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The British Barcelona Club
 Dinner and Presentation Gala 2011
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The Wessex Hotel, Bournemouth was the venue for the British Barcelona Club's 47th Annual Presentation & Dance.
There was a great start to the weekend on the Friday with the fun night, with mine hosts, Jim & Hazel Hooper, ably supported by Allan Follows with his sequinned jacket and strong Welsh tones doing most of the talking. A laugh a minute was the order of the event and it lived up to its name.

Saturday saw the highlight of the weekend with the Dinner, Dance & Presentation, 167 members and guests sat down to a four-course meal. The Club Chairman, Jim Hooper, started proceedings by introducing everyone on the top table, chief guest RPRA President David Higgins and his wife, Leslie, other guests included Steve Richards, Editor of the British Homing World and his wife, Bernette, Chris Pearce representing A. E. James & Son (Willsbridge Corn) and his wife, Charmian, Peter Bennett of Summit International, world-renowned photographer, and his wife, Susan, Mark Gilbert, the BBC Club Patron, and his wife, Karen, Nigel Rigiani, the Club President and his daughter, Danielle. Jim then thanked the Club's sponsors not on the top table, Ponderosa UK Stud and Whitefield Printing Services.
This was followed by the President Nigel Rigiani's address and toast to the prizewinners. Nigel, in his capacity as Chief Convoyer, expressed his delight with the new transporter and went on to review all the races including the liberation sites. He described Messac as excellent, but the Poitiers site certainly did not get his seal of approval as he had counted no less than 42 overhead cables just north of the liberation site.
After Jim's very able introductions and toast to the Ladies & Guests David Higgins proposed the toast to the Club. In his short but informative speech David paid tribute to the late Brian Mead.
President Nigel Rigiani & Dtr Danielle.
RPRA President David Higgins and his wife Lesley

Two other members not in attendance winning Diplomas were Dave Goddard & Son of Reading with No Mug and John Nicholson & Sons of Rochester with Tilda, they also achieved the Golden Salver Award with Dora, four times in the Blue Riband National result.


With the conclusion of the trophy presentation the members and guests enjoyed the rest of the evening chatting pigeons or dancing to the excellent music of The Dresdens guitar and vocal duo.



My thanks to my fellow committee members for the help in making this a night to remember, also Mike Shepherd for the use of some of his notes.


Barry Burton
Secretary
John Halstead, winner of the Blue Riband race from Palamos, responded on behalf of the Club, thanking the Officers and Committee for an excellent year.

With the speeches over it was on to one of the main purposes of the evening, honouring this year's prizewinners and the presentation of the trophies. David Higgins presented the trophies to those winners in attendance.
First up Barry Cryer of Taunton winning The Hyatt Challenge Cup and the Ponderosa UK Stud pigeon voucher for £150 1st Open National Carentan,
followed by John Attrill, 1st Section A,
Mark Gilbert 1st Section D
and E. Jones of Telford the Ingrid Jurd Engraved Tankard for 1st Section E.
F.Bartlett & R. Jones of Southampton,  receiving the Trevor Perrett Memorial Trophy for the first bird in the Charity Nomination and the Joyce Stephenson prize for the first bird in the Ladies Nomination.
Phil Newton of Weston-super-Mare received the Pat & Alec Griggs Trophy for the best velocity into Somerset and the Nigel Rigiani Engraved Tankard for 1st Section C
Crammond & Langstaff of Fontwell received the Mr & Mrs Hooper Engraved Tankard for 1st Section G.
F. Bartlett & R. Jones winners of 1st Open Poitiers National received the Mr & Mrs Hooper Trophy, the Eversons Sports & Trophies Cup, the Peter Bennett Special Plate, a Ponderosa UK Stud £150 pigeon voucher for 1st Open, the Ray Hoare & Clare Trophy for the best velocity in Section A, the London Lads Trophy for best velocity into Hampshire and the Crowley & Green Engraved Tankard for 1st Section C. E. Jones of Telford received the J. M. Binns Trophy best velocity into Section E, the Mr & Mrs John Mellor Trophy for the best velocity into Shropshire, and the Nigel Rigiani Engraved Tankard for 1st Section E.



The Bordeaux National saw Phil Newton of Weston-super-Mare taking the 1st Open honours receiving the Master Jason Rigiani Memorial Trophy, the Jane Witts Memorial Trophy, the Peter Bennett Special Presentation Plate, a Ponderosa UK £150 pigeon voucher for 1st Open, the Mr & Mrs Hooper Trophy for the best velocity in Section C, the Trevor Dodd & Grandson Trophy for best velocity into Somerset and the Paul Mauger Engraved Tankard for 1st Section C.
Mel & Sue King of Blandford received the Whitefield Printing Services Trophy for the best velocity into Dorset.
The Fougeres Young Bird National saw John Attrill of Salibury collect the Bilco Consulation Cup for 2nd Open National and the Nigel Rigiani Engraved Tankard for 1st Section A.
P. Priddle of Southampton came next to the table to receive the Maisie Bissell Challenge Shield for the Ladies Nomination.
Mr & Mrs Mark Gower of Fordingbridge returned to the table to receive the C. A. Harris Hampshire Cup for best velocity into Hampshire, the Ray Hoare & Son Challenge Cup for the best velocity by a Solent Fed member and the Wyatt & Gray Engraved Tankard for 1st Section B.
Mr & Mrs John Mauger of Aylesbury received the Davis Challenge Trophy for the best velocity into Buckinghamshire.
Tony Leggett of Southampton was the first recipient in the Fougeres Old Hens National winning a plaque for 1st Section A.
Mr & Mrs A. Shore of Crewe received the plaque for 1st Section E.
The Palamos Blue Riband National is the race all members strive to win and this year John Halstead of Kington Magna in Dorset hit the jackpot for the second time in three years by taking 1st Open and winning the following trophies, the Arthur Bartlett Memorial Trophy, the Harkers Challenge Trophy, the Presidents (Ron
Mitchelson) Trophy the Spanish Challenge Trophy, the Woodsider Trophy, the Doug Horwood Memorial Silver Salver, the Eileen Bunn Memorial Trophy, the L. A. Bartlett Challenge Trophy, Patron Nomination, the Ron Mitchelson Memorial Rose Bowl Charity Nomination, the Spanish Trophy Ladies Nomination, the Mr & Mrs Stephenson Challenge Cup best velocity into Dorset, the Peter Rigiani Memorial Trophy, the Cyril Medway for the first cock in the Open Result, the Albert Padfield Blue Riband Memorial Trophy, the Peter Bennett Special Presentation Plate and the Mark Gilbert Engraved Decanter for 1st Section B.
Bill Stribling of Weston-super-Mare achieved 2nd Open National taking home the Chairman's (Bert Bryant) Challenge Cup, the Ron Youde Memorial Challenge Trophy for the furthest flying bird on the winning day, the Barcelona Olympic Challenge Cup for the best velocity by a hen, the W. Gale Challenge Cup for the best velocity into Somerset, the Horace Baker Memorial Trophy for the best velocity into Section C, the Roy Hanney Memorial Trophy for the best velocity by a cock into Somerset, Frank Lloyd Memorial Trophy for 1st Hen in Race Time and the Mark Gilbert Engraved Decanter for 1st Section C.
Andy Parsons of Salisbury was next to the table winning 3rd Open National and receiving the Bert Whiffen Memorial Shield, the F. E. Griffen Challenge Cup for the best velocity into Wiltshire. Also taking 5th Open National and the Willcox Trophy.
Team RML from Romford was 4th Open National winning the Gladys Stephenson Memorial Challenge Trophy, the Hands of Castree Challenge Trophy for best velocity in Section D, the John Parish Memorial Trophy for the best velocity into Essex and the Mark Gilbert Engraved Decanter for 1st Section D.

Mike White & Son in Bournemouth were 6th Open National winning the Jack Edwards Memorial Challenge Trophy.
Bert Shepherd of Woodmancote, the 2010 Barcelona winner, won the G. H. Hall Rose Bowl for the best velocity into Sussex, the Mr & Mrs Maskell Challenge Cup for the best velocity into Sussex, the G. Stubbs Memorial Trophy for the best velocity in Section A, the A. Hoare & Son Challenge Cup for the best velocity by a Solent Fed member and the Mark Gilbert Engraved Decanter for 1st Section A.
The Frederico G. Vaccaro Challenge Cup goes into Guernsey with Michael De Carteret for the best velocity into the Channel Islands and the Mark Gilbert Engraved Decanter for 1st Section H.
The highlight of the Presentation had to be the grandchildren of the late Ken Hine of Hayes who received the Middlesex Challenge Trophy for the best velocity into Middlesex and the Ron Bissell Challenge Cup for the best velocity in a London postal area.
Now to the Average winners: John Attrill of Salisbury won the Major Buckingham Challenge Trophy for the best Two-Bird Average in the Fougeres Young Bird National; Tony Leggett of Southampton won the Tony Jurd Memorial Trophy for the Best Average Young Bird and Old Hen in the Fougeres Young Bird & Old Hens Nationals into Hampshire; John Halstead of Kington Magna received the Tony Hustler Memorial Trophy for the Best Average in the Two Longest Old Bird Nationals, the Mr & Mrs B. J.Reeves Challenge Trophy for the Best Average all Races, the Tommy Rae Memorial Trophy for the Best Average in the Two Longest Races and the F. E. Griffin Memorial Trophy for the Best Average Old Bird and Young Bird; Andy Parsons collected his winning trophy the British Barcelona Club Appreciation Challenge Trophy for the Best Two-Bird Average Palamos.
The Spanish Diploma of Merit Awards, awarded for three times in the result from the British Barcelona Club's Blue Riband National (flying over 630 miles), saw two members collect their framed diplomas, Mike White & Son of Bournemouth with Becky's Boy and Bert Shepherd of Woodmancote with Jubilant.
Mr & Mrs Mark Gower of Fordingbridge received the Eric Ilsley Engraved Tankard for 1st Section B.