Vryheid KZN: Pigeons vie for victory high up in the skies
The time it took the pigeon to cover the distance is recorded, and the bird's rate of travel is calculated and compared to all the other pigeons that raced and returned
If you enjoy racing and birds, then pigeon racing might just be the sport for you.
In pigeon racing, specially trained pigeons are released and they return to their homes over a carefully measured distance. The time it took the pigeon to cover the distance is recorded, and the bird’s rate of travel is calculated and compared to all the other pigeons that raced and returned. The birds (as said above) are specially trained and conditioned for races that vary in distance from 100 kilometres to 1000 kilometres. Races can be lost by seconds, hence a lot of development went into specially designed clocks to record these times.
The traditional method of timing the pigeons involves rubber rings with unique identification numbers. The ring is attached to the bird’s leg and the clock is set. When the bird returns, the trainer removes the ring and places it in the slot of the clock. But times have changed and the latest development is an electronic timing system. The bird’s arrival time is recorded automatically the moment when the bird returns with its fitted band, which has an RFID chip in it.
The Vryheid Racing Pigeon Club’s results for the races flown on September 26:
Pietersburg young birds were won by Robin and Charles, with Dirk and Mariska coming second. Robin and Charles’ winning bird (NV2007) landed 51 minutes before the next bird. We hope you can breed more of this quality for next year.
Pietersburg old birds (winning speed: +- 93km/h): Dirk and Mariska: 1,2,3,7,10. Leon Le Roux: 4,5,9. Robin and Charles: 6,8. Douglas young birds: Dirk and Mariska’s winning bird clocked a magnificent speed of 103km/h over the 704km, so well done you two!
In the Douglas old birds, the winning speed was also a blistering 103km/h over the 704km: Dirk and Mariska: 1,5,6,7,11,16.
Leon Le Roux: 2,3,4,9,15. Frikkie Marx: 8,10,17. Robin and Charles: 12,13.
Thomas Narian: 14,18,19. Next week, weather permitting, will be raced from Dealesville and Middelburg for what could be the last race of the season.
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