Table of Contents
“NINTH INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE”.
ON
TRAINING RACES 13 & 14.
IN
THE 21st SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE
(THE BIGGEST & GREATEST PIGEON RACE IN THE WORLD!)
(THE RACE WITH THE PROVEN TRACK RECORD)
(THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN THE PIGEON WORLD)
DUE TO BE HELD AT
HERON BANKS GOLF & RIVER ESTATE,
SOUTH AFRICA
ON
SATURDAY 4th FEBRUARY 2017.
ANOTHER RACE SEASON STARTS IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN SUNSHINE.
LIVESTREAM was once again up and running after one day delay and I logged on bright and early at 05.30 GMT (07.30 SA) time, the weather was very overcast and heavy clouds and very little wind at the loft and on route. The pigeons were liberated at 06.45 cleared well and headed for home. I really did not have to wait that long as at 06.10 GMT (08.10 SA) because all of a sudden I saw a gang of about 50 pigeons swing round the loft and hit the landing area, smartly followed by another gang of about 50 pigeons, followed a short gap then three more big gangs of over 100 pigeons. The result came up on the iPad screen and I saw that 1st OPEN went to a fancier in GERMANY. Within four minutes of the winner being clocked over 400 pigeons had been officially recorded. As the pigeons arrived and hit the landing platform they looked in super condition after this tough fly. If you have never logged on to watch the pigeons arrive, I strongly suggest you give it a try, you will just love the experience. https://youtu.be/sSZHnFe5vLQ TRAINING RACE 13 was held on Saturday 14th January 2017 from 114km (71 miles) and for this race a total of 2,762 pigeons from 35 different countries were basketed and this included 2,559 International pigeons and 203 pigeons from South Africa and this figure also included 217 from the United Kingdom and 34 pigeons from Ireland. There were also 18 pigeons that were not basketed because they were left in the Hold Back section because they had made earlier mistakes and were not fit to be entered, this total included 2 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland. So the total in the loft was 2,780 pigeons. The convoy were liberated at 06.45 in fine and cool conditions with very little wind on route and a temperature of 17c (62f). The convoyer reported the pigeons cleared well and headed directly for home. A good race was anticipated. As the day progressed the temperature would steadily rise but rain was anticipated to arrive later in the day. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st OPEN goes to the KLAUS STIENEKER from GERMANY with pigeon named WATERFRONT bred by KLAUS STIENEKER, which was officially clocked at 08.10.29.45 to record a winning velocity of 1,453ypm (22.2246 m/s) (49 mph), this pigeon also won 7th OPEN in TR2, 49th OPEN in TR3, 4th OPEN in TR8, 62nd OPEN in TR9, 213th OPEN in TR11, 137th in OPEN in TR13 and now 1st OPEN in TR13. 2nd Bader Team Besseling from Netherlands, 3rd Werner A Waldow + Silvia Thiel from Germany, 4th Ganus Family Loft from United States Of America, 5th Me Fui + Gallo Loft from United States Of America with the pigeon that won 1st OPEN in HSCR3 and the new motor car and is also holding 1st USA and 1st OPEN in the HSCR Averages after 4 races, 6th Rudolf Struzyna from Germany, 7th Rolf Berger from Germany, 8th Jack Olsen Loft from United States Of America, 9th Jan Hooymans – Hu Zhen Yu from Netherlands, 10th Abdullah Bohaimed from Kuwait, 11th Michael Repapis from South Africa, 12th Leekens-Bosmans-Ogasawara from Belgium, 13th Herbots – Kader from Belgium, 14th Mels Loft from United States Of America, 15th another for Jan Hooymans – Hu Zhen Yu from Netherlands, 16th Campus RPF from Belgium with the same pigeon that won 1st OPEN in HSCR4 and the new motor car, 17th Van Kerckhove – Vercauteren from Belgium with their good pigeon that has already won 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 11th, 47th, 72nd and now 17th OPEN, 18th Team Bergen from Norway, 19th DMM from Germany and 20th Saad R Alabhoul from Kuwait. The top twenty were separated by 26.64 seconds and had 6 different countries represented in this result with 12 different countries represented in the top 50 and these were 59.95 seconds apart. A total of 1,000 pigeons were officially clocked up to 08.17, then 2,000 up to 08.22, then 2,500 up to 08.33, then 2,650 by 09.05. The last loft list showed that 2,739 pigeons had been officially recorded by 17.00, leaving just 33 pigeons to make it back to base camp. The Monday loft list showed 2,825 pigeons were still in the lofts and this include 225 from the United Kingdom and 34 from Ireland. THE OVERALL AVERAGES after 17 official races now stand as follows:- 1st OPEN goes to JOSEF SCHNEIDER from GERMANY with pigeon named GEORGIE bred by JOSEF SCHNEIDER, actual flying time 30.02.33.39 with 2,065th TR1, 332nd TR2, 2,136th TR3, 595th TR4, 1,161st TR5, 162nd TR6, 97th HSCR1, 850th TR7, 472nd HSCR2, 33rd TR8, 964th TR9, 241st TR10, 181st HSCR3, 32nd TR11, 338th OPEN HSCR4, 383rd TR12 and now 64th TR13. 2nd Open goes to Jan Hooymans – Hu Zhen Yu from Netherlands with pigeon WASSERT, only 18 seconds off the 1st OPEN position and 3rd Open goes to Ado Family Loft from United States Of America with pigeon named ALMA. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 7th OPEN goes to THE ROYAL LOFTS (HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN), with pigeon named ROYAL NORFOLK bred by PETER FARROW (LOFT MANAGER) from WOLVERTON, actual flying time 30.34.03.60 with 55th TR1, 82nd TR2, 151st TR3, 1,313th TR4, 3,041st TR5, 678th TR6, 1,812th HSCR1, 1,155th TR7, 28th HSCR2, 1,152nd TR8, 936th TR9, 2,429th TR10, 152nd HSCR3, 1,646th TR11, 11th HSCR4, 260th TR12 and now 112th TR13. 2nd UNITED KINGDOM, 8th Open goes to Manchester Maestros with pigeon named Lady Lois 2 bred by John Crehan from Manchester. 3rd UNITED KINGDOM, 40th Open goes to Zandys Dream Team, with pigeon named Zandys Venture, bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet. 1st IRELAND, 511th OPEN goes to JOHNSON – LEONARD & SONS, with pigeon named HOLLY J bred by PAUL JOHNSTON with a combined flying time of 23.14.06.40 with 2,470th TR1, 3,032nd TR2, 1,491st TR3, 3,004th TR4, 2,587th TR5, 1,515th TR6, 1,367th HSCR1, 2,750th TR7, 1,975th HSCR2, 2,865th TR8, 2,446th TR9, 2,725th TR10, 1,991st HSCR3, 2,498th TR11, 508th HSCR4, 2,428th TR12 and now 2,554th TR13. 2nd IRELAND, 752nd Open goes to Joe Kennedy & Son with pigeon named Eddie C and 3rd IRELAND, 770th Open goes to Robbie Daly with pigeon named Big Bird. THE UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY AVERAGES after 17 races are as follows: 1st UNITED KINGDOM, MANCHESTER MAESTROS with pigeon named LADY LOIS 2 bred by JOHN CREHAN from MANCHESTER, with a combined flying time of 30.40.53.05, 2nd UNITED KINGDOM, ZANDYS DREAM TEAM, administered by bred by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET and with pigeon named ZANDYS VENTURE bred by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with a combined flying time of 31.29.19.14, 3rd UNITED KINGDOM, MILLYS LOFT with pigeon named DUNDEES BACK bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE with a combined flying time of 31.58.00.65. THE IRISH COUNTRY CHALLENGE AVERAGES after 17 races are as follows:- 1st IRELAND, PHILIP & MARK SMITH with their pigeon named ELIZ with a combined flying time of 41.26.54.80. This partnership are also 2nd with pigeon named Jamie Hayden. These are the only 2 pigeons that have completed 17 races. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 22nd OPEN went to ESTUARY SYNDICATE with pigeon named SANTA 1 which was bred by PIETER OBERHOLSTER from KEYSOE, which was officially clocked at 08.10.58.15 just 28.70 seconds away from the actual race winner. 2nd UK, 24th Open J & J Syndicate with pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son from Belfast, 3rd UK, 62nd Open Tim Atkin from Rugby, 4th UK, 92nd Open Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from Fontwell and Windsor, 5th UK, 93rd Open Zandys Dream Team with pigeon bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet, this pigeon is bred from their good pigeon named Lucky Countess, 6th UK, 96th Open Mike Chadwick from Sheffield, 7th UK, 111th Open Guys Lofts with pigeon bred by Graham Guy from Wolverhampton, 8th UK, 112th Open The Royal Lofts (Her Majesty The Queen), with pigeon named Royal Norfolk that was bred by Peter Farrow (Loft Manager) from Wolverton, this pigeon has flown very well so far and won 55th TR1, 82nd TR2, 151st TR3, 28th HSCR2, 152nd HSCR3, 11th HSCR4, 260th TR12 and now 112th TR13 and is now holding onto 1st UK, 6th OPEN in the OVERALL AVERAGES and 1st UK, 6th OPEN in the HOT SPOT CAR AVERAGES after 4 races, great to see Her Majesty The Queen with a pigeon flying exceptionally well, 9th UK, 113th Open Lloyd & Kelly from Didcot, 10th UK, 150th Open another for Zandys Dream Team with a second pigeon bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet, 11th UK, 190th Open Mr & Mrs B. Clayburn from Ackworth, 12th UK, 195th Open another for Guys Lofts with a second pigeon bred by Graham Guy from Wolverhampton, 13th UK, 205th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 14th UK, 231st Open R Bartley & W Gardner from Lancaster, 15th UK, 235th Open another for Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from Fontwell and Windsor, 16th UK, 244th Open a third one for Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from Fontwell and Windsor, 17th UK, 258th Open a third one for Zandys Dream Team with another pigeon bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet, 18th UK, 259th Open Jutla Brothers from Upton Park, 19th UK, 267th Open Murray & Mills from Leeds and 20th UK, 269th Open another for J & J Syndicate with a second pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son. A total of 50 pigeons from the United Kingdom were officially recorded up to 08.16, with 100 up to 08.18. A later update loft list issued showed all 217 UK pigeons had returned to the lofts by 09.58. The Monday loft list showed that 225 UK pigeons were still in the race loft. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 54th OPEN went to G+J DOUGLAS with pigeon named LURGAN BELLE and bred by G+J DOUGLAS, which was officially clocked at 08.11.31.50, just 1 minute 01.95 seconds behind the actual race winner, this pigeon has been flying well and already won 62nd TR2, 162nd TR12 and now 54th TR13, 2nd Ireland, 367th Open Philip & Mark Smith, 3rd Ireland, 375th Open Joe Kennedy & Son, 4th Ireland, 542nd Open Maurice O’Donnell, 5th Ireland, 578th Open Pat Maher and 6th Ireland, 688th Open Donnelly & Kirkwood. A total of 6 Irish pigeons were officially clocked by 08.15, with a later report showed all 34 Irish pigeons were in the loft by 09.39. The Monday morning loft list 34 Irish pigeons in the loft. GLOBAL NOMINATIONS on TRAINING RACE 13 amounted to US$3,615.90c (£3,013) and there was a total of 146 pigeons actually entered which included 10 from the United Kingdom and none from Ireland and there was 460 nominations and all this money in this race was won by pigeons in the top 50 positions. There were no UNITED KINGDOM winners in this race. UNITED KINGDOM NOMINATIONS amounted to US$194.65c (£162) and showed 7 pigeons with 31 nominations and there was just one winner and that was MANCHESTER MAESTROS taking 388th OPEN with pigeon named LADY LOIS 2, bred by JOHN CREHAN from MANCHESTER winning US$194.65c (£162) for its efforts. WELL DONE JOHN. Next race is TRAINING RACE 14 is due to take place on Wednesday 18th January 2017. LIVESTREAM was up and running at the race loft so I woke up very early and logged on at 05.50 (GMT) or 07.50 (SA time) on Wednesday morning at home to watch the pigeons arrive from TRAINING RACE 14. The pigeons were liberated at 06.45 from 114km (71 miles). I thought the pigeons would take 90 minutes to cover the distance. Once again it is fantastic to be able to sit nearly 6,000 miles away and watch the pigeons arrive back home. The weather looked very good with a nice blue sky and no clouds clouds and a strong head wind for most of the journey. I did not have to wait long for the first arrivals and bang on my predicted time of 08.15 (SA time) the first gang of about 80 pigeons arrived at 08.15 (SA time) or 06.15 (GMT), followed by another big group of about 50 pigeons appeared, the another 100 plus, they all swung round the loft and were joined by a few more big gangs, then all of a sudden hundreds started hit the landing platform and started to trap. I also had my iPad ready for the result and all of a sudden I showed 1st OPEN had gone to KUWAIT. The pigeons just fell out of the sky with literally hundreds being clocked within a few minutes of the actual race winner, in fact over 1,000 pigeons were officially clocked within 7 minutes of the actual race winner. If you have not logged on yet to watch the pigeons arrive from the races, you do not know what you are missing, it is fantastic and also a great experience. https://youtu.be/FdyYNQj7rbs TRAINING RACE 14 took place on Wednesday 18th January 2017 from 114km (71 miles) and a total of 2,788 pigeons were basketed from 35 different countries and this total included 2,584 International and 204 South African pigeons and this total also included 222 from the United Kingdom and 34 from Ireland. Only 37 pigeons were held back and not basketed, these included two from the United Kingdom and also none from Ireland, these were all left in the lofts because they had made mistakes earlier in the week. Total still in the loft was 2,825 pigeons. The convoy were liberated at 06.45 in fine and clear conditions, with a strong head wind on route, 22c (72f) and a good steady race was anticipated. The temperature was expected to rise to during the day but once again heavy rain was forecast to start later on. CONGRATULATIONS for winning 1st OPEN goes to ALDAHOUM LOFT from KUWAIT with pigeon named BENT ALFAAKHER bred by ALDAHOUM LOFT, which was officially clocked at 08.15.29.70 to record a winning velocity of 1388ypm (20.9009 m/s) (47mph), this pigeon had already won 2nd OPEN in TR3, 14th OPEN in TR4, 1st OPEN in TR6, 2nd OPEN in TR8, 24th OPEN in TR9 and now 1st OPEN in TR14. 2nd Mels Loft from United States Of America, 3rd Al-Watri Lofts from Kuwait, 4th Greek Connection from United States Of America, 5th Irish Syndicate from United States Of America, 6th Me Fui + Gallo Loft from United States Of America, 7th Hylan Loft from United States Of America, 8th Mohammad Eyathah from Kuwait, 9th SG Adelmann from Germany, 10th Horst+Frank Sander from Germany, 11th Aqil Alajaj from Saudi Arabia, 12th Robert Darr – Donald Bicknell II from United States Of America, 13th Rebel Blues Syndicate from South Africa, 14th Horst Zikeli from Germany, 15th another for Robert Darr – Donald Bicknell from United States Of America, 16th Defaulter Pigeon, 17th Ken Easley – Silvercreek from United States Of America, 18th Kolvenbag & Son from United States Of America, 19th Las Vladimar+Juraj from Slovakia and 20th another for Greek Connection from United States Of America. The top twenty in this result were separated by just 23.05 seconds and had 6 different countries represented in the top 20 and 12 different countries in the top 50, only 43.89 seconds away from the actual race winner. This race resulted as another with fantastic returns with 500 recorded by 08.20, then 1,000 by 08.23, then 1,500 by 08.25, then 2,000 by 08.32, then 2,651 by 10.20 leaving just 137 to make it back to the lofts. A total of 2,736 pigeons were officially clocked by 16.45, leaving just 52 pigeons to make it back to the loft. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 22nd OPEN went to CRAMMOND, LANGSTAFF & GILBERT and with pigeon named PANTOM which was bred by this syndicate from FONTWELL and WINDSOR, which was officially clocked at 08.15.54.29, just 24.59 seconds away from the race winner. 2nd UK, 42nd Open J & J Syndicate with pigeon bred by Joe Kennedy & Son from Belfast, 3rd UK, 63rd Open Zandys Dream Team with pigeon bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet, 4th UK, 90th Open Lloyd & Kelly from Didcot, 5th UK, 100th Open another for Zandys Dream Team with a second pigeon bred by Paul Smith, 6th UK, 129th Open a third pigeon for Zandys Dream Team with a third pigeon bred by Paul Smith, 7th UK, 154th Open a fourth pigeon for Zandys Dream Team also bred by Paul Smith, 8th UK, 170th Open a fifth pigeon for Zandys Dream Team also bred by Paul Smith, all these five pigeons are bred from the same pair, 9th UK, 187th Open Rutland Lofts with pigeon bred by AJ Whithouse from West Bromwich, 10th UK, 203rd Open Smith – McAllister Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and with pigeon bred by Bruce McAllister from Furneax Pelham, 11th UK, 204th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 12th UK, 233rd Open Carlos Dream Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith with pigeon bred by Jos Reilly from Dublin, 13th UK, 243rd Open Grumpy Old Men with pigeon bred by Tony Kent from Wareside, 14th UK, 254th Open Mr & Mrs Clayburn from Ackworth, 15th UK, 256th Open Mike Chadwick from Sheffield, 16th UK, 299th Open another for Lloyd & Kelly from Didcot, 17th UK, 329th Open a sixth pigeon for Zandys Dream Team with pigeon bred by Paul Smith, 18th UK, 361st Open a seventh pigeon for Zandys Dream Team with pigeon bred by Paul Smith 19th UK, 400th Open another for Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from Fontwell and Windsor and then 20th UK, 424th Open Oberholster Racing Team with pigeon bred by Pieter Oberholster from Keysoe. Another great race with 50 UK pigeons being officially clocked by 08.21, then 100 up to 08.25 and then 150 by 08.31, then 200 by 08.55, then 208 by 10.15 leaving 14 UK pigeons to return to base camp. The last loft list of the day showed 219 UK pigeons had been clocked up to 16.45, leaving 3 still to make it back to base camp. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 82nd OPEN went to J KENNEDY & SON with pigeon named EDDIE C, bred by JOE KENNEDY & SON which was officially clocked at 08.16.45.20, just 1 minute 15.50 seconds after the actual race winner. 2nd Ireland, 241st Open Johnson – Leonard & Sons, 3rd Ireland, 705th Open Moran & Bowden, 4th Ireland, 785th Open Corn Direct, 5th Ireland, 804th Open G+J Douglas and then 6th Ireland, 996th Open another for Joe Kennedy & Son. A good race with 20 pigeons being officially clocked by 08.29, then 33 by 09.40 then the final list showed 33 Irish pigeons had been officially recorded by 16.4, leaving just 1 pigeon to make it home. THE OVERALL AVERAGES after 18 official races now stand as follows:- 1st OPEN goes to JAN HOOYMANS -HU ZHEN YU from NETHERLANDS with pigeon named WASSERT and bred by JAN HOOYMANS, actual flying time 31.35.44.39, with 188th TR1, 101st TR2, 2158th TR3, 955th TR4, 311th TR5, 2043rd TR6, 1559th HSCR1, 1491st TR7, 126th HSCR2, 2419th TR8, 383rd TR9, 1642nd TR10, 16th HSCR3, 87th TR11, 35th HSCR4, 1289th TR12, 15th TR13 and now 242nd TR14. 2nd Open goes to Josef Schneider from Germany and 3rd Open goes to Ado Family Loft from United States Of America. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 6th OPEN goes to MANCHESTER MAESTROS with pigeon named LADY LOIS 2 bred by JOHN CREHAN from MANCHESTER, actual flying time of 32.19.10.45, with 1023rd TR1, 174th TR2, 792nd TR3, 1474th TR4, 723rd TR5, 497th TR6, 1620th HSCR1, 1435th TR7, 361st HSCR2, 1184 TR8, 407th TR9, 2110th TR10, 534th HSCR3, 130 TR11, 414th HSCR4, 816th TR12, 388th TR13 and now 1148th TR14. 2nd UNITED KINGDOM, 32nd Open goes to Zandys Dream Team with pigeon named Zandys Venture bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet. 3rd UNITED KINGDOM, 66th Open goes to Millys Loft with pigeon named Dundees Back bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe. 1st IRELAND, 481st OPEN goes to JOHNSON – LEONARD & SONS with pigeon named HOLLY J bred by PAUL JOHNSON, actual flying time 37.24.35.32, with 2470th TR1, 3082nd TR2, 1491st TR3, 3004th TR4, 2587th TR5, 1515th TR6, 1367th HSCR1, 2750 TR7, 1975th HSCR2, 2865th TR8, 2446th TR9, 2725th TR10, 1991st HSCR3, 2498th TR11, 508th HSCR4, 2428th TR12, 2554th TR13 and now 1910th TR14. 2nd IRELAND, 698th Open goes to Joe Kennedy & Son with pigeon named Eddie C and 3rd IRELAND, 739th Open goes to Robbie Daly with pigeon named Big Bird. GLOBAL NOMINATIONS on TRAINING RACE 14 amounted to US$2,127.55c (£1,773) and there was a total of 111 pigeons actually entered which included 4 from the UK and just 2 from IRELAND and there were 362 nominations and all this money in this race was won by pigeons in the top 19 positions. There were no UK or IRISH winners. UNITED KINGDOM NOMINATIONS amounted to US$356.35c (£297) and there was a total of 16 pigeons entered and there was 58 nominations. There was just one winner as follows:- 42nd OPEN for J & J SYNDICATE with pigeon named OCEAN MONARCH bred by JOE KENNEDY & SON from BELFAST winning US$356.35c (£297) for its efforts. WELL DONE JOHN. THE COUNTRY CHALLENGE AVERAGES after 18 races are as follows:- 1st UNITED KINGDOM is MANCHESTER MAESTROS with pigeon named LADY LOIS 2 which was bred by JOHN CREHAN from MANCHESTER and has a combined flying time of 32.19.10.45. 2nd UNITED KINGDOM is ZANDYS DREAM TEAM, administered by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named ZANDYS PRIDE which was bred by PAUL SMITH and has a combined flying time of 33.07.10.45. 3rd UNITED KINGDOM is MILLYS LOFT with pigeon named DUNDEES BACK bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE with a combined flying time of 33.39.08.30. THE IRISH COUNTRY CHALLENGE AVERAGES after 18 races are as follows:- 1st IRELAND is PHILIP & MARK SMITH with pigeon named ELIZ bred by these fanciers and with a combined flying time of 43.38.56.90. 2nd IRELAND is another for PHILIP & MARK SMITH with pigeon named JAMIE HAYDEN bred by these fanciers with a combined flying time of 44.46.45.05. Pigeons nominated and paid for into THE COUNTRY CHALLENGE competition from other countries were as follows:- AUSTRALIA 18, BELGIUM 10, CANADA 2, DENMARK 9, GERMANY 35, IRELAND 6, NETHERLANDS 5, POLALD 9, SOUTH AFRICA 72, UNITED KINGDOM 143 and UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 17. These figures are quoted just shows what great support the UNITED KINGDOM gives this special competition. GOOD LUCK TO ALL FANCIERS AND ENTRANTS IN HOT SPOT CAR RACE 5 ON SATURDAY 21st JANUARY 2017. PROPOSED RACE PROGRAMME:- The remaining Training Races, Mid-Week Races and Saturday Races during 2016/17 race series are now listed as follows:- HOT SPOT CAR RACE 5 from 350km (218 miles) on Saturday 21st January 2017, Training Race 15 from 62km (39 miles) on Wednesday 25th January 2017, Training Race 16 from 80km (50 miles) on Saturday 28th January 2017, then THE FINAL RACE from 550km (342 miles) on Saturday 4th February 2017. These dates are not be set in stone and if the proposed date for any of these races is not suitable for liberation, then these will take place on the next best day in that week. Daily training will also take place during the week providing the weather is suitable. No training will take place on Sundays unless of course a holdover takes place on the Saturday race. The Overall Averages and the allocated US$17,500 (£14,000) Prize Money will only count in races of 50km (31 miles) and over. ***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT*** I am sorry that I can’t add all the information about who bred all the pigeons or where they live as I can only publish details which I am in possession of. If there are no details besides your winning pigeon/s then please contact me on reglofts@aol.com with your details and I will include these in my later International Press Reports. I personally do my best to give all the fanciers, entrants and breeders all the credit they and their pigeons deserve when they manage to get in the results so your help in this matter will be greatly appreciated. For the first few races numerous pigeons will not trap, so do not worry if yours is clocked late. The main thing to consider over the first few shorter races is that all the pigeons will not trap quickly but if they have made it back to the race loft on Heron Banks Golf & River Estate they are there to fight another day. With each race the pigeons will learn a bit more, giving them more experience to tackle all the tasks that they are going to have in front of them during the testing 2016/17 training and race series. GOOD LUCK TO ALL CONCERNED AND REGULAR “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES”, “NEWSLETTERS” AND “UPDATES” WILL BE SENT OUT TO ALL COMPETITORS/ENTRANTS AND SYNDICATE SHAREHOLDERS ON A WEEKLY BASIS BY EMAIL OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS. ALSO WEEKLY “PRESS RELEASES” WILL BE SENT OUT TO BOTH OUR TWO PIGEON PUBLICATIONS NAMELY THE “BRITISH HOMING WORLD” AND “”THE RACING PIGEON” PLUS IT WILL ALSO BE ON MY REGENCY LOFTS WEB SITE www.regencylofts.com FOR ALL TO VIEW. I would also just like to notify fanciers that my weekly “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE”, “NEWSLETTERS” and “UPDATES” can now also be seen on the following pigeon web sites:- www.regencylofts.com www.iprr.co.uk www.elimarpigeons.com www.pigeonportal.com www.pigeonglobe.co.uk www.cyberpigeon.co.uk www.pigeonbasics.com www.starpigeons.com www.pigeonpixels.co.uk www.theloftreport.com www.oneloftracing.com plus of course they will also be published in the “”BRITISH HOMING WORLD” and “THE RACING PIGEON” weeklies and other world pigeon publications for all to see, read and enjoy. The race date for THE 22nd SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE has already been agreed and confirmed by the race organisers as SATURDAY 3th FEBRUARY 2018. If you are interested in participating or acting a Country Race Team Shipper/Co-ordinator, then please contact me as soon as possible on 01279-812005 or my mobile 07860-568216 or SMS or email on reglogfts@aol.com and I will give you all the information you require. My two proposed shipping dates for THE 22nd SAMDPR will take about the middle of MAY 2017 and then the second one should be around the middle of JUNE 2017. Of course these two dates will be confirmed nearer the time. I strongly recommend that you try to ship your race entries on the 1st shipping date as this then gives these pigeons much more time to settle into the race lofts. If you have any questions about any aspect of THE SOUTH AFRICAN MILLION DOLLAR PIGEON RACE, then please contact me as soon as possible on 01279-812005 or my mobile 07860-568216 or by SMS or email at reglofts@aol.com and I will do my best to answer any of your questions or queries about this great race. These “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES” do take a lot of my time to prepare and I try to get as much into them as possible as I know fanciers and entrants like to know what is happening, unfortunately some time, some information will not be to hand when the print deadline is reached so can’t be included in that report. I can only apologise if I leave something out but I can assure everybody that I do my best to get as much information as possible to put into each of these international reports. IF ANY PIGEON FANCIER IN THE UNITED KINGDOM OR IN FACT ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WOULD LIKE TO RECEIVE MY WEEKLY “INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASES”, “NEWSLETTERS” AND “UPDATES” BY EMAIL, THEN ALL THEY HAVE TO DO IS EMAIL ME THEIR ACTUAL EMAIL ADDRESS I WILL PUT THEM ON MY EMAIL DATABASE AND I WILL THEN FORWARD THEM ALL THE INFORMATION BY EMAIL ON A REGULAR BASIS. BEST OF LUCK TO ALL PIGEON FANCIERS/SYNDICATES & ENTRANTS WORLDWIDE DURING THE 2016/17 RACE SERIES. Paul Smith, United Kingdom Race Team Co-ordinator/Shipper and International Race Co-ordinator for The 21st South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race, which is due to be held at Heron Banks Golf & River Estate and Emerald Resort, Casino & Hotel, South Africa on Saturday 4th February 2017. Regency Lofts Limited, 2, Highmead, off Coltsfield, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex. CM24 8LJ. England. Tel/Fax:- 01279-812005. (Int. Code:- +44-1279-812005), Mobile:- 07860-568216. Email Address:- reglofts@aol.com Regency Lofts Website:- www.regencylofts.com Skype Address:- talbot7944 Twitter Address:- PaulSmith@SmithReglofts The South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race Website:- www.samdpr.com ]]>