Ian McKay

GWP Macaloney, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire When I started racing pigeons back in the early 1980s the prominent name in pigeon racing into Scotland was that of George and William Macaloney, they were the loft to beat at any distance, the loft everyone in this area wanted to know "what time are they in" Winning out of turn week in week out, year in year out takes some doing and the old saying "it’s harder to stay at the top "doesn't appear to have been a problem to them. Well nothing has changed, they have steadily improved their performances within the Lanarkshire Federation The introduction Williams son Paul into the partnership has provided new vigour and zest that all lofts need. A wish to maintain that hunger and desire to be the best. Recent Background At great expense over the last decade GWP Macaloney have purchased direct children from up to date outstanding producers or pairs that are having an impact in lofts all over the world .This partnership never stands still and are always doing homework on their next introductions. At present they have stock from the following: Their "Dream Pair†- Camphius Janssen originating from Wall, Lunt & Green and this pair are responsible for winners at Federation , Amal , Combine , MNFC and Scottish National Level. "Kannibaal" lines from Peter Fox at Syndicate Lofts and Van Dyke, including grand children, nephews and nieces of "Kannibaal" and "Kleine Dirk". "Vandenabeeles - A full round purchased from M & D Evans from all their originals bred by Gaby Vandenabeele in 1995/96. They now have six direct children of "Shadow" and "Golden Gaby". "Merlin Pair" pair lines from Wall, Lunt & Green. These pair of birds are one of the best pairs of producers in Europe at present time. GWP Macaloney have four direct from the "Merlin Pair" and a full brother and sister to" Miss Magic". In the last year they have introduced distance stock from some of the best distance widowhood lofts in Europe, example, fourteen grand children of "Tuff- Nutâ€, "Maxiâ€, "Dark Jan "and" Northern Lady" all bred by Brian Denney. Two daughters of "Snydale Express" 1st Open NFC Tarbes and a double grand daughter of "The Pau Hen†all bred by Chris Gordon. A direct daughter of Rodico 1st National, 1st International Barcelona 2,887 birds and a daughter of Roger Barcelona 1st National, 2nd International Barcelona 22,887 birds. A direct son and daughter of Max winner of 1st MNFC Tours 3,516 birds and 1st MNFC Bergerac 1,026 the only bird ever to win 2x 1st Open MNFC. Both were obtained from Darren Peters at Fenlands Studs. They have also introduced six "De Rauw Sablonâ€, the lines of "Feddy", "Lieve" and "Den Dromer". GWP Macaloney never stand still and are always looking to improve their pool of winning genes and their management system. As they believe that if a fancier does nothing in a year to move forward, they are in real terms going back. Velocities are in general getting faster at all distances year on year. By adopting this policy they have collected federation trophies for the last 27 years flying in the most competitive federation in Britain. GWP Macaloney fly within the Lanarkshire, Scotland with up to 10,000 birds in the early races most recently as 2008 and over 7,000 in 2011. They have set records that may never be equaled, in a federation so tough “possible no other loft " has ever topped the federation on 12 occasions in their racing history. The Macaloney partnership have in the last two seasons alone won 1st Fed or 1st Open Duplication race 15 times and in the last seasons won 78 x 1st Sec and 61 x 1st Open. In the twenty seven years since joining the Lanarkshire Fed they have won 100 x 1st Federation and finished Federation Champion on 12 occasions. They achieve team performances that equal any loft in the UK as the following example will verify. Date Open Position Birds Win By 03/05/03 1,2,3,4,5 9,946 32ypm 10/05/03 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 9,738 32ypm 09/08/03 1,9,11 9,810 26ymp 23/08/03 1,2,3,4,5,6 10,592 12ypm 23/04/05 1,2,3 8,040 20ypm 31/07/05 1,2,3,4,5,6 5,780 45ypm 06/08/05 1,2,3,4,10 9,171 22ypm 20/08/05 1,2,3,4,6 8,605 54ypm 22/07/06 1,11,14 7,044 117ypm 05/05/07 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 8,593 29ypm 26/05/07 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 5,198 49ymp 28/07/07 1,2,3,4,5,6 6,815 51ypm 04/08/07 1,3,4,5,6,7 8,056 2ypm 12/08/07 1,2,3,5,7,9,10,14 7,994 17ypm 25/08/07 1,2,3,4,5,9,12 7,491 55ypm 01/09/07 1,2,3,4 4,644 12ypm 31/05/08 1,2,3 3,352 45ypm 02/08/08 1,2,3,4,6,7,8 6,474 29ypm 09/08/08 1,2,3,4,7,8 5,122 8ypm 16/08/08 1,2 5,720 114ypm 09/05/09 1,2,3,4,10,16 7,332 27ypm 30/05/09 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 3,902 12ypm 25/07/09 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,10,13 6,387 20ypm 08/08/09 1,2,8,11,17,18,20 8,164 17ypm 15/08/09 1,2,3,4,5,9,21,26 6,058 27ypm 24/04.10 1,2,3,4 7,306 28ypm 21/08/10 1,2,3,4, 5,6 ,7 2,314 49ypm 24/04/11 1,2,3,8,11 5,174 30ypm 28/05/11 1,2,3,4,5,12,19 4,082 20ypm 25/06/11 1,2,3,10,13,18 2,678 6ypm 30/07/11 1,2,4,5 6,370 5ypm 06/08/11 1,4,7,8,10 7,332 5ypm 13/08/11 1,2,6,30 6,708 2ypm Flying into the centre section of the federation with clubs North , South , East and West of their own loft location within there section , they still can get a batch of pigeons well clear of the surrounding lofts as the following examples will testify: 05/05/03- In an old bird race with a convoy of 9,738 birds they entered twenty eight and had a drop of 16 to take 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,Federation , this batch being 32ypm clear of the next Federation bird and 42ypm in the centre section. 31/07/05 -They entered thirty six youngsters against 5,780 and had 23 drop together, timing only six to be 1,2,3,4,5,6 Federation beating the next federation member by 45ypm. 28/08/07 -They entered forty youngsters against 6,815 in a very hard race with a winning velocity of 1116 had six drop to take 1,2,3,4,5,6 Federation by 51ypm. In the last eleven years alone in twenty nine races they have topped the federation by more than twenty yards per minute ahead of the next federation member. The Macaloney partnership are also breeding winners for many fanciers throughout the country and in the last few seasons have actually bred the parents or parent of two SNFC winners , Two Scottish Central Combine winners. 1st Grampian Combine winner and in fact bred Ian Cameron's" Alba -Mac" 1st Sect 1st Open Lessay MNFC Yearling National. Their lofts most weeks have visitors from other federations watching the return of their athletes of the Skye. 2011 was a Record Breaking Season 8 X 1st Open Federation ( A record) 10 x Central Section "A Record" 9 x 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle “A Record" A total of 27x 1sts without competing at club level. GWP Macaloney have topped the federation over 100 times, nearly 10 times more than any other member in the history of the federation. 88 Federation cards and diplomas in a single season. Winner of the first seven race average for the eighth season of ten. Winner of the Inland average for the ninth of eleven seasons Winner of the Old Bird Average seven of the last ten seasons Winner of the Young bird Averages for the fifth season in a row Winner of the Longest four race average Winner of the Longest two race average. Winner of the Combine Average for the seventh time in the last eleventh season , making them Champion for the twelfth time in Federation that is so competitive that only one loft has ever won the Combine Average on three occasions. Summary of 1st Federation prizes 78 x 1st Section , 61 x 1st Open 61 races , winning ,1st Fed 42 races , 1st & 2nd Fed 32 races , 1st,2nd,3rd Fed 25 races ,1,2,3,4th Fed 16 races , 1,2,3,4,5th Fed 11 races ,1,2,3,4,5,6th, Fed 8 races, 1,2,3,4,5,6,7th, Fed 4 races ,1,2,3,4,56,7,8th,Fed 1 race 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9th Fed 1 race , 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12th Fed Federation Champion Loft 1986,89,90,91,96,04 down the west route and Champion loft 01,02,05,06,07,11 down the east route. Without question the finest performance loft ever to compete in the Lanarkshire Federation . This loft has concentrated in one day racing but have excelled at distance racing, winning 1st Open SNFC and Combine racing winning at distance of over 500miles . Totally outstanding fanciers dedicated to what they wish to achieve. These fanciers have superior knowledge of pigeon racing and can win with outstanding consistency in any distance or condition. In my opinion they have no second within the sport of pigeon racing in British racing. This loft has stood the test of time. Information of one of their Champion birds "Supermac 11" Blue Cock SU09L3017 winner of 1st Fed 6972 birds - vel 1155 ypm, 1st Fed 6937 birds - vel 1141 ypm, 1st Fed 5307 birds - vel 1171 ypm, 1st Fed 5174 birds - vel 1487 ypm, 1st Section 2444 birds, 1st Section 2154 birds, 1st Section 1638 birds, 1st Section 1586 birds, 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle 1271 birds, 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle 1141 birds, 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle 730 birds, 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle 659 birds, 7th Lanarkshire Social Circle 1329 birds, 7th Lanarkshire Social Circle 581 birds, 9th Lanarkshire Social Circle 1242 birds. Winner of Lanarkshire Social Circle Bird Of The Year 2010 and runner up Lanarkshire Social Circle Bird Of The Year 2011. "Supermac 11" is only the second bird ever to top the Lanrkshire Fed on four different occasions equaling the record set by "Supermac" a busscheart cock also raced by G.W & P Macaloney in the mid eighties. A full sister to "Supermac 11" was S.H.U. young bird of the year in 2007 and full brothers and sisters have topped the Fed in 2008, 2009, and this year 2011 four different brothers and sisters have won the following for G.W & P Macaloney - 1st Fed 4082 birds, 2nd Fed 4082 birds (arriving with Fed winner), 2nd Fed 6708 birds (arriving with Fed winner), 5th Fed 6370 birds(arriving with Fed winner), 1st Section 1404 birds, 2nd Section 1404 birds, 2nd Section 1976 birds, 4th Section 1950 birds, 1st Lanarkshire Social Circle 720 birds, 2nd Lanarkshire Social Circle 720 birds, 2nd Lanarkshire Social Circle 683 birds, 4th Lanarkshire Social Circle 683 birds, 6th Lanarkshire Social Circle 851 birds. A full sister "Super 11" is Grand Dam to Alex Blyth's "Dura" winner of 1st Region, 1st West Section S.N.F.C. Eastbourne 2011 and "Dura" is Sire to Billy King's "Countdown Cock" a winner of 1st Section 1st Open Lanarkshire Fed Eastbourne 2011 timing in 10 minutes before his father "Dura" won 1st West Section in the National. Sire to "Supermac 11" is the "Young Bandiet" bred by M & D Evans direct from "De Bandiet", Dam to "Supermac 11" is "Shady Lady", a direct daughter of "Shadow". This pair of birds are responsible for winners at Fed, Combine and National Level in Scotland and England. Supermac 11 was named Scottish Homing World " Bird of the Year" 2011 winning the Celtic cup for performance up to 300miles. Merlin Pair -Wall , Lunt and Green In 2011 season four young birds bred from the two daughters of the "Merlin Pair " and from the full brother to "Miss Magic" won the Lanarkshire federation young bird average on their own , flying the six race programme 1st Fed 6,370, 1st Fed 7,332 , 1st Fed 6708 , 2nd Fed 2574 , 10th Fed 2498 , 22nd Fed 4550 birds. These pigeons have had a brilliant impact on already a loft that was setting records. This line of pigeons have already had there impact on other federations out of the next generation of birds out of the original four birds. Performances 08/08/2009 Otterburn 85 miles Chq Cock SU09L3048 1st Sect 2262 birds 1st Fed 8164 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") 31/07/2010 Otterburn 85 miles Blue Cock SU10L661 1st Sect 2080 birds 1st Fed 6890 birds (Bred from a full brother to "Miss Magic") 21/08/2010 Thirsk 155 miles Blue Cock SU10L661 3rd Sect 884 birds 3rd Fed 2314 birds (Joint 1st Fed when 7 loft mates took the 1st seven in the Fed) 21/08/2010 Thirsk 155 miles Blue Cock SU10L666 3rd Sect 410 birds 3rd Open 1094 birds (Joint 1st Open with 7 loft mates in the young bird Open Duplication Race) 30/07/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Black Hen SU11L14918 1st Sect 1950 birds 1st Fed 6370 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") 30/07/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Chq Hen SU11L14946 3rd Sect 1950 birds 4th Fed 6370 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Miss Magic") 06/08/2011) Kelso 64 miles Blue Cock SU11L14903 1st Sect 2106 birds 1st Fed 7332 birds (Bred from a full brother to "Miss Magic") 13/08/2011 Hexham 98 miles Blue Cock SU11L15069 1st Sect 1976 birds 1st Fed 6708 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merelin" and "Blain) 20/08/2011 Sedgefield 132 miles Black Hen SU11L14917 8th Sect 1326 birds 22nd Fed 4550 birds (Bred from a full sister to"Merlin" and "Blain") 27/08/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Black Hen SU11L14917 2nd Sect 650 birds 2nd Fed 2574 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") 27/08/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Blue CockSU11L15069 4th Sect 650 birds 4th Fed 2574 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") 03/09/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Black Hen SU11L14918 1st Sect 702 birds 10th Fed 2498 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") 03/09/2011 Otterburn 85 miles Chq Cock SU11L15070 4th Sect 702 birds 14th Fed 2498 birds (Bred from a full sister to "Merlin" and "Blain") Profile of a Champion Loft (Wullie answering the questions) Who got you started in pigeons- Grandfather William who raced into Gartcosh What Motivates you - Beating our own record, breeding winners for others. What de motivates you - People who look for excuses for not winning are kidding themselve on and will never move forward.and kidding themselves on and never look forward. Biggest Influence -My father and the partnership of Wall ,Lunt & Green with their common sense approach to pigeons Best achievement - Consistency in the Lanarkshire and winning federation trophies for 27years. What club are you presently a member of - Coatbridge SC ,Lanarkshire SC , Scottish National Flying Club. Club or National minded - Federation minded , hope to compete at National level in future. What size is your loft - Main loft is 36x 8 ft ( 3ft corridor) , 3x 5ft ends , 4ft pit running through loft under metal grills.faces south -10ft x 5ft old bird section for earlier race birds.faces south - Young birds 20x6 two section with grills and perches , faces east - Hen racing loft 10x8 faces east Ventilation - All at roof level. Racing system- Celibate for old birds (Get together Friday night and after race) and Darkness system for all youngsters. Feeding - Own mixture of prime feeds, no breakdown or portion control, common sense and stick to your system Pairing- Usually Boxing day.All youngsters shifted at once, no further added that could be that top stock pigeons that may miss eggs will not have any representatives in race team. Youngsters - Double vaccinated on leaving nest with Parathyoid and Paramox and straight on darkness system. Grit and Minerals - Many different types of grit , red and black minerals available 24/7 Medication - TKK tablet , 10 days parastop ( 1st October), ivomec on back of neck before pairing. Training, Old birds get one possible two twelve mile tosses before racing then around loft twice per day. Youngsters - trained three times per week during racing and around loft. Motivation - Straight system of racing old birds (celibate) and youngsters are mixed sexes in sections ( Too much work to seperate). Best product - Gerdon 1 in water Saturday and Sunday. How many racers - 40 pair of old bird racers and 90 youngsters. 1/3 usually remain at home. What distance - compete in all federation races up to 450 miles , most yearlings will race to 300 miles , youngsters will compete in programme with around 25-30 going to YB Open race. What is a regular day in racing - Travelling 140 miles round trip from home to racing loft. Who is the best fancier in the federation in your opinion - Eadie & Kelly, Newmains club for federation racing consistency. ETS or Conventional clocking - T3 as club dont compete with ETS. Do you show your birds - No Future ambition - To stay competitive. Where is the future of pigeon racing in Scotland - Raptor problem at present gives us no future. -Amalgamation of federations Advise to new starts - Go to a well established loft in your area with team performances and an abundance of winning genes. I would like to thank GWP Macaloney for their time and the opportunity to see the best team of racing pigeons I have ever seen in my lifetime. Wullie and Paul Macaloney New Old bird loft New Young bird loft Inside Young bird loft Subject: Black Caviar 1st Lanarkshire Federation Ypres 2013 Champion hen of one of the best racing lofts in Europe. The race winner was timed at 5.21pm and its loft mate at 5.22 for 1st & 2nd Open, 449 miles for the most potent loft ever to fly in the Lanarkshire Federation, GWP Macaloney of Coatbridge club. The winner, a dark chequer hen, recorded a velocity of 1305. This hen has been a racing machine for the partnership and is one of four pigeons that won the young bird Federation average on their own in their race team. This hen hasn't stopped winning from 80 miles to nearly 500 miles and is only a two year old. She has been the first bird to the loft in all SNFC races entered this year winning 34th Sect, 251st Open Newbury 330miles, SNFC Maidstone 18th Sect, 413th Open, 373 miles, 1st Sect, 26th Open Ypres. Federation positions to date 1st, 2nd, 11th, 14th, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 26th & 30th. Outstanding flying in the biggest federation in the land. They have named the hen Black Caviar and she is bred from their Champion racer Janefield 90 and Merlin lines. The potency of winning genes in their pigeons is remarkable with hundreds of winners being reported from their legendary Dream Pair lines winning from 50 to 450 miles. Tom Corrie jnr Lanarkshire Fed PO corrietom@aol.com

Hi Arona-TENERIFE O.L.R. friends, As special 12 years of Derby ARONA existence we congratulate to announce the big 2017 GOLD EDITION 120.000 EURO FIRST PRIZE! (Final race on friday 24th March 2017, basketing on 22nd March, Gala dinner on 25th) (Shippers information: http://www.derbyatlantic.com/newarona/shippers/) Book your 2017 holidays now! FINAL RACE 2016 REPORT IN PIPA: CLICK HERE ARRIVALS Photo Album-1: http://www.derbyatlantic.com/newarona/final-race-from-images/ ARRIVALS Photo Album-2: http://www.derbyatlantic.com/newarona/more-final-race-photos/ AWARD party Photo Album: http://www.derbyatlantic.com/newarona/award-party-photos/ Basketing Photo Album: http://www.derbyatlantic.com/newarona/welcome-dinner-photos/ Basketing movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=THKaAb8hmJc 10411781_653980184739810_9085904684864682696_n

Found this on face book interesting :emoticon-0136-giggle: https://www.facebook.com/1518871808419083/videos/1530479437258320/?fref=nf

Happy Birthday lads hope you have a nice one :drinking-coffee-200:

Happy Birthday Alex hope you have a nice one :drinking-coffee-200:

The Joe Murphy Column A few years ago my son Kevin was going to do a ‘tracking’ experiment on Racing Pigeons at Dundee and Angus College where he is Director of Curriculum FE & Skills. He contacted various companies throughout the world regarding making a tracker small enough to fit into a pigeon ring (just like the ETS has now) This would allow fanciers to track their youngsters from training flights and see if they had learnt from the experience of the training. This could then be continue with old birds and for example could tell if the pigeon was away of line or in the event of a disaster of a race the information obtained could tell if the pigeons had stopped at certain point (assumed) dead. He tried to obtain financial backing for this project but this did not materialize and it was shelfed. However he had put an article on the World Wide Web and this week he received 3 emails from fanciers from Australia and Dubai and Sri Lanka. These are as follows; 'Hi Kevin; Just read your article and wrote to thank you. Our club has gone from 90 to 60 in a matter of years simply due to increased losses. 90% of our club live within a 5nm channel and flyers talk of moving 500 meters to be within the direct channel. I see this generation of the technology as research and development asking more questions than it answers. I see the next generation as size & cost decrease and battery life increases feature in novelty racing and sometime into the future live racing with betting revolutionising the sport. Gone will be the days of on the line of flight and the wind in your favour to win. Anyway thanks again for undertaking this project and good luck from Australia, yours in Sport David Christensen’. The next letter came from Dubai ‘Hello Kevin, my name is Abdull Ali, and I’m from Dubai. I got involve in racing pigeon just recently, and I was thinking about tracking my pigeon during flight and record a video also, and I'm working on that through searching in the internet about suitable gadget. I read your article, which was in 2012, and I thought it's a good idea to know what happened with your project , I will be highly appreciate it if you could share some information, regards Abdulla Ali’. Letter 3 was as follows ‘Dear Kevin My name is Shafrin Azeez and I am a pigeon fancier from Sri Lanka. I read about you on PIPA site. I am really glad to hear your working on a pigeon tracking project. I have been involved with racing Pigeon for last 3 years; I have been going crazy wondering where are my birds. How is your project coming up? Have you already invented a device to track the birds? Is it available for public purchase? Looking forward to hear from you, I don't know how much of a help I would be but you if you need anything please let me know. Best regards Shafrin’. So it shows that the loss of pigeons is WORLD wide and a concern to EVERY fancier. School Visit My grandson Liam (aged 9) informed me that his new reading book was all about a pigeon called ‘Goldie’ who was raced by his grandfather. Unfortunately he took a heart attack and the little boy in the story had to look after his granddad’s pigeons. Liam told his teacher that his granddad kept racing pigeons and one day while I was at the school spoke to the head mistress and said I would be willing to bring some pigeons up and show the class and do a little talk on Racing Pigeons. Miss Tindal wrote to all the parents of the class asking permission for their children’s picture to be taken on my visit. So this week Margaret and I visited primary 5 at St Paul’s school in Glenrothes and we gave an insight into the birds. I took a pair of birds up and also a 10 day old youngster in a nest pan, this was the highlight of the trip as the children could all touch it and we amazed to learn that it would soon be as beautiful as the old birds in the show pen. Miss Tindal is going to get the class to write a short essay on racing pigeons and I have agreed to give a prize to the best story from a boy and girl within the class. My granddaughter told me that Liam can’t win as that would be unfair (Margaret and I had a good laugh at this) Once I have selected the best effort I will include these in my column but as the school shuts down for the Easter holiday’s it will be some time before this happens. However it was a very pleasant hour spent with the children and they were all so very polite and interested. I have included some pictures of them for this week’s article. Telling the class about pigeons during the War Years Liam holding the young bird with his class mates Margaret & Joe Murphy with the children of St Paul's School Breeder/Buyer sale Andy Miller informs me that Pentland Hills Federation are holding a Breeder/Buyer sale on Sunday 27th March in Danderhall Miners Club, 88 Edmonstone Road, Danderhall, EH22 1QU with viewing from 12.00 noon and the auction commencing 13.00 with Prize Money as follows 1st prize £300 to each of the Breeder and Buyer. 2nd Prize £200 to each with the prizes to be determined by the best performance(s) for which each buyer is invited to submit the necessary details, these will be judged by an independent fancier from out with Scotland. There are a great number of quality fanciers donating pigeons to this sale so one not to be missed. Good SNFC Birds This week’s 3 pigeons are birds that excelled within the past 2 years starting with Vic Cooper of Dennyloanhead near Stirling with his red hen SU14AV 762. This hen won 7th section E from Buckingham a distance of 300 miles in 2014 as a youngster. The following year as a yearling she won 49th section E from Portsmouth a distance of 375 miles she was then entered into the Eastbourne race a distance of 402 miles and won 31st section E to achieve her 3rd SNFC certificate so well done to Vic. We now come to J Thomson of Bo’ness with his blue bar cock SU13CA 1811 this cock outshined a lot of birds in 2015 season winning 3 times from 3 inland nationals his performances are as follows; From Billericay a distance of 347 miles he won 7th section D 109th open he was then sent to Portsmouth and won 40th section D 380th open flying 373 miles and his final race was from Eastbourne a distance of 398 miles and he won 22nd section D but no open prize. A very good endeavour from this 2 year old cock and we wait to see how he progresses in 2016. We now come to the husband and wife partnership of Mr & Mrs Elliot of Newbiggin with their mealy cock SU13L 7293 who in 2015 won 2 section positions from over the channel. In 2014 he won 11th section E no open prize from Maidstone a distance of 354 miles, then in 2015 he won 29th section E from Alencon a distance of 525 miles and then from the last national from Clermont he won 16th section E flying 503 miles, once again he did not make the open result but is a good pigeon and now requires one more section prize to win a Silver Award. Joe’s Joke Two nuns were shopping at a Spar store, as they passed by the beer fridge, one nun said to the other, “Wouldn’t a nice cool beer or two tastes wonderful on a hot summer evening?†The second nun answered, “Indeed it would, sister, but I would not feel comfortable buying beer, since I am certain it would cause a scene at the checkout stand.†“I can handle that without a problem,†the other nun replied, and she picked up a six-pack and headed for the checkout. The cashier had a surprised look on his face when the two nuns arrived with a six-pack of beer. “We use beer for washing our hair,†the nun said. “Back at the convent, we call it ‘Catholic shampoo.’ †Without blinking an eye, the cashier reached under the counter, pulled out a package of pretzel sticks, and placed them in the bag with the beer. He then looked the nun straight in the eye, smiled, and said: “The curlers are on the house.†Please continue to keep the news flowing; to Joe Murphy Mystical Rose Cottage 2 Flutorum Avenue Thornton by Kirkcaldy KY1 4BD or phone 01592 770331 or Email to joejmurphy1@gmail.com REMEMBER THE J IN THE MIDDLE or log onto www.elimarpigeons.com www.fancierchat.co.uk and www.pigeon-chat.co.uk also www.pigeonbasics.com who wish my weekly contribution portfolio on pigeon topics from Scotland. © Compiled by Joe Murphy

Happy Birthday Ian have a nice one :drinking-coffee-200:

John check the memory board last post 25th March 2016 and you will get a tear in your eye here is the link http://forum.pigeonbasics.com/topic/85812-sebs-legs/

Is it no still under warranty :emoticon-0136-giggle:

Happy 65th Andy have a good one :emoticon-0136-giggle: :emoticon-0136-giggle:

Who wrote the articles John might be able to track them from writer

£40,000 for wages ??? :emoticon-0179-headbang: :emoticon-0179-headbang:

He certainly gained last night but has he learned They were very good last night Brilliant game Good luck

Wonder if your manager learnt anything about young blood :emoticon-0179-headbang: Or will they be cast aside when big names are fit :emoticon-0136-giggle:

Happy Birthday guy's hope you have a nice one :drinking-coffee-200:

Best I have seen them for a long time :drinking-coffee-200:

Sale info 5/. All outside sales advertised on site showing venue and lists of birds a fee of £30 will be charged, after being approved, by admin,

Try a PM to: bhirst or hawked again

From Seb's Mum Lorna We need to talk about Cerebral Palsy. Why? Because it’s Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day (CPAD) today and, with more than 1 in 400 children born with CP across the world, it is the most common movement disorder of childhood. Chances are you already know somebody with CP, a family member, a friend, somebody at your child’s school. And if you don’t, chances are you probably will one day. So it’s important. For our family and for yours. I don’t have Cerebral Palsy. My son does. But he has only just turned three years old, he’s barely more than a baby. So perhaps I am not the most qualified to talk about this condition – except of course as a mother to a young child with CP; I have plenty of experience with that. I know from speaking with other mothers, and fathers, who have lived through these first couple of years, that our family’s experience is really not unique. And that makes me feel less lonely, but also really rather sad knowing so many families have experienced the same heartbreak, fears and uncertainties as we have, and that so many families will continue to experience this tortuous early rollercoaster before coming to the realisation that ‘Everything will be ok’. Because it will. Let’s just get that out there straight away. EVERYTHING WILL BE OK. If only I had known… This is only our family’s second CPAD that we have celebrated, out of the four that our son has lived through since he developed Cerebral Palsy, we believe, during the final trimester of a difficult twin pregnancy. We missed Seb’s first one when our boys were just one month old and we were in a blissfully ignorant, sleep-deprived, newborn haze. We also missed Seb’s second, by which time we realised something was very wrong and were frantically searching for answers, a diagnosis, or preferably a simple explanation. I hoped Seb just had glue ear and that might be why he couldn’t yet balance, why he couldn’t yet sit. I realise that sounds ridiculous now. As far as I know, they have yet to invent the We-Don’t-Know-Yet-What-Is-Wrong-With-Our-Child-But-Surely-It-Can’t-Be-Too-Serious Awareness Day. Perhaps they should… Finally, after much pushing GPs, health visitors and physios, our son was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy spastic diplegia at 15 months old. His MRI at 18 months old confirmed Periventricular Leukomalacia, a type of brain damage associated with CP. We were both relieved to have an answer but also horrified at what the answer was and what it might mean for our young family. We grieved. We mourned the loss of Seb’s physical future. We mourned the loss of all we had planned for our family. The long walks searching for the perfect spot on a vast beach, watching our boys play football together out of the kitchen window, watching them walk to school on their first day holding hands. We were scared. All we wanted to do was to fast forward to the future, see that everything was going to be ok, and come back to the present to start enjoying it, to start living it again. In those early days and months, I wish more than anything I had known that ‘Everything will be ok’. If only I had known I would have saved myself so much torment, so many tears. We have been fortunate though, so very, very fortunate. Our son had the mild side of moderate spastic diplegia with no serious additional CP-associated symptoms. This type of CP is the most amenable (but not exclusively amenable) type of CP to benefit from a surgical procedure called Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy, a complex spinal neurosurgical procedure that permanently reduces or eliminates spasticity to the legs. Just one month after Seb’s second birthday, we celebrated our first CPAD since our son’s diagnosis knowing that this surgery would change his life and give him the opportunity to become a fully independent and mobile adult. We were already almost six months into a fundraising campaign to pay for this procedure with Dr TS Park at the St Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri. We had already raised the money needed for the surgery and were fundraising for his ongoing rehabilitation costs. We were in a very fortunate place. It really hadn’t taken too long after all to realise that everything was going to be ok. Seb had SDR five months ago in October last year. It was a complete success. He no longer has spasticity in his legs. He no longer has spastic diplegia. He does of course still have Cerebral Palsy, there is no cure yet for CP. And that’s ok. Cerebral Palsy is not a disease, it is not an illness, it is not life-threatening, it is non-progressive (although spasticity will cause secondary deformity over time). Whilst we would never choose this condition for our child, it is really not the worst thing in the world. Perhaps I’m not qualified to say this, but even if our child had been more severely affected, even if he had not been suitable for SDR, even if he never walked at all, we now know that it would have all been ok. He would still have had the opportunity to be happy, to be loved and be loving, to have hopes and dreams, to achieve and be successful. We know this because of the people we have met along the way who are doing just that. Not despite their debilitating condition, but because of it. And this is why we are ok with Cerebral Palsy staying on in our lives. We are glad the spasticity has gone, because it would have damaged our son’s legs, caused him pain and prevented the opportunities for mobility that he now has. But we are happy for CP to live within our son and alongside us. In many ways CP has made our lives better, richer, fuller. Our entire perspective on the world around us has changed. We understand others differently, we are more tolerant, more generous, more patient. We aren’t heroes, we are just a normal family struggling to replace the ‘why us’ with something more positive. Yes of course there has been a negative impact on our family: there have been immense financial and emotional pressures, my career has been put on hold to fundraise and care for our sons, and some friendships have wilted as a result. But these negatives have been replaced by a constant stream of mini-celebrations, of moments that make your heart flutter when you see your child achieve something so incredibly simple but so incredibly difficult which has taken months of hard work. Like standing by himself and bending down almost to the ground to pick up a marble and straightening back up without falling. Like choosing to sit with his legs straight out in front of him. Our entire family has taken on a new understanding of the words determination and perseverance. Our son’s able-bodied twin brother learnt patience and generosity before he was even two years old. That may be because he is simply an incredible little boy, which he is, or it may be that he is living an extra special life alongside a twin brother with a physical disability who needs far more support than he does and he has somehow developed the maturity to recognise it. He will grow up with a level of compassion and tolerance that might have been harder to teach him with a more ‘normal’ life. Without Cerebral Palsy we wouldn’t have the incredible memories we made during our year of fundraising. My husband and I trained for the London Marathon for six months and completed it tied together three-legged (to represent the spasticity in Seb’s legs) in a time of 4 hours and 25 minutes, earning a Guinness World Record. We simply would never have done that if it wasn’t for CP. Our friends and family took on similar incredible physical feats – many of them would never have discovered just quite what their bodies were capable of if it wasn’t for our son, and we know he inspired them every step of the way. More importantly though, we wouldn’t have made the friendships, that we now value so much. People who helped us fundraise, people following the same path as us, people simply doing their best to try and keep us sane. More than anything the depth of our friendships has changed since our son’s diagnosis. We may have far less time for our friends now (sorry), but we know their worth and hopefully they know ours. Even if our son had not been eligible for SDR, our friends and our family have shown us that we would have had the support we needed for everything to be ok. Cerebral Palsy is here to stay, with no cure on the horizon and limited treatment options, we need to learn to live with it, we need to understand it and understand those who are closest to it. It is not going away. It is a brain injury caused around the time of birth so cannot be screened for. The risk factors associated with this injury (prematurity, oxygen deprivation and sepsis) are never going to be eliminated even with a lifetime of medical progress. If we can’t eliminate it, we need to learn from it. And every single child you will ever meet with CP will show you what true determination and perseverance really are. It is up to us, as parents, as friends, as a community, to ensure that those qualities are allowed to flourish and fulfil potential, regardless of birth-given abilities. Our son was fortunate. SDR enabled him to stand by himself just one month after surgery and take his very first independent steps after just two months. He can walk now (just about, if only for a few steps), and one day he will run. He will run. But even if this future was simply never to be his, we would have found a way to make his life as rich and fulfilling as he and his brother have made ours. My link Lorna Brokenshire-Dyke Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day 25th March 2016

PENTLAND HILLS FEDERATION BREEDER/BUYER SUNDAY 27 MARCH 2016 VENUE - DANDERHALL MINERS CLUB, 88 EDMONSTONE ROAD, DANDERHALL, EH22 1QU VIEWING 12.00 – AUCTION COMMENCING 13.00 PRIZE MONEY £100O 1 ST PRIZE £300 TO EACH OF THE BREEDER AND BUYER 2 ND PRIZE £200 TO EACH OF THE BREEDER AND BUYER PRIZES TO BE DETERMINED BY THE BEST PERFORMANCE(S) FOR WHICH EACH BUYER IS INVITED TO SUBMIT THE NECESSARY DETAILS WHICH WILL BE JUDGED BY AN INDEPENDENT FANCIER OUTWITH SCOTLAND PROVISIONAL SALES LIST: 1 A. Simpson – Lauder 2 S. Bain – Duns 3 J. Bird – Prestonpans 4 L. Mitchell – Castlebrae 5 J. Pryde - Easthouses 6 J. Mack – Traprain 7 T. Nolan – Danderhall 8 T. Nolan – Danderhall 9 S. Lapinski – Woodburn 10 R. Bremner – Sighthill 11 J. Robertson – New Lothian 12 A.R. Pringle – New Lothian 13 A.R. Pringle – New Lothian 14 L. Affleck – Edinburgh Premier 15 L. Affleck – Edinburgh Premier 16 J. Henry – Armadale 17 J. Henry – Armadale 18 W. Hume – Danderhall 19 A. Lawrie – Loanhead 20 W. Kinnear & Son – Danderhall 21 W. Kinnear & Son – Danderhall 22 B. Johnston – Traprain 23 A. Simmons – Annan 24 H. Gray – Maybole 25 H. Gray – Maybole 26 A. Lawson – Easthouses 27 A. Lawson – Easthouses 28 A. Mitchell – Castlebrae 29 T. McFarlane – Edinburgh Premier 30 G. & I. Summers – Sighthill 31 Halley & Kelly – Woodburn 32 A. McCalley & Son – Avonbridge 33 C. Bonnington – Traprain 34 W. Slight – Easthouses 35 P.E. Heslop – Eastriggs 36 C. & J. McGregor – Danderhall 37 J. Smith – Polmont 38 E. Willis – Castlebrae 39 W. Flockhart – Traprain 40 J. Allan – Easthouses 41 J. Allan – Easthouses 42 J. Ferguson – Eastriggs 43 P. Virtue – Cocksburnpath 44 D. McBeath – Avonbridge 45 G. Hunter – Traprain 46 S.Gilchrist – Edinburgh Premier 47 S. Gilchrist – Edinburgh Premier 48 Brown & Black – Woodburn 49 K. Newcombe – Traprain 50 G. McLean – Duns 51 Sammels & Lunn – Castlebrae 52 Sammels & Lunn – Castlebrae 53 W. McCormack – Traprain 54 A. Young – Danderhall

Think he's looking for the bar maid :emoticon-0136-giggle:

The Joe Murphy Column I pride myself in my observation skills especially with the birds however this past week I have been about off my head with eggs being found out of the nest and a couple of youngsters also found dead out of the nest. I stopped giving the birds nesting material a couple of weeks ago as I felt the nests were getting too big. I have never had this problem before and it was starting to get me down then I realised that this year I had used new nest pans that I purchased 2 years ago. These were hard plastic and smaller than the clay pots I normally used and I have gone round each box and transferred the birds into the old clay nest pans. (See photograph of the size in difference between the pans) hopefully this will eliminate my problem I will keep you informed of any improvement. However I would be interested to know if other fanciers have experienced this same problem with these smaller next pans? Get Well Soon Had a phone call the end of last week from Linda Tyerman wife of BICC president John, she informed me that John had been taken into hospital for some tests and observations. They changed some of his medication and I'm happy to say he is now back home with Linda however the changes have knocked him for six and he is not feeling ‘brilliant’ at this time. I know everyone who knows John will wish him all the very best at this time and he is in our prayers and thoughts at this time. Young Bird Sickness Received an email from Keith Clarkson of Silsden West Yorkshire as follows, ‘Hi Joe, it is coming up that time of year again and I have been wondering whether there is a link between Young Bird Sickness and Ivermectin: as you know one drop kills all fleas on the birds, clears the gut of worms. This has to be a bit toxic BUT what goes out with the worms and does it affect the immune system of the birds? Like all pigeon men I’m killing time while the eggs hatch. I welcome you or other fanciers comments to kpclarkson@blueyonder.co.uk Please keep the Jokes coming we need something to put a smile on our faces, yours Keith’. Cry for help Received a call and email from Peggy Donachie who lives in Dundee and she is working on her family tree and wonder’s if any pigeon fancier in the Tayside area can supply some news of her late Granddad. He was named William Hill Donachie who with his son William and Tam Courtney flew as Donachie Senior & Son racing with Dundee federation. My Grandfather sadly passed away in 1965 but the pigeon ‘bug’ carried on in his honour as my uncle William still races the birds as W Donachie and Son and does well with them. I'm searching for any history or pictures of my Grandfather who lived at No 6 Blacklock Crescent Linlathen Dundee. I would be overwhelmed to obtain any information however small so I can add the little information I have on him just now. Some fanciers may have some old News Paper or old Pigeon magazine clippings that might highlight the Tayside area and you never know they may even mention him in these reports. I only wished I had looked into this many years ago, but sadly I did not. My email address is peggy5@hotmail.com or my mobile number is 07950759663. Thanking you once again Joe for all your help yours Peggy’. Good SNFC Birds This week I report on ONE loft who have been very consistent over the years none other than A S Thompson & son of Port Seaton I discovered while looking at the national results for 2015 that they have 5 pigeons who have all won from 2 diplomas up to a 5 times winner. I start with chequer pied cock SU12P 6400 he won 45th section B 59th open Maidstone flying 359 miles in 2014 he was then entered into the Ypres national and won 19th section B 29th open flying 428 miles. Then in 2015 he won 3 times in SNFC races being 18th section B 24th open Billericay a distance of 332 miles. He was then sent to Portsmouth and won 117th section B 197th open from a distance of 363 miles. He was then entered into the last old bird race from Clermont and won 34th section B 95th open flying 509 miles. This chequer pied cock only requires one more section victory from a national inland race to collect a Meritorious Inland Bronze Award. Their second pigeon I highlight requires 2 more prizes to gain this award as he has won 3 times from inland races plus a good win from Ypres. This chequer cock SU12P 6404 first win was achieved in 2014 from Maidstone when he won 43rd section B 57th open flying 359 miles. He was then sent to Ypres a distance of 428 miles and won 34th section B 59th open not bad going winning twice in the top 60 in 2 nationals. Then in 2015 he won 22nd section B 31st open from Billericay a distance of 332 miles and a few weeks later he was entered into the Portsmouth race a distance of 363 miles and he won 100th section B 167th open and is a 4 times SNFC winner with 3 from the 4 wins in the top 60 open places, a top quality pigeon. The next pigeon highlighted is a blue bar cock SU14P 5640 he won 3 times from inland races in 2015 being 45th section B 71st open from Billericay. He then won 9th section B 9th open from Portsmouth and was then 33rd section B 44th open from Eastbourne again 3 times in the top 75 in 3 nationals good going. Nest we have another pigeon who won 3 open prizes in 2015 this chequer pied cock SU14P 5618 won 64th section B 127th open Billericay he then won 110th section B 188th open from Portsmouth and then scored 206th open no section prize from Eastbourne. Finally we come to another chequer cock SU14P 5617 who won 132nd section B 219th open Portsmouth and also won 48th section B 70th open Eastbourne. I think you will agree that the A S Thompson and Son from Port Seaton deserve this profile-raising pat on the back for a wonderful team achievement with their birds and we wish them well for the new season. This week’s photographs This week’s pictures continue on Sheldon Leonard’s trip to Belgium when the group visited Christel and Thijs Peters of Maasmechelen. This partnership yearly win 20 x 1st prizes, they have also won 4th & 7th Provincial National winners and also won a car in 2013 from the Orleans race. The pictures are of Christel & Thijs Peters with Owen Kirwin, the other pictures are of Gregory Brothers of Co Wicklow and the last photo is of the group of fanciers having a meal with Christel and Thijs. Sheldon and the lads would like to thank Christel & Thijs Peters for their hospitality and wish them well for the 2016 season. Joe’s Joke A jockey has a fatal accident in the first race at Newbury, after throwing the jockey to the ground the horse kicks out and catches the rider full in the face. He had such nasty facial damage they required his wife to go to the local mortuary and identify him. She arrived at the mortuary and was shown inside. The attendant pulled out the first tray and his wife took a peep and said ‘No, that’s not him’. She looked at the second body and again said ‘No, that’s not him’. The mortician stated that they only have got one more body so this must be him. She took a look and said ‘No, that’s not him’. The mortician said ‘Are you sure madam’ ‘Positive’ said the wife ‘He’s never been in the first 3 in his life’. Please continue to keep the news flowing; to Joe Murphy Mystical Rose Cottage 2 Flutorum Avenue Thornton by Kirkcaldy KY1 4BD or phone 01592 770331 or Email to joejmurphy1@gmail.com REMEMBER THE J IN THE MIDDLE or log onto www.elimarpigeons.com www.fancierchat.co.uk and www.pigeon-chat.co.uk also www.pigeonbasics.com who wish my weekly contribution portfolio on pigeon topics from Scotland. © Compiled by Joe Murphy

I think when you bid and win on a Charity site you should know payment is ASAP I am more than flexible if you contact me the purchaser has been notified and replied but still no payment, Second request has been made by PM and E-mail I await the response It is also not fair on the donor and holds up the complete process of swift payment which is why I got this job. I complained so much about very late payments I was asked if I wanted to do it and the rest is history The site has a remarkable record of giving to Charities and I want to keep it that way Ian

Look at page one Walter it's there for all to see Paid birds are marked Paid

Don't worry it's on it way out :emoticon-0136-giggle: