good work for the Old Comrades Show. ‘Bert’ is a wonderful looking cock and was bred from a grand-son of the champion Schoors – De Waele blue white flight cock ‘Den Bonten Vincke’.

I have known Brian and Angela Goodwin for over 35 years and you couldn't ask to meet two nicer people. The Middlesex couple won 1st Open SMT Combine Bergerac (450 miles) recently and recorded their fourth 1st Open Combine winner in 35 years in the sport. They have won the SMT Combine an incredible four times – from Penzance, Melle and the longest old bird Bergerac race (twice). Brian's latest winner was a little blue Belgian hen raced on the roundabout system having had several good Channel races before winning the very strong SMT Combine from Bergerac. Every now and again he has a trip to Belgium and brings back a few fancied young birds. The blue hen was one of these imports, being purchased at a little loft in Belgium, and he doesn't even know the breeder's name.

Brian first became interested in pigeons at the age of 10, after following his big brother, David, to his friend's house in Isleworth, where they kept pigeons in the back of an old television. Young Brian started catching pigeons under iron railway bridges, with a torch, at night and built up his first flock. Some years later, after upgrading his team, he started racing in the very strong Isleworth Club and won from Exmouth (150 miles) with 196 birds competing. The late Johnny Sampson of Isleworth gave him a lot of good advice and help in those early days. He maintains he owes all his success to Johnny, as he told him how to feed, train and race his birds. Johnny gave him a pair of eggs which produced his winner, with the nest pair recording 1st and 2nd Club Exmouth.

Brian and Angela used to race widowhood but say it is a waste of good hens, so now they race the roundabout system. Brian races only the south route and likes to win every Saturday from the shortest to the longest race. He raced Emiel Deweerdt of Kortemark, Belgium, pigeons, which he introduced in 1978, and pigeons from H. Beverdam of Enter, Holland. He tries six youngsters every year from small lofts in Belgium and Holland, which he started to do in the early 1990s. He maintains the Emiel Deweerdts have been fantastic for him through the years, from any distance, easy or hard, and you can count on them when others don't clock in.

The loft has won the Federation countless times through the years, with the highlights being - 1982:1st Open SMT Combine Melle (smash) 363 miles; 1983: 1st Open SMT Combine Penzance 260 miles; 1989: 4th Open SMT Combine Alencon on (young bird smash) 280 miles; 1991: 1st Open SMT Combine Bergerac 454 miles (won the Combine by 43 minutes); 1996: 1st Open SMT Combine Bergerac 456 miles. His biggest thrill in pigeon racing was when he won the Combine from Penzance in 1983 with his Deweerdt blue cheq cock called ‘The Crippled Cock’ that won the Combine after having half its foot bitten off by a dog and won three times 1st Federation in his great racing career. The Middlesex loft still houses three of their four SMT Combine winners.

Brian feeds his birds on a good mixture and pellets and they are never broken down. Birds are rarely trained beyond 30 miles, getting four tosses a week right through the racing season. His birds are housed in three 24ft lofts, with open door trapping, and he maintains a loft must be dry and likes them closed in. He cleans the birds out twice a year, once before pairing up and then again before the young birds go into their sections. He keeps six pairs of stock birds, 12 pairs of racers, which are all paired up on February 14th, and he breeds 50 youngsters each year. He races his old birds up to 450 miles and never races any further, only competing in the Federation and Combine. Yearlings go through to 300 miles but, if he thinks they are right, one or two are sent to the longest old bird race. Young birds are sent through the full programme to 210 miles. Brian used to enjoy showing his birds, winning Best in Show and Best Opposite Sex in the West Middlesex Federation Show in years gone by and he won the club's Show Shield, many times. Brian and Angela Goodwin two great pigeon racers! 

There you have it, Brian Goodwin, a great fancier with a brilliant racing record! I can be contacted on the ‘dog n’ bone’, number: 01372 463480. See yer!