So how are the new Club entries coming along? “If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got” It is no secret that the numbers of pigeon fanciers are dwindling. Every year many fanciers retire from this great sport of ours, not to be replaced by another generation. The reasons for people leaving are numerous; financial, time available, outside pressure, failure to make an impact on the results sheet, behavior of fellow club members and more recently the security of oneself and your family while training and basketing pigeons. In one-loft racing Allflight have seen many come and gone. We witnessed a steady build up from about 400 winter entries in our first year at Carnival City to a peak of over 1,600 and then a gradual decline in numbers. The reduction in winter entries was offset by starting a summer series with a large number of birds in that race coming from outside South Africa. Importing racing pigeons to this country is becoming very expensive and more difficult by the day. Stricter import requirements because of bird flu and longer quarantine periods resulted in many overseas fanciers losing their appetite for this sunny country. Our lofts, rated as being world-class and run by an experienced team, now have vacant perches. So what do we do about this space available in the recently relocated and upgraded Carnival Loft? Pigeons are our passion, so housing rabbits, chickens or pigs are out. How about providing an opportunity for doubtful fanciers to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak, we thought out loudly. The replies we got from knowledgeable people who overheard us were very positive, and the new Team or Carnival Club competition was born. Participation is simple: you breed a team of 20 (or less if you prefer) babies, pay a deposit of R2500, call us for arrangements of how best to get your birds to the Vaal Dam, see to it that the remainder of the R12500 entry fee is paid by 31 May 2015 and sit back and relax. We do everything else from thereon; housing, feeding, medicating, training, basketing, clocking (you may come visit on race days), results, paying out your price money, everything. Wow, R12500 is a lot of money, you might say. To which we will point out that it is a mere R625 per pigeon per year to race in a club with 20+ members from all over SA. Success will bring you fame, as all the races will be combine liberations with other organizations. Lou de Jager already entered two teams. He got a discount of R2500 for his B team as per the rules. Lou told us last year already that he did detailed calculations and came to the conclusion that it is much cheaper to enter a good number of pigeons in our loft than to race them himself. Roelie Joubert dropped his first 8 babies off last week. He was going to give up this great game because of the small number of fanciers remaining in his area and also because it is unsafe for him to travel back from the club to his farm at night. Nico Coetsee is sponsoring his father to allow him to race pigeons again after an absence of about 8 years. The serious contenders will be there; The first batch from the Gaddins/Charl Stander are here, both Cachalia brothers are in and we hope to convince more of the big guns that it will be a good testing ground for their breeders. Call us on 082 928 1742 if you need a gentle nudge.
Posted on: Tue, 02 Dec 2014 09:46:55 +0000
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