Racing Homer Pigeons
Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing specially trained racing pigeons, which then return to their homes over a carefully measured distance. The time it takes the 
animal to cover the specified distance is measured and the bird’s rate of travel is calculated and compared with all of the other pigeons in the race to determine which animal returned at the highest speed.
Pigeon racing requires a specific breed of pigeon bred for the sport, the Racing Homer. Competing pigeons are specially trained and conditioned for races that vary in distance from approximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) to 1,000 kilometres (620 mi). Despite these lengths, races can be won and lost by seconds, so many different timing and measuring devices have been developed. The traditional timing method involves rubber rings being placed into a specially designed clock, whereas a newer development uses RFID tags to record arrival time.
While there is no definite proof, there are compelling reasons to think the sport of racing pigeons may go back at least as far as 220 AD. The sport achieved a great deal of popularity in Belgium in the mid-19th century. The pigeon fanciers of Belgium were so taken with the hobby that they began to develop pigeons specially cultivated for fast flight and long endurance called Voyageurs. From Belgium the modern version of the sport and the Voyageurs which the Flemish fanciers developed spread to most parts of the world. Once quite popular, the sport has experienced a downturn in participants in some parts of the world in recent years, possibly due to the rising cost of living, ageing fanciers, and a severe lack of public interest. Hypersensitivity pneumonitis is also a reason why some people are leaving the sport.
One recent development in the sport of pigeon racing is “one loft racing”, where birds are raced against each other under the same training regime, from the same location.The principle being to find the best individual race bird irrespective of the race trainer. This will determine which bird is then the most successful.
History of racing Homer Pigeons
Pigeons are the oldest domesticated bird. The predecessors of modern-day racing pigeons were pigeons bred for their homing ability, primarily to carry messages. “Pigeon posts” have been established all over the world and while mainly used in the military, some are still in service today. Modern pigeon racing originated in Belgium in the mid 19th century.
The sport was aided by several new technologies of the era. The advent of the railroad permitted pigeons to be sent to distant release points quickly and at modest cost. In addition the creation of mass-produced, sophisticated timing clocks brought accurate and secure timing to the sport. These clocks were designed with special compartments where an entry band, removed from the returning race bird was placed. When struck, the clock recorded the time and also placed the band in a compartment that could only be opened by race officials.
The importance of homing pigeons in the centuries before electronic communications, such as the telegraph and telephone, is seldom recognized. However the Reuters News Agency, the world’s largest information provider, began as a pigeon service carrying closing stock prices between Belgium and Germany, basically between the western and eastern terminus of the telegraph in Europe. Also the use of homing pigeons by financier Nathan Rothschild to gain advance news of Napoleon’s unexpected defeat at Waterloo is thought to have led to a fortune being made in the bond market of the day.
Racing
Pigeon racing has been described as a “sport with a single starting gate and a thousand finish lines.” In short, competing birds are taken from their lofts and must 
race home. The time taken and distance are recorded and the fastest bird is declared the winner. Races are generally between 100 kilometres (62 mi) and 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) in distance. In the United States flights of up to 1,800 kilometres (1,100 mi) have been recorded.
Provided it survives the many hazards associated with racing, a single pigeon could compete from about six months of age and still be in competition at over ten years of age. Such feats are uncommon, however, and the average racing career rarely exceeds three years. Hazards can also come from weather conditions on the day of the race. Pigeons can become grounded and disoriented, and therefore not finish the race. In one instance in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1941, a family found a pigeon on their property. Since the bird was sporting an identifying leg band, the Wisconsin Conservation Commission was called, who identified the owner as a man from Green Bay.
In the early days of racing, paint was used to identify birds for owners. Belgium then developed a 1/8 inch brass leg band, that was sent to racers in America to use. Since then, to compete in a race, it must wear a permanent, unique numbered ring or band that is placed on its leg at about five days old. For a race to be conducted, the competing pigeons must be entered into the race, usually at the organisation’s clubhouse, and taken away from their home to be released at a predetermined time and location. The distance between the bird’s home loft and the racepoint is carefully measured by GPS and the time taken by the bird to return is measured using one of the two acceptable timing methods. Sometimes in some leagues there are two divisions: one for the young birds (usually yearlings in their first year of competition) and another for older birds.
Traditional timing method
The traditional method of timing racing pigeons involves rubber rings with unique identification numbers and a specially designed pigeon racing clock. The ring is attached around the bird’s leg before being sent to race. The serial number is 
recorded, the clock is set and sealed, and the bird carries the ring home. When the first bird returns, its trainer removes the ring and places it in a slot in the clock. The time that the ring was placed in the clock is recorded as the official time that the competing bird arrived home. From this timestamp an average speed is measured and a winner of the race can be found.
Although serving its purpose, this method has proved somewhat problematic for a few reasons:
- The pigeon’s “official time” is not the actual time it arrived, it is the time the ring was removed, placed in the clock and recorded, which could be many vital seconds later.
- Exceptional pigeons may arrive home first on multiple occasions; knowing it is going to have the ring removed speedily, which may be uncomfortable, the pigeon could be reluctant to enter the loft for the trainer.
Electronic timing method
The latest development and preferred method for timing racing pigeons is the Electronic Timing System. The bird’s arrival is recorded automatically. When using an electronic system, the pigeon fancier does not even have to be at the loft to 
clock the birds as they return. Birds are fitted with a band that has a tiny RFID chip in it which can be read when the bird comes home. At the home loft the electronic scanning records the pigeons arrival. The pad or antenna is placed at the entry point to the loft entrance and as the pigeon crosses it the electronic band is scanned. The clock is attached to the antennas. The serial number of the transponder ring is recorded along with the time of arrival. This is very similar to transponder timing systems used in human races.
In February 2008 the members of the Penygraog Homing Society Racing Pigeon Club in Wales won an award to fund a new electronic timing device. The club was able to obtain the device thanks to funding from the All Wales award initiative. Club secretary John Williams said: “The electronic timer certainly makes it a lot easier for us”.
With the advent of electronic timing system recording birds’ arrival has never been easier. The ETS technology is developing year on year and it is taking over pigeon world, changing it and making it fit for today’s conditions. As a result of this new way of registering a bird’s arrival, several loft management software have been created in the last 10 years to help fanciers with record keeping, pigeon pedigree, publishing race results or keep track of treatment and vaccination records.
One-loft racing
One-loft racing originated from local futurity races. Futurity races are when the bird’s race home from the racing station to their homes. The difference between regular racing and futurity races is futurity races has prize money involved. Usually, 
the prize is used for a bragging right more so than to win the money. The process of racing could be a bit complicated as handlers of their racing pigeons compete with one another. Some handlers could be better than some when it comes down to racing. Therefore, one-loft racing was created. One-loft racing is the process of training birds bred by many different breeders in the same loft, under the same trainer and in the same conditions (as opposed to trainer against trainer in their own lofts and usually with their own birds). It is thought to be the fairest method of proving which bloodline or breeder is best and usually provides the highest amount of prize money. Pigeons are recorded by electronic timing systems scanning the birds as they enter the home loft with winners decided by as little as 100th of a second. The birds are all taken to the same release point and they return to the same home loft, so therefore it is the fastest bird to complete the journey from A to B. One-loft racing is now becoming very popular all around the world with fanciers able to compare their bloodlines on an equal basis against the best breeders.
Training
Racing pigeons are housed together in a specially designed dovecote or loft. From about four weeks of age until the end of its racing career, the racing loft is the 
pigeon’s home and is where it returns to on race day.
After 22 to 28 days in the nest (depending on the owners preference) the young birds are removed and placed in a section of a large loft or in a smaller loft built for the purpose. After a few days of learning how to locate the water and eating by themselves they are allowed to wander out of the loft and peck around in the garden, while doing this they are constantly observing their surroundings and becoming familiar with them. At about age six to seven weeks the birds will begin taking off, flying in very small circles around their loft and owners house. As their confidence grows they gradually wander farther and farther from home until they are out of sight and can remain so for as much as two hours before returning. When a few trainers fly their pigeons in the same area, these flying “batches” (as flocks of pigeons are called) can number in the thousands. It does not, however, help them much in relation to finding their home from long distances away, a fundamental of pigeon racing. As confident flyers, the young pigeons are taken on progressively longer ‘training tosses’, driven a distance away from their home and released. This method of training is a way to condition the birds mentally and physically to prepare them for the races. This practice of loft flying and tossing continues throughout a pigeon’s career to keep their homing instincts sharp.
There are many ways to train racing pigeons. Similar to the saying as there are many roads to success. Some think that their training is better than others, some imitate the trainers that do well and their results reflect on race days. They do this by becoming mentored by them. Some stay ignorant and find every excuse to be the mean one out of the bunch. Like every sport out there, racing pigeons to is an evolving sport. One of the most popular systems is widowhood. This system uses the birds desire to reproduce as motivation to try to give the bird a sense of urgency on race day. The use of widowhood is usually begun by first allowing the racer to raise a baby in their nest box. After the baby is weaned the hen is removed and often the nestbox is closed off, from then on the only time these birds are allowed to see their mate or enter the nest box is upon returning from training or a race. This conditioning is one of the key elements in a lot of racing programs.
Due to advancements in technology researchers have been able to use small Global Positioning Systems to track the flight paths that their birds follow. Small GPS systems have recently begun to hit the consumer market. Companies like PigeonTrack and GEM Supplements currently sell GPS units for novice to advanced race trainers to use to gather data.
Hazards for Racing Homer Pigeons
As pigeon racing takes place over great distances in the sky, instead of on a racetrack, there are many hazards that could befall a pigeon during racing as well as training. 
The main hazard encountered by racing pigeons is predation by birds of prey. The killing of valuable pigeons by wild predators has led to some pigeon fanciers being suspected of killing birds of prey such as falcons.
Another hazard that racing pigeons encounter is flying into objects they sometimes cannot see, mostly when flying at high speeds or in darker weather conditions. The most common obstructions are electricity pylons or TV aerials. Pigeon fanciers will often have one of their pigeons return home with wounds or missing feathers from the belly or flanks region.
It is thought that racing pigeons rely on the Earth’s magnetic field to find their way home. Some evidence has surfaced indicating that mobile phone towers may be interrupting the birds’ navigation, although no published research has investigated this theory.
Breeding
Pigeons are sexually mature at about six months of age. However, fanciers will often wait until the pigeon is at least a few months older before breeding. The first egg is 
laid and not incubated until the clutch is complete, with eggs being laid every other day. A hen bird will usually only lay two eggs in a clutch. The incubation period is 17 days. Pigeon breeders are careful in selecting birds to pair together so as to continue improving the breed and gain a competitive edge. It is this selective breeding that has given rise to the racing pigeons of today, capable of finding their way home from over 1,600 kilometres (990 mi) away and flying at speeds in excess of 130 kilometres per hour (81 mph) with a tail wind but average 60 kilometres per hour (37 mph) on a calm day.[citation needed] Hens are often capable of laying upwards of 12 eggs per year, and squabs usually leave the nest at approximately three to four weeks of age.
Doping
Doping in pigeon racing is the practice of giving performance-enhancing drugs to avian racers. The drugs are used to produce similar effects to those found in human athletes, building up muscle tissue and opening the respiratory tracts. In addition, contortionists can be used to delay moulting, allowing a bird to race late into a season.
In October 2013, blood samples from twenty Belgian pigeons were sent by the Pigeon Fanciers Association to South Africa for testing. This was the result of an exchange visit by the association to the National Horseracing Authority of Southern Africa. While tests in Belgium had not found traces of any drugs the South African laboratory discovered that six samples contained unusual substances. Five samples were found to include traces of acetaminophen (paracetamol), a widely used over-the-counter analgesic (pain reliever) and antipyretic (fever reducer). The sixth sample was erroneously reported in the press as having shown indications of cocaine use, but the lab reported that it was indications of caffeineusage. As the samples were sent anonymously no action could be taken against the owners of any of the birds.
In 2001 a series of raids across 80 homes led to the confiscation of large quantities of illegal performance-enhancers. Currently, all race winners are tested and over 100 samples were collected and tested in 2013.
In 1995 the Belgian Ministry of Health mandated drug testing in order to protect the welfare of the birds. The sport’s governing body was looking at the possibility of implementing new anti-doping rules for the sport prior to the commencement of the 2014 season.
Racing Homing Pigeon by Region
The Americas : United States
The sport was introduced into the United States about 1875, although regular racing 
did not begin until 1878. The sport of pigeon racing is well established in the US, and growing. According to the American Racing Pigeon Union, one of two large accrediting groups, there are 15,000 registered lofts in the U.S.
The sport was banned beginning January 1, 2004 in Chicago, but there have been a number of attempts to amend the ban since then (by making exemptions to the ban for members of a national professional organization). Ald. Gilbert Villegas of the 36th ward introduced the newest legislation June of 2018, on behalf of the Polish constituents in his ward, saying the sport is deeply loved in Poland and a number of residents want to bring the sport back to Chicago.
Pigeon racing was particularly popular throughout the twentieth century in the New York City area, particularly in Brooklyn/Coney Island and in Hoboken New Jersey, where it still has devotees. Shady Hills, Florida is home to a pigeon racing club and hosts an annual racing event.
Canada
The sport of pigeon racing has increased in Canada with Pigeon Clubs and Ladies 
Auxiliary popping up in cities and towns. The CRPU, the Canadian Racing Pigeon Union, is an organisation that is dedicated to the growth, preservation and support of pigeon racing in Canada.
The Canadian Pigeon International magazine is a monthly publication dedicated to the sport of pigeon racing
Brazil
The “Brazilian Pigeon Racing Grandprix” is the biggest pigeon race in South America. 
The Sergipe’s Pigeon Racing Association and the government from Aracaju organise this event.
Asia
Pigeon racing is becoming increasingly popular in parts of Asia, especially India, China, Pakistan, Iran, Philippines, Japan, Taiwan and Bangladesh. In Bangladesh there are 
three pigeon racing associations which look after the sport and organise many races. There are thousands of registered pigeon fanciers in Bangladesh and more people are getting involved in this sport. The heart of the sport in India is Chennai, the capital city of the state of Tamil Nadu. The sport in India has come a long way under A.B.Baldrey Pioneer in Indian pigeon racing, widely known as the father of Pigeon Racing in India.