By Adie McCormick
http://www.pigeonnetwork.com
The following is an article re-typed from the 1970 edition of Squills with the approval of Lee Fribbens for you the fancy to enjoy once again and more so for the many pigeon enthusiasts who have yet to enjoy it, Nelson Corry was held in high esteem by all who new him and was always first on the scene to assist in any way for the betterment of the sport of pigeon racing in Ireland, one of his biggest achievements while racing pigeons was winning the Kings Cup from Nantes in 1969 with a fabulous blue hen named “Endeavour” who in fact finished 7th Open from the Irish National Flying Club event in 1968. Nelson was Chairman of this fine organisation when winning the race in 1969.
Winner of 1st Open Kings Cup Nantes 1969. 40 years ago this year.
WHATS IT ALL ABOUT OR LETS TALK PIGEONS
By the Late Nelson Corry of Dunmurry, Northern Ireland
1st Irish National Flying Club Kings Cup Nantes 1969
I had always hoped that I would be successful enough to be honoured by being asked to contribute an article to this annual, but that was some time ago. Now I realise just how difficult the task really is. In my former days I could be dogmatic about my ideas on how to race pigeons, but now that experience has matured my thinking, I realise that there is no one perfect method. I believe when one realises this fact, then one has matured from the novice stage. There is no one-and-one-only type of pigeon that’s wins.
However, when reading an article such as this one expects to be told something definite, so I am going to split my article into two parts – one for the novice, which I sincerely hope will be good advice to him or her, and one for the not-so-novice – let us call it ‘Talking Pigeons’
There are many ways for the novice to start. I feel a good method is to procure several pairs of feeders in good health. When these have laid it will be surprising how many fanciers will supply him or her with eggs from their very best, and by the end of the season he should have reared a goodly stock of birds. Fanciers are loath to over breed from their racers, but are happy to pass on eggs from these racers. Now let me state one dogmatic fact to our novice friends – never keep a badly reared Y/Bird or rear from un-healthy stock. Maybe one in a thousand will work out all right, but believe me it’s not worth it. Put them down-no matter from what they are bred.
Now lets assume you have a nice kit of youngsters flying well. They should be flying approximately an hour morning and evening. What about feeding? Don’t be deluded about all the ‘brain washing’ about this. If you have started off your birds flying say 15 minutes, then 20 and so on until the hour or so is reached and the birds are really flying this time, showing they enjoy it, no matter what mixture you are using, it is the right one, but if your birds are not reacting correctly, there are several reasons from the feeding point of view: one, over-fed; two, under-fed; three, too high protein; four, too low protein- so as a novice you have to learn to do the adjustments necessary, surely this is not beyond a keen observant pigeon novice. Here I would like to point out that in my tour of Belgium last season the feeding I say in all the leading lofts was 90% maize. In my talks with local agricultural analysts all are surprised that we pigeon fanciers do not use more maize in our feeding mixture. There is one thing that has to be borne in mind, sometimes weather makes pigeon like ourselves, a bit languid, so allow for this. Similarly the droppings should be firm, but again in damp murky weather you will notice a definite change and allow for this.
Now to the training-it is not how, but when. On a good day any risk can be taken, but this is not advice. Train methodically and well, but only if weather is reasonably fine, say 10, 20, 50 miles, but again I stress pick your days. Better to be under-trained than send your birds away on a bad day. Let those who will take chances, you play safe. There is always another day. If you have to jump your birds to catch up, I will bet your losses will be much less than those who send on regardless of weather conditions.
Now, my novice friends, your birds have been well trained and are flying, and I mean flying well, for an hour morning and evening-so we start to race. It will be odd if you do not get some terrible jobs and disappointments, but stick to your systems through thick and thin. Whether you are winning or not, don’t change-this is your method-you have and are doing your best at home and just because someone else is doing something different and winning, don’t let this move you from your programme. Remember you are not sending away unfit pigeons, you are satisfied you have carried out all necessary elements in a methodical fashion. All right, others are first and you are down-the-sheet, but when your birds do come, I will bet the arrivals are regular and most of your birds arrive in reasonable time. WAIT my novice friend, if you keep this up you will find that the flashy winners are missing in the reckoning at the end of the season, whereas your birds will still be there or thereabouts at the end.
I prefer my birds to be racing as a team, rather than just one or two getting up and when they are gone or have lost form the loft results vanish. This is the message I would like to put to my novice friends.
Further, if it is a bad season, don’t be one bit ashamed to decide that you will stop and conserve your birds for another season. I cannot go into this in an article such as this, but for goodness sake don’t think after one win that you know all the answers. Be as prudent as you can, but on the same vein don’t be ‘chicken’ and always be a ‘next year’ racer.
Now you will be asking, when is a bird in condition? This is the real top question of all pigeon questions. If your birds are doing their flying well and are looking and acting as if they enjoy life, you can only assume they are fit. I cannot describe this any better at this stage and must leave the decision to you.
I am, remember, describing racing for the novice and although stimulants are mostly unnecessary, I will suggest the following if any novices wish to try them. When the birds return re-turn home a little honey or glucose in the drinking water will not go amiss. On a Monday or Tuesday a few spoonfuls of Parrish’s food in the water, will, I can assure you make them fly with a much better ‘swing’. Then on say Wednesday or Thursday put a couple of spoonfuls of the following tonic in the drinking water. The tonic is made as follows 20 drops of medical creosote, ¼ oz Sulphate of Iron, 2 oz’s of Sulphate of magnesia and 4 oz’s of sulphate of Soda, any chemist will make this up for you for a few shillings. Put this with a tablespoon of salt in a quart of boiling water and stir well. When cool, put in pint bottles. Give one dessertspoonful to one pint of drinking water. If it does the pigeons no good it will certainly do them no harm.
None of this is new and most experienced fanciers have practised this or are aware of it. I am only anxious that my novice readers will get some sheet anchor to go by and impress on them to have some programme, let it be foregoing or not, but get a programme and stick rigidly to it, thus I believe in a few years you will feel you have served your apprenticeship. Here I would like to point out that there is one thing about using so-called ‘tonics’. I believe the most benefit comes from the fact when trying these things the birds get that little bit of extra attention and maybe the extra attention is the real tonic-who knows? Now don’t think that because you have done this and had some success that you know all the answers, but at least I hope you haven’t been dithering between half a dozen different methods. I really do believe that this is a much better way to success. I know of two friends of mine who were all built up on a good season: they had carried out all the duties carefully and methodically, then about the third race half their team was lost in a rather tough race-not really a bad race-but peculiar from the returns point of view. Despondency set in. I tried to convince them to carry on in the method they had adopted, they did and finished up with the best season they have had yet.
If those fanciers had started to take all the advice offered, no matter how well intended and changed from one method to another, I doubt very much if they would have been so successful. At least that is my opinion.
To start the second part of my article, or should I say chat, most of those who know me will on reading this think that Nelson Corry has gone mad, but let me assure them that I do believe that the novice fanciers is much better off with a definite programme or method and sticking to it regularly than be changing every time he or she visits another loft and overhears some other fanciers talking on their methods.
Now I have been a long, long time keeping pigeons and when I began to realise that there is no golden road to success I had begun to learn about pigeons. I am still in the ‘learning’ stage and am still enjoying it. The ‘glorious uncertainties of pigeon racing’ also ‘by the deeds you know them’. They should be painted and hung in every loft. Then the owner, after a big win, could be brought back to reality, also this would be interesting reading to those visitors who over-enthusiastically air their views.
Now, my not-so-novice friends, that we have cleared the air and all realise and accept that we are still ‘tryers’ ‘Lets Talk Pigeons’. It is a great game and god forbid that I should ever forget that it is a game, a hobby, a pastime, on the other hand, success-continued success, only comes to those who work for and deserve it. There is no lesser credit to the man who reaches the top of his hobby than the man who reaches the top in his work-please re-read this-I mean every word of it. In my business I have reached a satisfying height of perfection and in my hobby-pigeons-I can, I think, honestly claim to have equally reached a satisfying degree of accomplishment. Apart from winning the Kings Cup I have won my Club averages many, many times (82 members) and have been seldom lower than third highest prize winner and very, very often the highest.
This is all written to convince the old timers to sit back and look-look hard at our hobby—it is a good one. We are pigeon men or we are not pigeon men and if one why not try to be a good one, in every respect. If we are to be worthy fanciers nothing is too much trouble and for the good of our beloved hobby. I know that most will realise I am only putting into words their own thoughts. It is a good sport and only our utmost endeavours for its good are enough, even then we sometimes feel so totally inadequate. But don’t let us forget about the actual racing. I often feel that if I could I would have a long loft with movable partitions that at times I could convert into say two large lofts, one for cocks and one for hens and at other times, such as the racing season I could convert into maybe six or seven smaller lofts, each housing birds for different races.
The first would house birds raced say ‘widowhood’ or maybe even ‘corn-can’. The next for the 200-milers and next the Channel birds and so on until our National candidates. Each loft could be treated according to the particular race and in this way each race or each post could be a winning post. I need not bore you with details for I am sure you experienced fanciers know all aspects of this game better than I do, but I feel that in this way the birds could be brought up to top form at the appreciate time for the particular race. I really do think that this would be the ideal way to race pigeons and be consistent every week and every year, but then I do realise that even with all this some chap with very few kept ‘any old way’ could and often does come along to win. Does he do it consistently? That is the question. Consistent winning only comes to those who by their utmost endeavours earn and deserve it. There, I am being dogmatic and I promised you and myself that I would not be.
Here I would like to state that I train my birds rather well. There are a few in my loft, young or old that have not been single tossed up to and sometimes over 100 miles. I always notice the outstanding racer is outstanding in every way and always seems to have a mind or personality of its own, if personality is the right word, but you know what I mean.
There are so many aspects of this hobby of ours. Inbreeding, outcrossing, feeding, moulting, showing and on and on---hours could be spent going in to every phase, but I must draw to a close. There is the administrative side of our hobby and as one of the longest serving officials in office at present, I take great pride in the progress of our sport.
I have been a member of South Belfast Club (82 members) since away back and remember tearing my trousers climbing railway hoardings to be with ‘the South’ pigeon men. I still seldom miss a club meeting and am proud to belong to one of the best run organisations anywhere. The successful progress of our hobby in Ireland is a great joy to me and I trust I will be spared to still serve it to the best of my ability.
Perhaps one of the most rewarding aspects and the one I do cherish is the host of friends I have made. The Fancy has bestowed many honours on me and now the winning of the Kings Cup is the crowning glory. This and the host of congratulations I have received from all corners of these islands has made me most humbly grateful. May I be worthy of these great honours. Here I would like to relate that the first man to congratulate me and shake my hand was Billy Law, of Muckamore, the fancier who was second. That is what our hobby is all about. I would like our novice fanciers and indeed not-so-novice ones to note this.
Finally no article is complete without a little story. Mine is as follows: At a pigeon quiz programme the question was put: Would members of the panel please state the one item that had contributed most to their success? The question master directed this to old John, a most consistent winning fancier over many, many years. We all thought that the answer must surely be that he had been lucky in having the old Cheq cock – a gold mine at stock, or maybe it would be the man who masters the art of feeding master the art of winning, or still perhaps it would be to breed on the eye sign theory, but no, old John stood up and this was his reply. ‘The one item that has contributed most to my continued success and to my enjoyment as a pigeon man is – a loving and understanding wife’.