Farina Open - 2003

lst Graham & Jan Watson

(Salisbury Club) SA. 0239359 bgh
 
 

Graham Watson of Parafield Gardens struck a blow for all off-line flyers when he won the Farina Open with his blue grizzle hen.

In the fast races people would have you believe you have to be on the main drag to feature in the result but that doesn't count in your bird is making the pace out in front.

You can stand outside Graham's loft and see the main race track about three or four kilometres East and it's almost impossible to leave the drag and head home into a West wind and still win.

But Graham has done it twice from Farina. He's also won the Vin Blanden Trophy each time.

Graham has had pigeons since he was a kid. He and Ross Chapman would catch feral pigeons off the Challa Gardens Primary School, bring them home and break them in. One black hen actually bred Ross a winner in the Riverside Juniors Club. That was 38 years ago and they both tossed together with great success for 2003.

Graham's Farina Open winner was a second round hen. For many years he has done well with birds off a Geoff

Dangerfield cock. Two years ago, he was starting to show signs of age so Graham mated him to Nick Brent Busschaert hen that has produced six SAHPA placings. Graham bought her at an Adelaide sale after outbidding John Pryor. He put aside a cock from the Dangerfield-Busschaert mating and paired him with a grizzle on loan from Willi Thiele.

Willi Thiele provided the other side of the winner which was a grizzle Van Loon from John Cock's imported pair.

The progeny off the DangerfieldBusschaert and the grizzle Van Loon flew well with a bother to the Farina winner was also being clocked in 2003. Naturally his hen has been retired but it's likely we will see more winning grizzles from Graham Watson's loft in years to come.