Pompey Mick

WE ARE STAYING UP! WE ARE STAYING UP I'm glad the match was over before the birds got home or they might not have trapped with the noise from Fratton Park

Up at 15.00 Lt SW. Last chance to liberate I would have thought. Keep our fingers crossed.

Anyone close enough to Stratford on Avon to give me a current weather report, still waiting with the Solent

To me ,North Road is Inland racing same as West road and East Road it,s just that by racing Inland from a Northerly quarter we can,on the South Coast, get up to 550mls in distance. I am afraid all the arguments are about Fanciers opinions not about the ability of pigeons to race.

Portsmouth 09.30 Bright, 50% blue sky , wind in the East, Clouds high , Vis good. Should be ok for liberation here when it gets a bit warmer. Anyone near Stratford, I'm racing with the Solent Fed there today.

Portsmouth 06.45 ,very cloudy, Lt winds, breaks appearing in the cloud from the North patchy blue visible, improving.

Hi Donal, I see you're an early riser, what part of Hampshire are you in. Welcome to the forum

Thanks for the Email Tammy, it is certainly an eye-opener. I must say your presentation knocked ours into a cocked hat. Hopefully with your help and guidance our second attempt will fare better.

It would have been far better in some ways if Channel racing had been banned for all of 2006, at least we would have known where we were going instead of having all these half progammes, hang on until June race programmes, and Old Bird only programmes. At least with the Paramyxo and Foot & Mouth crisis we knew what we had to do. At the moment we are just stumbling from one DEFRA meeting to another with the Sport pulling itself apart. I sincerely hope Channel racing returns but all this uncertainty is taking a lot of pre-season anticipation away.

Hi Shadow, we had the same problem about rules, it would seem you need a constitution with the Club's aims and plans for the future in it. Our Club rules just dealt with the running of the Club and weren't sufficient.

Thanks a lot Tammy, Email address on its way

Has anyone on the forum been involved or know of anyone who has been involved in a successful 'Awards for All' lottery grant. My Club tried two years ago but were unsuccessful and we are now in the process of re-submitting a claim. Any useful hints would be gratefully accepted.

Onthe NFC website it confirms that there has been a turnabout and the previous minutes were rescinded and they have confirmed two races from Sennen Cove on the 10th & 24th June on financial grounds. See www.nationalflyingclub.co.uk

The BBC have instigated a mixed programme for 2006 OB: Carnforth, Carlisle, Crieff, & Thurso YB: Sennen Cove For further details go to www.britishbarcelonaclub.co.uk

AS far as I am aware DEFRA is restricting racing to the British Isles ( excluding the Channel Is) until further notice I cannot see permits being given for racing from Southern Ireland for the NFC or the BICC at this present time. The latest news on the NFC website they have passed and booked a NR programme to be instigated and members notified on 15th April, failing all South Road Races. I hardly think Penzance and Southern Ireland constitute South Road racing for the UK

I've always found that the SE wind produces the worst conditions here on the South Coast, it always seems to be a 'dirty' wind with lots of pollution from the Continent producing murky conditions.

If you have responsible secretaries in your area then report any transgressors to them and they should act. I am a Club secretary and if we were in a restricted zone and I was notified that any of my members were acting in this irresponsible manner then action would be taken. However saying that, knowing what wind-up merchants we have in this sport I would probably think of an old saying of my late Father. 'Only half believe what you see and don't believe a thing you hear' Very good advice when dealing with pigeon fanciers. I have seen widowhood cocks come back from exercise looking for all the world that they have been on a training toss and Naturals also if they have gone on the mud or fielding.

Fifer, is it your Fed's decision to start on the 20th May to allow some training or is the earliest date on which you are allowed to race? Does each fed have to notify the authorities or is it done via the SHU.

My point is superstar that on one hand the government are saying that the countryside is open and people can go anywhere and then they restrict the movement of pigeons because they might land in the same fields. We desperately need a true risk assessment of the situation that relates to the facts not just pandering to a PR exercise by DEFRA. I dont want to inflame public opinion but ther are Vets out there who think this whole Avian Flu health scare is out of all proportion to the actual facts, one actually wrote in my local paper about the bird flu hype. Before we were allowed to show pigeons my Club enquired about local shows outlining our case, we were rebuffed at first but then the Vet phoned us back and said that on reflection we had a good case and told us to go for it. We did and received our permits on the day the ban was lifted. What we were told if we didn.t put any pressure on the people 'upstairs' nothing will change. WE have got to keep arguing our case because it is a good one.

It's true pigeon's can carry it by walking in infected material but then so can a vast amount of other creatures including Man. I don't see disinfectant mats at Eurostar or Gatwick or Heathrow or any other International crossing point, I don't think they spray the planes, trains and ferries before and after use. It is very convenient to leave out the species Homo Sapiens when the spread of disease is discussed, but it is an inescapable fact that Man is an animal too. If they are stopping Pigeon racing on the grounds of physical transfer of infected material then they should stop the movement of all 'Animals' including people, because people travelling from an 'infected area' can transfer infected material as easily as a pigeon. If the risk is not deemed great enough to enforce movement control of the population then there should be no restrictions on the movement of Racing Pigeons. Trouble is we are a soft target.

In these days of risk assessment or should I say' No risk 'assessment it would be inconceivable that the the Rt Hon Margeret Beckett MP, Secretary of State would over-rule any DEFRA risk Assessment unless it was in the Nation's interest. And I am afraid Pigeon Racing is not very high in her list of priorities. What we need is to promote our own Risk Assessment and present it to DEFRA and argue our case at veterinary level.

I wouldn't let my Yb's out on a race day if they were flying really strong but mine are at the madcap stage not kitted properly yet and they're not really flying very high at the moment. Where I live in Portsmouth I am in The SE corner of Portsea Island and unless there is North in the wind I don't get many racing batches passing through at a low level. I knew the Kent boys had held at Portsmouth and I would not let my YBs out if they had been stronger on the wing. I must have seen the 10.30 lib go over ,but they were very high, like a swarm of bees ,racing NE.

Birds just gone over my loft 10.33.high, definite lib ,heading NE, 90% Blue Sky. Should have a good race whoever they are. I am 2 mile east of the Portsmouth lib site. ( Glad the YBs were in the bath)

Sun 16th April 07.30 Extensive cloud but high and beginning to break, recent rain. Weather looks to be improving here in Portsmouth.

Here in Portsmouth 1.00 , total cloud cover but sun is visible behind the cloud ,Lt Easterly breeze. Did a round trip to Cheltenham this morning no Sun at all on the entire journey with patchy mist on some hills, but quite bright in places. One of those days when I am glad I don't start racing till next week.