NFC Young Bird race

[Tony C]

In the interest of future birdage and the seemingly unfairness of racepoints why cant the NFC just race for section wins, no overall winner? or is this the way its done anyway?

 

 

When replying to this post please take into consideration that I have no idea of the Sth Rd racing scene  ;D ;D just an outsider looking in. :B

[ribble]

In the interest of future birdage and the seemingly unfairness of racepoints why cant the NFC just race for section wins, no overall winner? or is this the way its done anyway?

 

 

When replying to this post please take into consideration that I have no idea of the Sth Rd racing scene  ;D ;D just an outsider looking in. :B

 

i only look to do well in the section,anything else is a bonus.wind decides the open result.

[Tony C]

 

i only look to do well in the section,anything else is a bonus.wind decides the open result.

 

Thought this would strengthen my argument if the wind is a major contributor to the overall winner. By having an open result it could deflect some good/great performances put up in other sections.

 

[mickmcgrevy]

Tony,   what you say about weather conditions is true, it can and does effect the result, and lets not forget about the drag, which in my opinion is just as big an influence if not more.

 

This is the reason why the prize money for winning the open is only a small percentage of the overall prize fund, the majority of the fund being spread out over the sections.

 

I would like to see a situation where all the section winners and 2nd and 3rd get the same prize money, and then if one section sends more than another, show this by paying out smaller prizes (pro rata to sec birdage) of equal value untill the extra money raised by each section is payed out.

 

With regard to exceptional performances being put up by birds which did not win the open not being recognised, I think that fanciers who fly in national and classic races will see these performances and realise their worth.

 

All the best

 

Mick    

[Tony C]

Mick I think it would helpful if a small map of the Uk showing sections be put on published results of national and classic races. Would help those like myself recognise good creditable performances being put up against the wind & drag.

[ribble]

tony,hope this link works.theNFC sections.

http://www.nationalflyingclub.co.uk/Forms/HandBook2005.rtf

[Tony C]

Yep got it.

 

Thanks

[David Swain]

Don't think it was an east wind which caused problems at the Sennen Cove old bird national, more likely a strong southerly combined with liberation of Irish national birds at Bude on the north coast of Cornwall the same day. We had one three-year-old cock reported in Ireland the same night. Still think Sennen Cove would have been a much better bet given the west/south west/ north west predomininance of the wind at the moment. If it suddenly turned strong east/south east and there were concerns of a repeat of the old bird race, what's wrong with holding them ?

[ribble]

could you imagine the stick the nfc would then get if they held them because of the wind direction.people in sec L would then feel very hard done by.

they really are in a no win situation.

[Pompey Mick]

I have just checked out the Chale distances on the NFC website and out of 225 members in Sec B  222 fly 40mls or less, and the vast majority of them fly less than 30mls, Sec A fares better, out of 180 members 88 fly 40mls or less.

This is a combined total of 310 members flying 40mls or less from Chale compared with 40 members of Sec D who fly 40mls or less from Sennen Cove.

I know that the NFC is in a no-win situation whichever racepoint it picks but they have upset an awful lot more NFC members by choosing Chale.

[mickmcgrevy]

Hi all,  Ribble is right, the NFC is in a totally no win situation, and I think that if they had gone to Sennon Cove the vast Majority og members would not have sent.

 

If you talk to fanciers who have been in the game for years, there have been some real horror stories with regard to Penzance as it was in the past, reffering to it as the pigeons graveyard   , Im afraid the members who are not in favour of Chale, for whatever reason, will just have to keep there birds at home.

 

I have to say if I was only 40 miles from the race point I would not send, but I would accept that there was nothing that could be done about it.

 

All the best

 

Mick  

[richard]

Not just keep their birds at home Mick, but keep their money at home next year as well! I do not even think their will be an NFC clock station on the Island next year if what I hear is true!   > :( >

[Guest]

I must admit I had 10 out of 10 from the NFC Sennon Cove race this year and in just over an hour too. But from what I heard from friends I was a very lucky boy. I personally have decided this was my last year racing inland because nearly all my missing birds from this season have been reported dead in the west country hawked. Including two lovely hens I have clocked from pau on more than one occassion, which I only sent to the BICC yelverton race for a wingstretcher. Sennon Cove would have been a disaster if the peregrines had got amongst the not so experienced youngsters. Once youngbirds are frightened by hawks they will just get on any old line and keep going. Admittedly I will only be about 52 miles from chale so I will not send, but on the other hand wouldn't send my youngsters to Sennon Cove either as I like others want them for the future. I am not sure what The NFC could have done to please everybody to be honest. Just my opinion.

[mickmcgrevy]

Richard, if you mean bye what you here, is that there will be restrictions imposed by DEFRA again, limiting the distance that we can go into France, I think you can nearly guarentee it, but don,t blame the NFC for it.

 

Difficult descisions will have to be made again, and members will have to do what they feel is right for themselves.

 

I hope we have agood race for those who compete.

 

All the best

 

Mick

[Mike Lycett]

I think we're all pretty kn8ckered for long distance racing into France in future

 

[Guest]

Mick

 

Just to clarify the point you make about Sennen Cove it is a sad FACT that the vast majority of NFC members choose not to send to ANY of the NFC's races. It surely has the most disaffected membership of ALL national and specialist clubs and a whole catalogue of clangers (nothing to do with AI or F&M) over the past 6 years have generated this situation.

 

A club which pays just £15 to its open winners will lose more members than it will ever attract.

A club which liberates pigeons from Saintes at 17:30pm, having inexplicably brought them back from Pau on only the Sunday, generating farcical race conditions, will lose more members than it will ever attract.

A club which thinks it can ramp up its annual membership fee to £30 will lose more members than it will ever attract.

A club which changes its entry fee on the morning of the Sennen Cove OB race this year will lose more members than it will ever attract.

A club which can lose £5000+ in a single presentation evening will lose more members than it will ever attract.

 

The club is on the edge of a cliff right now ... one slight breeze and it'll be over it.

 

[richard]

All good points Lovedean Lad

The BBC pays section prize money down to 25th position and considerably more than the NFC for Section and Open winners and the birdage is generally less than 2/3 of the price of the NFC birdage i.e Bordeaux BBC £3.50 Bordeaux NFC £6.00 + 10p per bird marking fee. I may be missing something here but do these figures stack up?

Cheers

Richard

[mickmcgrevy]

LovedeanLad....Richard.. you both seem to have your fingers on the pulse, and quiet a few opinions which I agree with, I presume that you are both NFC members, if so perhaps you would like to go on the committee and give the club the benefit of your expertease in these difficult times.

 

Its a sad fact that the majority of members in clubs don't compete.

Prize money is not guaranteed, and is paid mainly to the sections,and if the members don't send prize money will be low.

Saintes farce, I can't argue with you on that.

£30 membership was proposed by a member.

change entry fee, yes agree again.

loss on presentation night, mistakes happen   contract small print.

We certainly could do with someone who seems to think they know it all, it is allways easy to stand back and critisise, the difficult part is to get in there and try to sort it out,yes mistakes have been made, but you show me a club which hasn't made any.

 

You don't seem to understand that the NFC is not like other clubs, and because of the area it covers it takes a good deal more money run.

 

At the end of the day, you either want to compete with all the country or you don't, if you don't then thats your choice but don't keep knocking. It would be far better if you could be constructive and try to make things better for all.  

 

Mick  

[Lowfieldlad]

Spot on Mick well put.

[Roland]

Well Mick and Lowfieldlad can't argue with your last posts, spot on... Just like when you have weakened sections and hardly any one to race against in a 'Tokem National# that will be regarded as a joke and of little synifcience.

If membership keeps falling and cost raised to implement them them one obviously will have to pay a lot more again to off sett the lost funds, resulting in even more leaving and funds raising again, all to fly against  few and few fanciers.

Me I'd rather be 50th in a proper National and 20th in the section against many and good flyers that 1st Section and 5th National with no one except ego trippers to fly against. For it will have lost any credabilty and true Flyers will have left... leaving just those happy to fly against.... Now that is a fact.

So instad of say 'You Don't if you don't want to' I believe it would - and is - better to knock, critasise now and hopefully save  a decline and put it back on the map . why even I might rejoin a couple of years down the line. For this is as of now my last season with them, the costs save will be better spent on the birds.

[SHAUN]

when i send to the national i don,t think about how much money i could get if i where to win, i send because i enjoy racing with the top fanciers in the country. and to get the birds home from a national race is a real buzz for me          

[Guest]

Shaun

I agree with you 99.9% ... whether it's an egg-and-spoon club race or a full National you can't put a price on the feeling you get from winning. However, when spending £6.10/pigeon as NFC members were asked for the recent Bordeaux race you'd perhaps be entitled to think that the winner might get a little more than £16.76 for beating 2809 pigeons?

 

[ribble]

if you want to win money in the NFC pool them as MR S O'BRIEN (reading) did at bordeaux. +/-£4000,with one entry.class flying.

i dont think open prize money should be given,when as we have already discussed the wind dictates the open winner.

id class reading as being south,so i don't think for one miute that all southerly members would stop sending.not when you could do an S O'BRIEN.

[richard]

Mick I don't understand why the NFC is not like other clubs, surely the BBC is also open to the whole country as well.In fact the BBC also covers the Channel Islands and Ireland.

Perhaps you could clarify this for me.

I am only critical because this once great club is going to the dogs and the members are being asked to pay more and more birdage to support less and less interest.

Cheers

Richard

[mickmcgrevy]

Richard, the BBC is different in as much as it marking costs are a fraction of the NFC, it only has one marking station, if I send to the BBC it is a days job for me in traveling, with more than a few hours driving. the NFC picks them up at Sheffield, and all points south, thats the diffence