Alex Mairs ‘Sandy’ of Ballyclare
No matter what sport one decides to participate in, you are immediately introduced to the leading names after reading the text books on the subject. Whenever you discuss the sport the top names are mentioned again and again, and on my introduction into pigeons I often heard the older men discuss the longer races, the long hard Channel races into Northern Ireland and a name mentioned in those early days has registered and stuck in my mind ever since. The name was that of Sandy Mairs. Maybe it stuck because he lived only a few miles from my home or maybe it was because it was when I was going to school on the bus I used to go up to the top deck to see if I could catch a glimpse of these much talked about pigeons.
I had a rough idea where the loft used to be at Millvale, Ballyclare, and I used to see the birds exercise from time to time. Seeing them exercise it didn’t seem to me that they were any different from the birds at home but there must have been some difference and this was most noticeable on the Channel because when the going got tough and the distance long Sandy Mairs more often than not appeared on the result sheet. So it was with all these memories that I finally went back to Sandy Mairs to have a look over his birds and report on the loft.
“Sandy” Mairs with his Blue Cheq Cock a Dinard specialist. This bird has flown Dinard, 460 miles four times winning 4th Open in 1970.
Sandy has had pigeons around him from the tender age of 6 years. In other words he grew up with them and started to race in 1934 when he started work. His early birds he got from T Crawford of Holywood, an old family friend, and where the base on which Sandy has cultivated his present family. They were the Mealy Delmottes. He added to these birds E A Robinson blood from Fred Best before he died and a pair direct from Lulham. In the space of only three years Sandy Mairs really made his mark racing and in the strong Ballyclare Club he won the averages in 1937 then two years later he won 15th Open Kings Cup from Redon. In 1939 he also remembers a race from Abersywth when he timed three on the day and there wasn’t another feather in the Club out of 500 birds. The loft in those days was 20ft x 8ft and the feeding was nearly all Kilpatricks which cost around £1 per cwt.
Blue Cheq Hen winner of 59th Open INFC Nantes 570 miles in 1973 for Sandy Mairs.
Sandy raced to Millvale up until 1967 with considerable success in races of all distances. Some of the major positions taken to the Millvale loft are 8th Y/Bird National, Milford Haven, and the first bird timed but beaten on the over-fly, 8th Kings Cup Rennes, 28th Open Redon, 35th Open Redon and 1st Open Y/Bird Derby Milford Haven. This particular young Red Cheq Cock wasn’t on the race sheet originally but when Sandy was hampering the birds he noticed him in such good form and he had to go. 20th Open Bude was also won to the loft the first time that location was tried.
However, one of the greatest performances put up by the Millvale loft was surely that of timing, “Blue Belle” from Barcelona in what was one of the hardest races from that race point. In fact “Blue Belle” still holds the long distance record into Ireland. She competed in races from St Malo and flew Nantes 560 miles before finally ending on a glory note from Barcelona. She was sent to that race feeding 3 days but the small Y/Bird was taken away and substituted with one about a week old to take the soft feeding from her.
Mealy Hen a winner of 1st Club, 2nd Section and 2nd Open NIPA from Haverfordwest, 19,003 birds.
There are many races, more open positions including 1st Open Fed 10,000 Birds, from Milford Haven with a Mealy Hen, “Brilliant Coleen”, but the positions mentioned were rattled off the cuff without checking record.
The move to the new loft location was made in 1967/68, the first Y/Bird season being 1968. The new loft is a magnificent structure built by the Mairs family themselves. It is a two story with a garage and store underneath and the upper floor 20ft square is divided into four sections with a passage from front to back. Sandy’s three sons who all race separately, Miln, Trevor and Alan, all helped father to build the loft and I might add it is a credit to all, as will be seen from the photograph included.
The Dinard Cock flown the race point four times finishing 4th Open in 1970.
If Sandy raced well to the Millvale location I just can’t find the proper adjectives to describe his performances to the Rashee loft. He has performed magnificently on the Channel especially excelling at Dinard, 460-miles. Y/Birds were raced in 1968 then 1969 saw him take 5th Club Dinard with a Blue Cock. Funny thing about this bird, he and his hen were the only 2 birds in a small wooden loft which was lifted onto a trailer at Millvale and moved to the new address and set in position with the Blue cock still sitting his eggs. The following day the loft was left open and the Blue just flew out picked about on the grass and flew back in again to his loft as if it had never been moved. In Fact, not once did he go back to Millvale. The positions taken from Dinard since 1970 include 1970, 1st club, 2nd Section and 4th Open; 1971, 5th Section & 20th Open; 1972, 47th Open; 1973, 4th Section & 13th Open. How’s that for consistency.
Cheq Hen – winner of 1st Section and 7th Open NIPA Penzance with 11,531 pigeons competing.
These last few years have really proved how reliable this family are. The 1973 season has been an exceptionally good year winning from the word go but I will dwell only on the Channel results as these are the ones that seem to draw attention. Haverford (2) saw Sandy take 2nd Section and 2nd Open NIPA, 19,000 Birds. This bird is a yearling Mealy Hen and is typical of the Mairs strain. Penzance saw him take the first 4 positions in the Club, plus 1st, 3rd, 6th & 11th Section 2,182 Birds, 7th and 12th Open NIPA, 11,531 birds. This race has been labelled by many as the best of the season and Sandy’s performance must rate as one of the best performances of the season. Moving on to Dinard 460 miles, and to another good ending to the Club season with 1st Club, 4th Section and 13th Open NIPA with his good Mealy cock. There were 3,954 birds in the Open. This Mealy Cock is the same bird which won 47th Open NIPA Dinard in 1972. A beautiful pigeon he is. With one French race over and only one Channel race left, Nantes Kings Cup, 560-miles to Sandy. With no birds on the day Sandy timed his BCH to take a very credible 59th Open 2,100 birds at a Velocity of 635ypm.
“Mealy Cock” a winner of 47th Open Dinard 1972 and 1st Club, 4th Section and 13th Open Dinard flying 460 miles in 1973.
So concluded yet another great year for the Sandy Mairs loft. For those who are interested in details he keeps about 12 Stock Pairs, about 60 racers and rears around 40 Y/Birds each year. He is not really interested in Y/Bird racing but still wins more than his share when he puts his mind to it.
He feeds mainly on peas he feels that this way there is no wastage as there is with a mixture. The peas may start off a little more costly but in the long run they work out cheaper.
He has no set nesting condition for his birds when they are entered in the longer races. He feels that you must treat each bird individually and send it to the race in the condition it most prefers so that you can get the best performance from it. He prefers also to jump his French candidates from Haverfordwest which means jumping 250 or 350 miles to Dinard and Nantes. For training the birds have the open loft at all times and are given a couple of tosses per week in his son’s transporter.
These are the finishing touches to an article on a fancier who has won many major awards, Averages and trophies year after year. It’s a hard road to the top and an even harder one to stay there, but I can safely say that Sandy Mairs has reached the top and I can also say that he has remained there.