Keith Mott writes about winning fanciers past and present

ESHER & RPC OPEN SHOWS 2008

The Esher club held its annual open shows at the West End Sports & Social Club recently and on the whole they were very successful, although the birdage dropped off on one weekend of heavy rain and local flooding. I managed to get there in a rowing boat! The Sunday morning shows were held in the club’s basket and marking room at the HQ and I must say it was refreshing to see the event realised this winter, as they could not be held for a couple of years because of a new West End club house being built. I think it is common knowledge that I love a bit of showing and was excited by the prospect of four Sunday morning open show, as I haven’t shown a pigeon for four years because of my winters being full booked with judging all over the UK. The Esher club have enjoyed another brilliant season in 2008 racing in the Three Borders Federation and winning the Federation Points Shield for the third time in four seasons. Bob and Danny Carter won the Federation three times, lifting the Individual Points Trophy and other Esher 2008 Federation winners were, club chairman Chris Slight (three times 1st Federation), club secretary Allen Palmer (twice 1st Federation) and Roy Barnett. Roy who races his birds to his loft in Kingston won the BHW ‘The George Slade Swing Clear Trophy’ for the bird making the highest velocity on the weekend of 28/29th June 2008. Well done to Roy! As you could imagine the competition at the open shows this winter was red hot!

At the first show we had Peter ‘The Italian Stallion’ Obertelli and his good friend, Russell Lowbridge judging young hens (handled) and old hens (through the wires). This pair of desperados live and race pigeons in the Midlands and were down in Surrey for the weekend after being asked to judge at the RPRA Southern Region Show in High Wycombe, and kindly judged our open show before going home. I first met Peter on one cold winters night in the 1970’s, when I judging a show for Isleworth S.R. Club and he then lived in Hounslow, and had just finished the racing  season of a lifetime. After that show we had a chat and he told me about the fantastic young bird season he had had flying in the Thames Valley Federation. Peter and his wife, Jan, now  live in Kirby-in-Ashfield and race their pigeons to an alotment. The 2006 RPRA South Region Show saw my good friends travel down to High Wycombe to judge and I hadn’t seen Peter for almost 25 years. Not seeing Peter Obertelli since he judged at the Region Show in 2006 and must say it was the highlight of the Esher show weekend seeing him again after all that time.

The second Sunday saw young cocks (handled) and old cocks (through wires) judged by racing pigeon supremo and my good friend, Bobby Besant of New Malden. I have known the Besant family for nearly 40 years, and in that time I have seen them win every major award there is to win in pigeon racing. The brothers, Ken, Bobby and Ron, have won at Club, Open, Federation, Combine and National level and theirs must be rated as one of the all time great lofts in the United Kingdom. When I first met Bobby and Ken in 1970, their dad, Cecil, had just passed away and the boys were about to take over the very successful C. H. Besant & sons pigeons. Although I never met Cecil, I had always admired his fantastic performances in the Surrey Federation. The boys carried this great fancier’s name on in pigeon racing history to an even higher degree. Bobby has been a very good friend of mine for many years and as I’ve written many times before, he is one of the best pigeon fanciers I’ve ever met! He has been out of pigeon racing for the last 15 years, but has returned racing young birds with his son Anthony in the 2008 season and really set them alight, recording several top open positions in the BICC Guernsey race and 2nd, 4th, 38th, 50th, 54th and 60th open L&SECC Guernsey, the only two races competed in. Watch out lads, Bob’s back! Bobby is a pigeon fancier of the highest order, but always knew where to draw the line where his family were concerned, always putting Angela and the kids first. Bobby is a great guy and a brilliant pigeon fancier!

The Esher club had a visitor that weekend, in the form of the Norwegian long distance racer, Jan Olav Thrana, who came over to this country in December for a week’s holiday visiting friends and to pick up pigeons he had purchased at the late Brian Long’s dispersal sale. He stayed at the ‘Lion Brewery’ in Ash for most of the week and I took him on a couple of pigeon visits, including the Sunday morning Esher open show. I first met Jan in October 2000, when he came over from Norway for two of Eric Cannon’s dispersal sales and he stayed for a week at my home. He lives in Kristiansand on the south tip of Norway and the Norwegians race their pigeons from the north east, but because of the massive hawk problem in that area they have gone more northerly and race from the mountains.

The third Sunday was the day of the big rain and local flooding, but Brian Goodwin and Peter ‘Fat Wallet’ Mercer managed to cross the River Thames from their homes in Middlesex to judge old hens (handled) and young hens (through the wires) for us. 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 nearly 40 years is that of Brian 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. With on going health problems the 2008 season saw him only compete in a few young bird races winning several premier prizes on his new ETS system, including 1st Berkshire Federation.

The last show had a great atmosphere, being staged a few days before Christmas and attracted the biggest birdage, with the extra class of 44 Fancy Coloured pigeons. One of our most respected racing pigeon judges, George Kimpton of Spelthorne, travelled over from Middlesex to sort out the two big old cocks (handled) and young cocks (through the wires) classes and as always did a wonderful job. Georgie has had a life time in the sport of pigeon racing and has won at the highest level, showing and racing. In recent seasons the Esher club have finish the show series with a big Fancy Colours class and invite ladies from the West End Sports and Social Club to judge through the wires. This year Margaret Mazzina, Lynn Bezant and the ‘West End Village News’ editor, Angela Stockbridge judged and I must say the ladies took the task very seriously and did an excellent job. The ladies certainly know a good pigeon when they see one! Your truly won the class with my young blue pied cock, ‘Billy the Busschaert’ and he is a half brother to Champion ‘Nobby’, winner of 1st open L&SECC and 1st open Combine, being off the same dam when mated to ‘Young Batman’, son of Richard and Ken O’Connor’s Champion ‘Batman, winner of 17 times first and 5 times 1st Federation. The ladies loved our ‘Billy’ and were impressed when I told them he was featured in the Channel 5 TV programme ‘Extraordinary Animals’ last summer. It was nice to see young Tyrone Buggy attending our shows at Esher and take several prizes, including 3rd in the big Fancy Colours class. Thanks to all the fanciers who supported the shows this winter and a very special thanks to Jim Rookledge and Ray Mearns who erected and dismantled the show pens.

Esher Open Show Results 2008

Young Hen – Handled: 1) K. & B. Mott (pools winner): 2) K. & B. Mott: 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) R. Carter & Son: 5) L. Penycate: 6) K. & B. Mott: 7) A. Palmer & Son: 8)A. Palmer & Son. Old Hen – Through the Wires: 1) Rookledge & Mearns: 2) Rookledge & Mearns: 3) Rookledge & Mearns: 4) R. Carter & Son (pools winner): 5) Slight & Bateman: 6) Slight & Bateman: 7) Slight & Bateman: 8) K. & B. Mott. Young Cock – Handled: 1) K. & B. Mott (pools winner): 2) K. & B. Mott: 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) L. Penycate: 5) L. Penycate: 6) L. Penycate: 7) A. Palmer & Son: 8) A. Palmer & Son. Old Cock – Through the Wires: 1) D. White (pools winner): 2) D. White: 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) A. Palmer & Son: 5) V. Emberson: 6) K. & B. Mott: 7) K. & B. Mott: 8) V. Emberson. Old Hen – Handled: 1) K. & B. Mott (pools winner): 2) K. & B. Mott: 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) A. Palmer & Son: 5) A. Palmer & Son: 6) A. Palmer & Son: 7) A. Palmer & Son: 8) A. Palmer & Son. Young Hen – Through the Wires: 1) A. Palmer & Son: 2) D. White (pools winner): 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) Rookledge & Mearns: 5) K. & B. Mott: 6) Rookledge & Mearns: 7) A. Palmer & Son: 8) D. White: Old Cock – Handled: 1) K. & B. Mott (pools winner): 2) K. & B. Mott: 3) K. & B. Mott: 4) L. Penycate: 5) A. Palmer & Son: 6) K. & B. Mott: 7) Tyrone Buggy: 8) L. Penycate. Young Cock – Through the Wires: 1) Rookledge & Mearns: 2) K. & B. Mott: 3) D. White (pools winner): 4) L. Penycate: 5) A. Palmer & Son: 6) A. Palmer & Son: 7) D. White: 8) A. Palmer & Son. Fancy Colours: 1) K. & B. Mott: 2) D. White: 3) Tyrone Buggy: 4) K. & B. Mott: 5) K. & B. Mott: 6) A. Palmer & Son: 7) Rookledge & Mearns: 8) K. & B. Mott.

Show Points 2008. 1) K. & B. Mott – 137 points. (Esher & Dist. RPC “Show Shield” winners 2008): 2) A. Palmer & Son – 51 points: 3) Rookledge & Mearns – 39 points: 4) D. White – 38 points: 5) L. Penycate – 27 points: 6) R. Carter & Son – 10 points: 7) Slight & Bateman – 9 points: 8) Tyrone Buggy – 8 points: 9)V. Emberson – 5 points.

Well it’s the main event this weekend and the show we have all been looking forward to! Friday morning will see Peter Taylor, Brian Batchelor, Tony Dann and my self driving up the M6 Motorway to Blackpool for the BHW ‘Show of the Year’. We look forward to seeing you all there. Drive carefully! See yer!