Cameron Leslie catches up with with Clive Delamore - secretary of the Whangarei Racing Pigeon Club - on the finer art of a sport that has been around for centuries, some say it was popular as early as 220AD.
How does pigeon racing work? My understanding is the birds race
from one point to another, how do they know where to go?
The birds are taken to the race release point via vehicle or plane. Once they are released, they then fly back to their individual lofts. When they arrive at their own loft, they are electronically timed from the band on their leg. The bird with the fastest air speed over the distance to their individual loft is the winner. As for knowing where to fly to, there is still great debate by all as to how they do it. It is known that they have very good eyesight over long distances, and it is accepted that they are able to use magnetic information to guide them back home.
Are the pigeons specially trained?
Yes, the pigeons are trained from a young age to return to their loft and get to know their surroundings. This starts at about 5km from home and steadily increases out to around 50km. Also the birds need to be fit and healthy before going into racing. They can comfortably race up to 1000km. To achieve this feat, they need to be treated like an athlete, and fed, trained and looked after with good care and precision.
