Temperature and training

[CHARLTON34]

Been blowing a gale down this way again today had the old birds out this afternoon, didn't risk the ybs again today as it wasn't good. Tomorrow meant to be raining down here so that's probably another day gone. Just need a bit of settled weather finger's crossed.

[Anthony webster]

I'm looking for 5 tosses before first race ,there so well at moment and flying solid at speed for there whole exercise period I'm dreading knocking the edge of em Rd training most yrs first toss bit iffy 2nd average by 3rd toss there normally back doing what they should ,don't get me wrong if it was 15 to 20 degrees I give em few more but most days its 9 to 14 degrees.

[Anthony webster]

Ya I'm working opposite direction 1hr 15 min drive wrong way ,,but the south rd fed you don't need loads of chucks it's 30 miles long say 20 miles wide but 90 percent of fed are say 5 mile width so birds really bomb at ya race day

[Anthony webster]

I don't believe lots in motivation but do believe you can nick a few extra yards with a good pigeon but average pigeons motivation don't work my opinion,
Skill and ability is everything if I see something bad happening and a member of family was involved not matter how motivated I was I couldn't beat bolt over 100 meters so two me motivation is just something I don't believe in .

[Anthony webster]

Definitely Mike I say thus because alot of pigeons are average I had a hen ,,double top ,, she was called unless u upset her she be middle of team home but u couldn't up set her every week but when u did she come 2 times she flew away from fed once by 33ypm from 62 miles once from again 33ypm 198 miles
Iv tried same trick on average birds n nothing my dad had a cock inland useless but on channel my dad would give him bowl Thursday morning n then a dummy egg if he took egg n sat it he was coming no hen shown just a egg but seen him be 50 mins in front of local birds from channel.

[Anthony webster]

I don't believe lots in motivation but do believe you can nick a few extra yards with a good pigeon but average pigeons motivation don't work my opinion,
Skill and ability is everything if I see something bad happening and a member of family was involved not matter how motivated I was I couldn't beat bolt over 100 meters so two me motivation is just something I don't believe in .

My cocks were always better lifted or bowls no hens so I stopped showing hens on a Friday last few years
Yet others always prefer showing Friday

I use to show but not any more if I do now its either 2 hours or 20 secs lol

[Diamond Dave]

Broadly speaking Ant I think you're right.
In every sheet up and down the UK there's guys who regularly fight it out at the top, and guys who regularly feature at the bottom end. No amount of "motivation" to those birds who are consistently at the bottom is going to turn them into world beaters because there's bigger issues coming into play

I do think though that at the sharp end a little motivation can sometimes go a long way

If anyone's interested here's 2 things that I used to do with my cocks


1. The Banks's 5 Bird Classic was an important race for me. It was a 5 bird limit so it features the Best of the Best from the Best. So that always perked my pecker up a bit. Add to that you could win over £1,000 in it and the attraction was obvious.
My cocks always raced the week before the Classic. Every time I raced the Classic, the week before the Classic the cocks always came home to no hen. She wasn't there. I never had any intention of the cock seeing his hen that week. My message to him was clear. Get home faster and you'll see her. Very often the cocks had actually won that week before the Classic - they still got no hen. I found that give them a little added "drive" come Classic day and it's a race that we won and lifted £1,000 + on I don't know how many occasions


2. Imagine a set of boxes 3 across by 3 down. So the middle box (box 5) was closed all season. Sometimes, (not every week) on a Friday I'd open up Box 5 and it was free for another cock to take that box. I didn't care what cock took the box, the point was no matter what cock took the box there was an immediate threat to other cocks by him moving into that box. That made them a bit more territorial and that's never a bad thing. When "The Assassin" was 2nd Section in the MNFC (for example) he'd taken over Box 5 a couple of hours before going into the basket.

Great tips Mike thanks for them. Can I ask did you show the hens on basketing on the night of the classic or would that have defeated the object or perhaps add additional motivation?

[Anthony webster]

I'm same Neil,,now my system is basically structured on routine, fitness, health ,n precise feeding,,I don't race widowhood or roundabout or natural its just my own way
Pigeons that do well stay Pigeons that don't are removed top Pigeons at 3 or 4 are moved to stock loft ,,

[Anthony webster]

Mike with running dogs ,pigeons every mistake iv made I'm one of them iv had to learn the hard way ,but one thing I'm very gifted with is stock sence n fast eyes I can spot a lame dog in a picture from 100 yds n can pick a idiot bird out pretty quick in team and sence something up in loft with in seconds

[Diamond Dave]

Mike with running dogs ,pigeons every mistake iv made I'm one of them iv had to learn the hard way ,but one thing I'm very gifted with is stock sence n fast eyes I can spot a lame dog in a picture from 100 yds n can pick a idiot bird out pretty quick in team and sence something up in loft with in seconds

I'd say thats a "gift" Ant. Surely that can only be bought about by experience and experience comes about thro seeing it and doing it - doing wrong and doing it again until you get it right.
You guys ain't serial winners for nothing!!!