It is hard to believe that the first race from Lerwick took place 125 years ago. In those days, Lerwick was a rapidly expanding and bustling fishing port, driven by the booming herring industry. The construction of the new town hall and a vibrant harbour packed with international vessels reflected the prosperity and importance of the town.
Today, Shetland has a population of just 23,000, yet the islands land more fish than England, Wales and Northern Ireland combined, despite their combined population of some 61 million. It will therefore come as no surprise that fishing remains the mainstay of the islands’ economy and, together with aquaculture, accounts for around half of the local economy.
But, of course, the reason the North Road Championship Club was in Lerwick was for wasn’t its fish but its Blue Ribband event, the King George V Cup race. The criteria for the competition are uncompromising: every pigeon must fly no less than 475 miles from the release point at Victoria Pier Car Park and te transporter arrived ere on the Froday morning after crossing from the Northlonk Ferry docks in Aberdeen.
This year’s race was postponed by a week because the weather forecast suggested that conditions would not be conducive to a liberation during the originally scheduled period or the following days. Looking back, what a great and brave decision that proved to be by everyone involved.
Our thanks again must go again to Tony Meek wo stepped in as convoyer and Chris Johnson who was scheduled for aa weekend off.
The race always attracts the local media these being BBC Shetland who went down to meet the guys and view their charges where Tony gave them the full lowdown on the bids and our transporter, thanks Tony you did the club proud!
We have previously covered the outstanding performance of the 2026 King George V Cup winner, Daniel Soanes Brown, but it would be wrong to overlook the performances of the section winners. These pigeons and the fanciers deserve their own recognition, and below is a brief report on each of them.
Section A – D Nuttall & Son – Newstead Nottingham
No strangers to success from Lerwick are Denis Nuttall and son from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. Their NRCC record from this iconic race point now includes two thirds, a fourth and a fifth Open placing, and this year they added another fine performance, taking 1st Section A and 3rd Open. I am sure that one day these North Road Championship stalwarts will crack the Open result.
They entered four birds to Lerwick and all four arrived home on the day in good condition.
The star of the show this year was a two-year-old hen, racing to this distance for the first time. She had been slipped additional eggs and, by the day prior to basketing, was sitting four eggs.
Her sire is a blue cock bred by Alan Todd of Blaydon, from his W.D.A. Bird of the Year 2019. The dam is a daughter of a Hall Brothers U.N.C. winner. As Denis and his son will know only too well, in races of this calibre it is all about good bloodlines, and this hen certainly demonstrated the quality behind her pedigree.
Section B – Daniel Soanes Brown, Wallesby Nottingham
We have already covered Daniel Soanes Brown’s sensational success from Lerwick, but his performance deserves another mention in this section winners’ report.
Not only did Daniel and his family win the King George V Cup, but they also dominated their section, recording 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 8th Section.
That is a truly remarkable result from such a demanding race and one that illustrates just how well the Soanes Brown team was prepared for the challenge. It was a fantastic family performance and one that will surely be remembered for many years.
Section C – H.M. King, Wolferton Norfolk
Although I did not have the opportunity to speak directly with the King or the loft manager, Peter, his wife Sheryl picked up the email and saw that friend and clubmate Julie Gant could make contact with Peter and obtain the relevant details.
The section-winning hen had already scored prizes from Whitby, Darlington and Thurso. During the 2026 season she competed in several shorter races before being sent to Arbroath, where she was the third bird home to the loft. After a rest, she was entered into the prestigious Lerwick race.
She is bred from the proven Kavanagh Busschaert family, tracing back to the original Kavanagh Brothers bloodlines. The foundation stock was obtained from Les Cole of Millom, Cumbria.
This family has consistently won from 100 miles right through to 600 miles, proving its versatility and endurance. Many fanciers have introduced these birds into their own lofts and subsequently gone on to win with them, including Scottish fanciers competing with the Scottish National Flying Club, where they have won their section on the west route.
The winning hen’s grandmother was an outstanding racer in 2019, competing in every NRCC Old Bird race from Dunbar, Perth, Fraserburgh, Lerwick and Thurso. She finished in the top 50 Open in three of those races before being retired to the stock loft.
Section E – Michael and Graham Brittton – Newborough Peterborough
Michael and his father Graham were delighted to have won Section E again after what has been something of a frustrating run of seconds, thirds and fourths over the last few years at various NRCC races, including their favourite race, Lerwick.
The victory marked their 40th Section win and, remarkably, their 10th 1st Section E win from Lerwick.
Their previous Section E victories from this iconic race point were:
- 1984 – 1st Section E, 22nd Open NRCC Lerwick
- 1987 – 1st Section E, 5th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 1990 – 1st Section E, 45th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 1997 – 1st Section E, 25th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 1998 – 1st Section E, 13th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 2015 – 1st Section E, 12th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 2016 – 1st Section E, 7th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 2017 – 1st Section E, 14th Open NRCC Lerwick
- 2019 – 1st Section E, 6th Open NRCC Lerwick
As the reader can see, although they have been incredibly consistent — clocking in every NRCC Lerwick race for the last 51 years — none of those performances had delivered the King George V Cup.
On the Sunday, just for a couple of hours, they dared to dream. They knew they had a good pigeon, as he was 35 minutes in front of the rest of their Lerwick team of 21 birds. However, with reports circulating about where the pigeon had come from — apparently out of the west like a rocket, bringing a yearling stray hen with him — they feared that shorter-flying pigeons could beat them, and unfortunately that proved to be the case.
They were quick to congratulate King George V Cup winner Daniel Soanes Brown and his family, together with all the other section winners, and made particular mention of the two leading Section H pigeons belonging to Marius Bulla and Terry Haley, who both appeared in the provisional top 10 Open.
Their winning pigeon was a blue chequer cock, and interestingly, he wasn’t originally intended for Lerwick.
In fact, he isn’t a Lerwick pigeon at all. He isn’t from their long-established family of Lerwick birds, nor is he from their new extreme-distance Jelle Jellema family. He is actually a middle-distance pigeon who was being prepared for the NRCC Thurso race.
So how did he make the Lerwick team?
With the Lerwick race being pushed back a week, a number of their original team had begun to go over their peak, particularly the hens. While at work in the office on the Monday afternoon before basketing, Michael’s mind began to wander back to a conversation with fellow clubmate Shane Betts, who had told him: “Michael, they have been sat on their ar**s too long.”
The birds had not quite been sitting around doing nothing, but Michael understood the point. He also recalled John Norris’s last-minute team changes for the 2019 Lerwick race due to a predicted back wind.
On the Monday night he told his father that they had to change the team for Wednesday. A number of their hardened Lerwick hens were subsequently pulled out and replaced with their new-for-the-year middle-distance birds.
GB24V78064 proved that decision was a very good one indeed.
Section F – Steve Kaschner – Brockdish Norfolk
Steve Kaschner is no stranger to success, and his name is often found at or near the top of the results. In this year’s Lerwick race he once again topped his section in style.
Steve’s winning pigeon is a three-year-old blue chequer cock affectionately known as ‘Fat Boy’ by Steve and Bridget. Asked why, Steve simply replied: “Because he’s a big un!”
One of Steve’s clubmates regularly jokes when marking ‘Fat Boy’ at the club, asking whether he can have him for Christmas dinner once his racing days are over!
‘Fat Boy’ first made his mark in the NRCC as a yearling when he took 3rd Open and 1st Section from Dunbar in 2024. He was bred by their friend Terry Winterton from his long-established A.H. Bennett of Church Stretton/Kirkpatrick lines.
On marking day, Steve is up at 03:45 to give the birds a little light seed and water before crating them. He then leaves at 05:45 for the hour’s drive to Norwich.
With an easterly wind forecast for the race, Steve expected the winner to come from around the Nottingham area, which proved correct. He also thought Section H would feature strongly and was pleased to see Marius Bulla of Rickmansworth and Terry Haley of Abbots Langley getting good pigeons on the day.
Steve and Bridget, flying just over 546 miles from Lerwick, sent 12 birds and had an impressive eight home on the day. Bridget was up at 05:00 the following morning to open the traps, and it was not long before the final four pigeons dropped in.
Steve said he was pleased to see the final result being published the following week after each race this year, and wished to thank Steve Howells and Dilys King for making that happen.
Steve and Bridget are pictured with Steve holding ‘Fat Boy’, while Mollie the border collie looks on to make sure everything is in order. Mollie regards the pigeons as her flock and is extremely protective of them — clearly another member of the team!
Section H – Marius Bulla, Rickmansworth Herts
Marius Bulla, the builder from Rickmansworth, has certainly made his presence felt this year. Following the uncomplicated system we reported on in the Arbroath report, he has now recorded his fourth consecutive section win and had two birds in the first 12 of the open, a remarkable achievement for such a keen young fancier.
The two-year-old cock, of Jelle Jellema origin, covered 590 miles in just under ten and a half hours, recording a velocity of 1,658 yards per minute.
He had previously raced from Dunbar, Arbroath and Fraserburgh with the NRCC, and Marius says he has never disappointed him.
Despite working long hours, Marius thoroughly enjoys his time looking after the birds. They are paired at the end of December and rear a round of youngsters before the sexes are separated.
Due to his work commitments, training has been minimal this season, with just a single road toss before entering the local club programme.
Both cocks and hens exercise together, often flying for between 40 minutes and an hour before being separated and fed in their respective sections. Evening exercise follows the same pattern.
I asked Marius whether the sexes were brought together before racing.
“No,” he said. “I simply don’t have the time. Even after the race they’re separated again. The system has to fit around my work.”
Feeding revolves around Beyers 49 Olympia, supplemented with lighter mixtures and occasional additions of Versele-Laga Energy Mix when required.
Looking at the results, there can be little argument that the birds are thriving on the routine.
Section I – Teddy Gunn – North Stifford Essex
There were some outstanding performances in this year’s Lerwick race, and Teddy Gunn’s two-year-old gay pied cock certainly deserves recognition.
He flew 610 miles in 11 hours, a tremendous performance from Lerwick. He is bred from ‘Cocoa’, winner of the London North Road Combine Lerwick race on the day, and a daughter of ‘Old Faithful’, Teddy’s Hall of Fame winner from Thurso, a distance of 513 miles.
The pigeon was sent feeding a 15-day-old youngster while driving to nest.
Teddy sent three pigeons to Lerwick and had all three home by 8am the following morning, a fine result from such a demanding race point.
A Race Worthy of 125 Years of History
When you look through the performances of these section winners, what stands out is the variety of methods, families and individual pigeons involved and of course the differing locations and velocities and distances covered.
There are the established Lerwick families, proven extreme-distance bloodlines, middle-distance pigeons drafted into the team at the last minute, and birds bred from families that have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to win over vastly different distances.
That is perhaps what makes the King George V Cup and the North Road Championship Club’s Lerwick race so special. There is no single formula for success. What is required is a good pigeon, prepared correctly, supported by a knowledgeable fancier and, as ever in long-distance racing, a fair measure of fortune on the day.
We would like to congratulate King George V Cup winner Daniel Soanes Brown and his family, together with every one of the section winners and all those who successfully completed this year’s demanding race.
A special thank you must also go to the North Road Championship Club committee members and officials who worked so hard to get the race away. After taking the brave decision to postpone the event by a week, they were rewarded with a race that saw pigeons arriving home on the day in good condition down to our convoying team driver Chris and convoyer. Tony. Without the people behind the scenes, none of these great races could take place and Dilys our lady secretary for going out and covering Steve Kaschner the winner of section F.
Of course we must not forget the clubs sponsors Northlink Ferrys and Bamfords Top Flight who all go to ensuring that one hundred and twenty-five years after the first Lerwick race, the pigeons are still making history.
Ray & Dilys
