Then and now for Burntoft lofts not standing still

Flying with first off the Billingham TUHS, then switching to the Haverton Hill HS, both Teesside Federation clubs, the partnership, which now includes Angie’s brother Steve Cuthbert, yet again hit the ground running in the 2011 season, and yet again they are letting the best in the world know, that their pigeons are as good as anyone’s you could care to name.

The recent series of races with the Sun City Million Dollar Classic people; out in South Africa, which has seen the partnership going very well, had me yet again heading across to the north of Teesside, to update you readers on just what was going on at Burntoft Farm. I found Neville and Steve in and around the lofts as usual, but we sat down over a cup of tea, and just talked, with me getting an update on things in and around the lofts. What really took me eye, and made me want to talk to the lads again was the recent news that the Burntoft pigeons had hit the back of the net big style, with the winning of a brand new motor car, a Nissan Qashqai, with a pigeon called Burntoft Sydnee a half Sister of Burntoft Babe who had 2 x 1st UK and 11th Open in the Sun City Million Dollar Race Final 2010, out at the Sun City Million Dollar Classic. My description that their birds are as good as anyone you could care to name, was not made lightly, this result against the best in the world confirms that statement.

I’ll just return to 2010 for now, reminding you just what this loft had done in that season, before getting up to date with the on goings with Angie, Neville, and Steve at present, and how the 2011 season had gone here in the UK. In 2010 all sorts of averages were won, both with the Haverton Hill HS, and they were top point’s winners with the Teesside Federation, making them overall top loft. So at home they were going well, and further afield, they were winning some serious prizes.

They had pigeons entered in various one loft races, both here in the UK and overseas. Without doubt the Sun City million Dollar Race was where they were really taking top honours, for 1st UK was won 3 x times, and in the final race, they had an arrival with the first batch to take 1st UK, 11th open, just missing out on a top 10 finish, and a gold medal. They had the bird well nominated though, to take cash returns close to $14’000, so well worth the effort.

Before all this though, flying back here in Teesside, first off with the BTUHS, and as I have already stated, and now with the HHHS, the loft was getting established winning some good club, federation, and getting some good UNC turns. A race from Pontefract in 2010 with the YB’s had the whole of the UNC talking though, for with a federation send of over 1600 pigeons, the Burntoft Lofts took the first 12 in the fed, and had 21 of the top 25 places shown.

The UNC turns were as follows, and don’t forget the send numbers with us. We have a 12th, 55th, 60th, 63rd, and a 173rd, these from both Folkestone’s, The both Lillers has them with a 25th, 128th, 147th, 172nd, and a 225th. Eastbourne Yearling National, they have 161st, and from the Maidstone YB National they take 166th. The NEHU 2010 Futurity race against the best entered by competitors, be very sure of that, cash prizes are high in this race, they had 18th, 42nd and 60th Open. We have sends to these races of 20’270, 17’366, 11’206, and 2’016. Also can I add, just to show how strong the Haverton Hill club is, some of these top turns were split by some of the members within the club, they also getting top UNC positions.

So that is basically what I wrote then, so lets get right up to date with the last years happenings shall we! At home they had bad start, for the birds were anything but right, and it took some time to get to the bottom of the trouble, so when they did, they were playing catch up. Can I say here, I know the good folk in the HHHS all by first names, they are very competitive indeed, and although there will have been some sympathy for the Evans team, but as we all do, they were getting on with what the members of this club do best, flying good pigeons, as they always seem to do. I’ll remind you that at the time back in 2011 I informed you that the team of pigeons, built up from scratch in 2008, that’s just how long they have flown at Burntoft Farm, were from various sources. The likes of  Brian Bolton, Steve Sutton, Nigel Laycock, Ray Blower, and especially Len Hopton and Brian Clayburn, these have really lit the blue paper. The latter’s Janssens, and Cor Leitjens, they via a top race cock, and ultimately a top stock cock just known by his ring number of 5454, these are the base pigeons. They have been added to, for Neville and Steve have invested heavily in further stock, with some top purchases at clearance sales, and some more continental lines have also been bought in. We have Verreckt-Arien, Andre Verbesselt and Hardy Krueger, plus closer to home, Terry Marshall has also let brothers, sisters etc come to the Burntoft lofts, these being the same way bred as The Machine and a son and daughter off him, a pigeon that was sold recently for about 24’000 euros. All the continental strains have been sourced out direct.

The Krueger lines I was tremendously impressed with, proper distance pigeons, only late- breds, but with bodies like mature 2yo’s. Neville and Steve are going to try to cultivate a team for the distance races, and with what I saw at this visit, it will be done, mark my words. Roundabout, Widowhood, Darkness for the YB’s, whatever way they decide to fly the team, winning will be done, be very sure of that.

Well lets now run some of the very top positions they have won since my last visit, and I’ll put in some of the top turns they won to justify me going over the first time to visit them as well. In spite of the sluggish start they had with the birds last year, it took some time to get to the bottom of things, this they did with the help of Kev Winter and then Richard Byars, they ended up with 12 x 1st clubs, 12 x 2nds, 14 x 3rds, and 11 x 4ths. Among those wins were 3 x 1st Teesside Fed wins, and as I have already stated their intentions about putting a team together to fly the distance races, those 3 x 1st feds were from Clermont, Lillers and the Maidstone YB National, all these races being in the longer race category, so they have quite a start within the lofts already.

The Maidstone YB National race of 2011 had the Evans team very nearly achieving the goal of quite a lot of UNC fanciers, for they took 2nd and 7th UNC, with the second timed getting 1st NECC, a club that has the best in the UNC area nominating top pigeons for this race.  In fact, after the slow start to 2011, the loft really did pick up, and ended the year with a tremendous set of top figures. Take Clermont, a NEHU open race, as well as flying with the UNC, and 1st club, 1st fed and 38th Open was won. They backed that up with 4th club, 12th Teesside fed, and 237th Open, distance being very close to 400 miles. The UNC race from Maidstone, an Old Bird race flown on Sunday, 26th June. The loft didn’t quite win the club, the very good partnership of Appleton and Longstaff did that, but Neville and crew took 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 7th club, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 12th fed, 11th, 24th, 25th, 117th, and 190th UNC, the latter turns from 17’164 birds.

A difficult Fontenay race, 447 miles, a very warm day, and a creditable 5th club, 11th fed, and 184th UNC was won, The yearling race from Eastbourne saw the loft having another good day, distance being 277 miles, and the loft had 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th club, 5th,6th,10th and 17th fed, 16th, 17th, 23rd and 66th UNC. The OB season was topped off from Lillers with a 1st and 3rd club, 1st and 3rd fed, 26th and 246th UNC, send being 10’352.

As already stated, the UNC YB Maidstone National had them close to a 1st UNC place, but with 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th club, 1st, 3rd, 14th, 15th and 20th fed, and 2nd, 7th, 65th and 66th UNC, plus the 1st NECC, quite a haul for the Burntoft Lofts.

The NEHU 2011 Futurity race had the loft taking an absolutely brilliant 4th open, with the one they timed being well clear in the loft of the second arrival, by some 35 minutes. This was a tremendous performance in my book, being beat by 3 birds flying shorter, and timed by 2 top class competitors in Mark Walton, and then Ian Stafford.

Now some of the results from overseas, and these really are, bringing the N & A Evans and Cuthbert name to the forefront of the pigeon world. By my reckoning, the Burntoft lines have figured no less than 42 x times within the top 10% of the results, this from approximately 5’500 pigeons that begin the series of races, out in Sun City. This is against the best in the world, in races that are not easy, blow homes are hardly ever got in these races. Maybe soon, we will be hearing more about the Burntoft pigeons, for the last races are being flown about now.

New challenges are now being attempted, for China has now been visited, and the fanatical pigeon people out there, are going in big style with one loft races, with some very serious cash prizes to be won. Neville has been out there, and the Burntoft lines are now being flown there, with some success already being reported.
I am sure that Burntoft Farm will continue to figure high up a lot of race results for quite some time to come, the progress this loft has made in such a short time is outstanding, and they are not standing still, that’s for sure.

Just a little post script here, for since the season has ended, the NEHU show had the Evans and Cuthbert team winning the NEHU Invitation Class, open to birds that have figured in the top 50 of open results, this with the winner of the fed at Clermont. So they win on the road, and they win in the pen. Is there more to come? You bet! BP   
In the recent Sun City Million dollar Final Race 2012 they were 2nd UK, 51st Open with Burntoft Jay and 15th UK, 240th Open with Burntoft Emerald and getting 10 of the 12 sent to the final home including the Car Winner Burntoft  Sydnee