Virtual Loft: The Pigeons Come Home and the Race Results

They say Pigeon Racing is the sport with 'one starting line but a thousand finish lines'.


In my previous post on the Shipping Night, I mentioned how the birds would be shipped to a location and released the next day (usually Saturday for the Tillsonburg club).  Although I was unable to go to the Release myself, here is a clip that shows what a typical pigeon release is like, although this release is with thousands, not hundreds of birds:




Once released, the birds then fly anywhere from 100-700 km home, depending on the race.  There can be more than one race a week.  In this case the two locations were Stouffville and Fowler's Corners - avg 115 km-As the Crow er Pigeon Flies.  Some races can go as far as St. Jerome and Grande Mere in Quebec, 600 and 740 km respectively. 


I went to Nick, my Pigeon Liasion's Loft to watch the birds come home.  While there, I took some pics of his loft; I will post these in my upcoming post on building and starting a loft.


Waiting for the pigeons to come home is an anxious process.  Every robin, sparrow and blackbird you see is a pigeon at first glance.  I even saw a bird of prey circling - I asked Nick if he thinks it would be a threat; he wasn't worried - the bird, some kind of hawk - has always left his birds alone.

To record their finish time, the birds land on a sensor antenna below the landing platform.  This senses the microchip in the band.  A close up of the device is on the right.

The 'finish line' aka 'Bucking Bars' stops the pigeon from escaping the way they came in. 

About to cross the finish line... 

Two across, one still outside.

This clock is connected to the sensor antenna and records the time the bird entered the loft.  Clocks can be expensive, so that is why the CRPU has the Loan-A-Clock Program for beginners.  Most clocks are Unikon brand clocks - click here for more info on Unikon.

The module on top of the clock is brought back to the Club House, with this club it is usually on Sunday, but that can change if the race was delayed due to inclement weather.

The modules here are from various race participants.

They are placed in a clock and the results are tabulated on the computer using specific software.  The Fowlers Corners race consisted of 195 Birds from 12 lofts, with 182 birds clocked.  A total of 66 prizes were awarded (top 1/3 of the birds).  The winner is the bird with the fastest speed in metres per minute. The Stoufville race consisted of 89 birds from 8 lofts, with 81 birds clocked.  A total of 30 prizes was awarded.  At the banquet at the end of the season, there will be an award ceremony with the winners will be bestowed a plaque.

Results of all the CRPU Races can be viewed here.

Coming Soon: How to Start a Loft and the Pigeon World's Most Least Wanted: The Top 10 Pigeon Predators and Pests

Virtual Loft: Old Bird Shipping Night

To find out a little more about the Pigeon World, I attended an Old Bird Shipping Night a few weeks ago.
  

I arrived early, around 6:30 pm on a Friday Night.  Friday is when the birds are shipped out, depending on the weather.  Nick, my liasion into this unique subculture had me help him carry in his pigeons.  I cringed as I forgot to wear my grubby clothes.  I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw the bottoms were covered and no chance of pigeon poop making onto my clothes.  The baskets were not that heavy, but kind of awkward if you never carried one before.  They come in various styles:

This by far was the most popular model of carrier.  With wooden dowels at the top, and mesh side that allow for optimum ventilation, it's favoured by both pigeon and racer alike.

This similar model below was also popular, although the ventilation was not as great.

This model on the chair, is made from Aluminum.  It was not as common as other models.  To me it kind of looked like a 'paddy wagon' for birds.

I looked, but there was no 'Brinks' logo ;)

As the pigeons came in they would set the baskets down on chairs, like the one above.  Nick, meanwhile, set up the equipment that would register the birds in the race near the back of the clubhouse.

The Instrument below on the left is used for registering the birds.  The one on the right records the information.

After the birds are registered, they are loaded into a basket.  Which one depends on their gender, or what race they are flying in.

Next the birds carried out to the trucks waiting outside.

When the trucks were all loaded up they would travel to the 401 to meet a transport that was meeting other trucks from other clubs in the Combine.  Birds are usually raced Saturday morning, except in cases of inclement weather.  However, the day could be different, depending on the Club.

Coming Soon:  Waiting for the Birds to Come Home, and going to a Clock Off to find out the winner.