MsPigeon

and so much easier for the race secretary! ;D

But it is quicker than rubbers and conventional clock. No?

T_T said: Hi Mspigeon, I think " selfish" is a harsh word to use because as you know I'm sure most pigeon fanciers would give their heart away and being against ETS ( as I am ) they are not only worried about the impact it would have on the fancy financially, they are worried about an unfair advantage should two pigeons from different lofts arrive together one with ETS and one without because I'm sure the ETS system will ALWAYS beat a hand timing system. Rose said: Thats what I said T_T i will use it as a motivation for me to still be able to beat anyone with it there very few of my channel races won on decimals so i still think i be able to do it the only advantage i would say someone using ets would have is if you have more than one bird come i wouldnt be able to time my 2nd bird in as quick Tony C said: Scenario. The top flyers in my club have ETS, I not to give them an advantage get the system installed. I win a race beating a pensioner by a decimal, he/she cant afford the ETS he/she times in on a conventional clock. That to me would devalue the win big time, any race I win I want it to be down to merit and merit alone. The pensioner ? he/she has every right to be felt cheated out of a win. To me here lays the problem. Selfish ? Mike said: What is unacceptable to me is that to have the system in place at your lofts you have to ultimately re-design your loft & i'm not prepared to do that at all. Our home environment is one of the reasons why our birds race well & I'm not gonna compromise that for anybody - and I'm not talking about expense personally - although I acknowledge it is an issue for many. I want someone to show me how I can fly Open door with ETS and have our birds hit the back of the loft without me having to catch them. Am I asking for too much? Hyacinth's system is obviously ok for her & that's fine .. That's her opinion & she has a right to it - personally (my opinion) I'd leave the sport before my birds came home from a race like that (no disprespect intended Linda) Part of the romance is catching the bird & getting it in the thimble. Every week I bet we al here of "the one that got away". Dandydoo said: There are a lot of things unfair in the Pigeon world that is .. stall traps ...that gives people at least a 20 second advantage over catching and timing maybe more. There was never a big hoo ha over stall traps ..it is a choice thing Hi All, You all have very valid points and I respect you all and your points of view. But I still believe as Dandydoo stated "it is a choice thing" and I still feel that everyone should have their choice even if it puts them at a disavantage or an advantage, that is your choice. As far as flying through an open door Mike, without changeing your loft design and if cost is not a problem you could put an attena pad under each nest box of the birds entered in the race. But if catching your birds is part of the thing you like why is catching them and scanning them a problem? You just won't be yanking off the rubber. Yours in the sport. Carol

Yes Peterpau, Thats what makes the world go round ;D Thank Goodness

I still think that most of those that have posted here against ETS are selfish in that they don't feel that others should be allowed to also choose which they prefer to use.

You need a heated waiting room Linda LOL We have a little room attached to the loft with big windows, it's nice to take cover there when the weather is uncooperative. It sure is nice to have the team work you and Steve do for training and racing. I like that idea of tossing in small bunches and checking the return before tossing another batch. One of us is usually working.

Gez, We have been having temps in the low 50's degrees F. What keeps us back from training or puts a hold on it is the RAIN!!! We get lots of rainy days.

guess I missed something sbelbin, why are you giving them all away? Oh ya, are you the one with neighbor problems? Sorry, Carol

Ya Hyacinth, and it certainly is not as boreing as the argueing about "feral pigeons" that dominates the PML!...

Very Good indeed to see ya back on the forum! Take care Craig! Carol

Don't read it then! No one is forcing you to read the topics you don't care for or that offend you! Sorry, just my opinion, but isn't that what a forum is all about, sharing your opinions? We can share without being rude or hostile... Can't we? Carol

Mike, The birds simply need to walk over the sensor pad (antenna), if you took the shoot off Hyacinth's picture you would have an open door entrance with ETS and as I mentioned before the bird is only clocked in once even if it goes in and out. The sensor pad or antenna for Unikon will read through 1/4" plywood, so if your landing board/entrance is 1/4" plywood just make a slot for it to slide under and sit in. Each clock brand is probably different but the Unikon antenna is about an inch or so thick and about 6"x12" rectangle shaped. http://www.cbspigeon.com/supplies/unikon/index.html This site has USA prices and pictures and installation etc. for Unikon. No one has mentioned the ease of shipping and race reports for the race sec. using ETS. ETS takes so much work and hand paper work out of shipping and race reports; it's worth it just for that! Birds with ETS bands are simply scanned into the race and at knockoff the clock module puts all the race info into the computer without all the data entering by hand. I too remember the days of going in the loft to retrieve the rubber from the returning race birds and bang the clock and the adrenalin rush and handling the returning 500-mile day bird. But I also get the same thrill watching my returning racers drop on the landing board and rush in the loft without any hesitation. I still handle my birds after clocking, after they drink or eat and settle down but it’s a more stress free situation that I'm sure my birds can sense it. And there is no way I can see that anyone could cheat, they couldn't run home and drop in the module to clock their nominated bird in, if they did it wouldn't count if it was clocked after the knock off time set and entered by the race sec.

I don't understand why ETS is so controversial! And I don't understand why people can't make up their OWN mind. If they want to use ETS they should be able to! That does not mean that those who do not want to use have to! You can have both! I use Unikon and have for a couple years, its wonderful! TheSaddler, with Unikon you could clock birds for three clubs, but as Hyacinth said each club would have to have the Unikon club unit and software. With Unikon your race secretary has the option to limit the # of birds that will count in the race but it would be in the order they are clocked, e.g. your first three, not your choice and of course only if your club has a clocking limit rule for everyone. My Unikon has been VERY reliable, even clocking in two at exactly the same time. Open door has had no effect on clocking, the same bird can go in and out but it is only clocked in the first time. Yours in the sport. Carol

So correct me if I'm wrong Linda, but what you need is: 1)Station and mileage 2)Date of race 3)#'s of your three nominated yearlings

I heard about giving something called "Amino Fuel" made for humans. Does anyone know the doseage?

Maybe thats when it's a good idea to put the baby formula in the water.

Likewise here, we start the 21st and have been training for weeks, just short tosses, the furthest was about 20miles. But that 20 mile toss is more like 60 miles one way for me!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Speedbird! Enjoy your day!

I'm confused slugmonkey, what do you mean "majority of space facing south"?

Hi Danielle, Thanks so much for keeping us posted. So do they think it is the implant causing him to black out? And have other problems like the headaches? Modern medicine is amazing! Carol

Wow!, that is Extraordinary. I don't understand it all but anything to do with the brain is touchy I imagine. :-/ I'm glad the puncture is ok. Hope all goes well and he is back home soon. Carol

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! ENJOY YOUR DAY!

My thoughts and prayers are with you too Craig. I miss your posts. I'm sorry, maybe I missed something, but what kind of implant are you getting? I thought you were in the hospitol because you were sick from a lumber punture. Get Well Soon Carol

Keep smiling! Happy Birthday Queen!

I agree, the morning sun is nice and the birds all lay in it like taking a shower with the wing open. But where I live you also have to make sure the predominante wind does not blow all our rain in the loft and make it damp.