THIS PAIR COULD MAKE A FROG FLY
These words were spoken after yet another outstanding season from the partnership of George and Linda Greenwood from Bollington.
They fly their birds in the Macclesfield Flying Club and after the season they have had all the members are wondering whether they could just make a frog fly.
At this point most people skip over the results. But if you just take the time to look at them and consider that these results were achieved with a relatively small team with very limited space.
In the 2000 season they won in club racing 9 x 1st, 10 x 2nd, 3 x 3rd. Plus every average in the club. In the East Cheshire Federation they won 5 x 1st, 2 x 2nd, 1 x 3rd plus many more positions in the first twenty. Again in the Federation they took all the averages with the exception of the young bird average. They were 1st and 2nd Cheshire Combine Messac and a total of 29 trophies and all this while sending on average 12 birds from a race team comprising of 10 inland and 10 channel cocks, with only 3 pair of stock birds. Their policy is Quality not Quantity.
The main bloodlines in the loft are Busschaerts of the Turner Bros and Rapido lines. These have predominantly been kept pure but some have been crossed into the Verheye’s from Tom Bailey of Rawmarsh, indeed George states that some of their best birds originated from Tom. Also housed are a couple of Van Den Bosche that have also flew well and are being kept in the wings as a cross.
Their latest introductions are the Van De Weyers from Roger Sutton of Congelton. These have also flown well, topping the Fed. So as you can see it does not matter whether they are bred from their own stock or from fellow fanciers they sure know how to race them.
Now to the partnerships management and methods. The stock birds and inland birds are paired on the 29th December. They then float the eggs from the stock and put them under the inland birds letting them rear 1 youngster each. They then split the stock pairs and repair them on 1st February along with the channel birds and the same procedure adopted. This way it gives them two separate teams of youngsters with only 1 month age gap. The youngsters are reared on 90% maple peas and 10% breeding mix. This year they tried Bamfords Breed and Wean and are very pleased with the results. A pinch of Homoform is also given once a day. The partnership say with this method of feeding they rear youngsters that are firm and strong, not pumped up chickens.
When rearing is over the widowcocks are only treated for canker, they don’t worm or treat for cocci.
The birds are then detoxified for 3 weeks before being prepared for the racing season. Then they get as much as they will eat morning and night, but the corn is only left in front of them for 15 minutes. Apart from Johnson’s Tonic nothing is ever put into the water.
The lofts are cleaned twice a day with no floor dressing being put down, Linda says they have tried various ones but find they all seem too dry and dusty, so we work on the theory of our good friend Gerry Clements who’s saying is ‘that fried eggs won’t hatch’ so we blow lamp over the boxes and floor each night.
The widowcocks are raced on conventional methods. Motivation is the key and this is Linda’s department. She says that she always keeps them thinking and only shows them the hen if she feels they are needed.
Young birds are kept on the darkness system and again Linda methodically sees over their welfare. I asked her when did she start training young birds, her answer was from the day they are weaned. They are fed on Bamfords Young Bird Mix and are given as much as they want. When road training starts they go only 2 miles until they break straight for home, then to 6 and 10 miles. After that they go on the bulk trainer and kept on that for most of the season.
George has built up a vast knowledge of our feathered friends and is always only a phone call away if any problems occur, if he doesn’t know Linda will be on hand to help.
As a friend and fellow member of the Macclesfield Flying Club I would like to thanks George and Linda on behalf of the racing fraternity for all the help they have given people over the years and close by wishing them well for the coming season, and let’s see if they really can make a frog fly!
Paul Frodsham
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