The final race of the old bird programme in West Cumbria was a 500-mile tester from France.
It produced a superb performance from the Cleator Moor loft of Alan and Gavin Graham and Paul Byers, on a testing challenge for the birds.
The 40 Cumbria Combine birds had been liberated at Nort Sur Erdre on Sunday morning in a light east-north-east wind at 7.30am.
They had been transported and released with the Scottish National birds and if the Cumbrian birds could have been entered in their race Graham and co would have won it.
A yearling chequer hen was clocked at their Cleator Moor loft at 7.02pm following the 497 miles fly, which equated to 43mph.
To make their day even more special they clocked a second pigeon on the day, a three-year-old blue hen at 9.21pm.
If they had been in the Scottish National race they would have been first and seventh.
Paul Byers told Cumbria Crack: “Sunday was one of the best days we’ve had in the sport in a long while.
“After waiting a few years to be able to compete in a 500 mile race we were over the moon when the yearling hen dropped after 11 hours and 32 mins.
“The joy in getting 500-mile day birds is a totally different feeling to anything else and is what we’re after, pigeons that can fly many hours and many miles on their own.
“From seeing the Scottish National result our hen has the best velocity from the whole liberation.
“She was 5th combine in the Cheltenham comeback race three weeks ago. She’s bred from a cock who won 2nd, 10th, 29th and 31st Combine in some challenging Guernsey races.
“The dam is from a daughter of our 1st sec NFC 527 mile on day. A sister to her is a winner of 3rd Combine Holmsley.
“We were even happier to time a second bird after 13hrs and 53 mins. She’s a previous scorer in the Combine a couple of times from Guernsey but has had no luck through being hawked twice.
“She’s bred down from a son of Legacy who won the Fed for us from Fougeres, while an old hen known as the P ring (she’s still in the loft at 16 years old) is the grand dam.
“She was a good racer for us and has left plenty of birds to do well. Out of three birds on the day in the Combine and three into Scotland we had two of them which made us very happy.”
The third bird in the Combine on the day was to the Carlisle South End loft of Cumbria Combine chairman Lawrie Silverwood.
He clocked his very good two-year-old mealy cock at 10.03pm.
First bird clocked on the Monday morning was the Derwent Valley Federation winner Richard Hodgson of Flimby – a yearling chequer-white-flight hen.
Richard said: “She was flown as a spare hen and then paired up just before the first Guernsey race.
“Since then she had paired up with a new mate and was sitting around seven days. She was on the Fed sheet from the Cheltenham/Guernsey race and we fancied her to do well from this race.
“She is home bred from birds purchased from Heath Archibald and John McFall.
“We clocked a second bird later on Monday morning to be 4th Fed. He’s a red cock from my Marlon Kok lines who flew Messac as a yearling with the National Flying Club and then scored 5th Fed, 13th Combine from Guernsey last year.
“He was 9th Fed from Guernsey 1 this year but returned with part of his wing missing so we decided to set him up for this race. Unfortunately, he has returned with all of his tail missing and was black and blue, so he’s been through it this year.
“I keep saying ‘we’ for although the racing name is Richard Hodgson I am in partnership with Gordon Tinnion who has been a great help over the last couple of years.
“I do all the cleaning out before going to work and then Gordon spends most of the day with the birds, making sure they get the time on the wing and are fed correctly.
“Gordon was recently in a car accident and has been struggling since, so this is a great tonic for him.
“I won my first Fed when flying in partnership with Peter Rushforth, who’s loss, along with the loss of Billy Hunter only two weeks later, has hit everyone in the club really hard so it’s great to see Flimby fanciers topping Feds and Combines this season and doffing their caps to these two brilliant fanciers.
“It also shows what a fantastic pigeon racing village Flimby is.
“This win also topped a great week-end for me as our eldest daughter got married on Friday, which was a wonderful day, and then we were 2nd and 5th club from Garstang on Sunday.
“I’d just like to add my congratulations to Alan Graham and Co for clocking their fantastic yearling on the night.”
Times was when the last channel race of the season was the blue riband event – the one everybody wanted to win, usually from Nantes.
Sadly those taking part in the longer races now has dropped dramatically. Only 40 birds away in the Combine; just 23 in the Derwent Valley Federation and Alan Graham and co the only loft to send in the West Cumberland Federation.
Les Blacklock, the Combine Admin Secretary, believes that red tape has contributed to the decline in participating fanciers.
He told the Cumbria Crack: “To compete in these races from France members lofts must have a CPH number. They must have a Veterinary inspection of the loft at the start of the year and have all the necessary documentation, ie. Vaccination Forms and proof of purchase, plus an Establishment Operators form.
“This does appear daunting but once you have completed the process it is relatively easy to update each year.
“In 2024 we organised veterinary visits to 26 lofts and the cost was £40 per loft.
“In West Cumbria, Derwent Valley and East Cumbria we have members who are compliant with the current procedures and I am sure will be happy to help any member wanting to acquire the necessary documentation. Furness Fed hope to come on board in 2025.
“The recent races from Grevillers and Nort Sur Erdre were organised through the Cumbria and Dumfriesshire Greater Distance Club (CDGDC) and convoyed by the Scottish National Flying Club (SNFC).
“The Greater Distance club was formed to compete in the National Flying Club, taking birds to be marked at Leyland, and several members competed in NFC races this year.
“The Greater Distance club organised these Open races from Grevillers and Nort Sur Erdre on behalf of the Cumbria Combine. These two races from France were the first French races for Cumbria Combine for five years.
“The Grevillers race was after a three-day holdover and as this race-point is in the NE of France it proved a difficult race.
“The Combine first three were Varty, Son and Grandson (DVF) flying 413 miles; G. and M. Burns (ECF) and Cliff Curly (ECF). These pigeons’ velocities were compatible with the leading birds into Scotland and a credit to their owners. The winner, a black hen for the Varty’s, was two hours clear.
“Nort Sur Erdre was 500 miles plus to most and after a three-day hold-over the winning pigeon, a yearling, put up a tremendous performance, being clocked at 7-02pm on the day to the Cleator Moor loft of Alan Graham and co.
“They then clocked a second arrival at 9.13pm which was superb. I thought it was getting too dark for any further arrivals but shortly after 10pm I received a message from our Combine Chairman, Lawrie
Silverwood, that he had clocked at 10.03pm his good mealy cock.
“Considering the distance involved I believe the performances of these three pigeons was absolutely outstanding and a credit to the pigeons and fanciers.
“Remarkably another yearling was clocked at 5.59am next morning to be first DVF for the loft of Richard Hodgson.
“My request is that I would ask Combine members to consider getting the necessary documentation in place so that they can join us next year in Long Distance racing from France. We have made a new start to distance racing LETS GROW.”
CUMBRIA COMBINE (40 birds): 1, 2, A. Graham and co (Cleator Moor) 1263, 1050; 3, L. Silverwood (Carlisle SE) 1042; 4, R. Hodgson (Flimby HS) 877; 5, A. Bromley and co (Flimby HS) 803; 6, G. and M. Burns (Carlisle SE) 799.
DERWENT VALLEY FEDERATION (23 birds): 1, 4, R. Hodgson (Flimby HS) 877, 658; 2, 3, A. Bromley and co (Flimby HS) 803, 680; 5, 6, Blacklock and sons 349, 340.
FLIMBY HS (3 sent 19): 1, 4, R. Hodgson 621, 502; 2, 3, A. Bromley and co 583, 516; 5, J. Varty, son and grandson 355.
WORKINGTON VICTORIA (2 sent 10): 1, 2, Blacklock and sons 412, 400; 3, Varty, son and grandson 355.
CUMBERLAND SOCIAL CIRCLE (4 sent 8): 1, A. Graham and co 1050; 2, R. Hodgson 904; 3, Blacklock and sons 400; 4, Varty, son and grandson 355.
