“FOURTH INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE”.
ON
HOT SPOT CAR RACE 1 & TRAINING RACE 7.
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 up and running at the race loft so I woke up early and logged on at 05.30 (GMT) on Saturday morning at home to watch the pigeons arrive from HOT SPOT CAR RACE 1. Once again it is fantastic to be able to sit nearly 6,000 miles away and watch the pigeon arrive back home. The weather looked outstanding, lovely clear blue sky and very little wind at the loft. I had to wait a short while before the first small gang of about 25 arrived at 07.58 (SA time) or 05.58 (GMT), another group of about 40 pigeons appeared swung round the loft and were joined by a few more small gangs, then all of a sudden hundreds 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 race winner, in fact over 2,000 pigeons were officially clocked within 10 minutes of the actual race winner. If you have not logged on to watch the pigeons arrive from the races, you do not know what you are missing, it is fantastic. https://youtu.be/t0mpR8CGTP8 HOT SPOT CAR RACE 1 took place on Saturday 10th December 2016 from 164km (101 miles) and a total of 3,532 pigeons were basketed from 35 different countries and this total included 3,261 International and 271 South African pigeons and this total also included 285 from the United Kingdom and 45 from Ireland. A total of 276 pigeons were held back and not basketed, these included 15 from the United Kingdom and 2 from Ireland, these were all left in the lofts because they had made mistakes earlier in the week. Total still in the loft was 3,808 pigeons. The convoy were liberated at 05-45 in fine and clear conditions, with a strong head wind, 18c (64f) and a good race was anticipated. The temperature was expected to rise to during the day. CONGRATULATIONS for winning 1st OPEN goes to BADER AL-SANAFI from KUWAIT with pigeon named ALSANAFI 5 bred by BADER ALSANAFI, which was officially clocked at 07.58.38.29 to record a winning velocity of 1326ypm (20.2038 m/s) (45mph), this pigeon has been flying very well with 48th TR1, 258th TR2, 284th TR3, 849th TR4, 264th TR5, 316th TR6 and now 1st HSCR1. 2nd The Platinum Lofts from South Africa, 3rd Darrell Bartz from United States Of America, 4th Tom Schilling from United States Of America, 5th Michael Repapis from South Africa, 6th Team Brodo from Germany, 7th Storm Syndicate from South Africa, 8th Don Hart from United States Of America, 9th Team Germany -ZG Helios, Bucher + Gehrken from Germany, 10th Millys Loft from United Kingdom, 11th Helmut Schulz from Germany, 12th Doehlemann – Froh Team from Germany, 13th Breazu Mihai from Romania, 14th Team Styrum from Germany, 15th Landon McLaughlin from United States Of America, 16th Al-Watri Lofts from Kuwait, 17th Hans & Evert-Jan Eijerkamp from Netherlands, 18th Dominique Velghe from Belgium, 19th Jamal Mutlak from Kuwait and 20th Mike Chafardon from United States Of America. The top twenty in this result were separated by just 38.30 seconds and had 8 different countries represented in the top 20 and 11 different countries in the top 50, only 2 minutes 40.46 seconds away from the actual race winner. This race resulted as another with fantastic returns with 715 recorded by 08.09, then 2006 by 08.27, then 2,849 by 09.06, then 3,137 by 10.52, then 3,238 by 13.44 and the last report showed 3,321 pigeons had been officially recorded by 18.40, leaving just 211 to make it back to the lofts. I am sure a few more will work back during Sunday and over the next few days. A Loft Listing appeared on the SAMDPR website on Monday morning and this showed that 3,730 pigeons were now in the race loft and this total included 293 from the UK and 45 from Ireland. THE BRAND NEW MOTOR CAR was won in HSCR1 by the pigeon which actually took 3rd OPEN DARRELL BARTZ from UNITED STATES OF AMERICA with his pigeon named MOVE OVER and was bred by this fancier. Well done to this fancier, who took this top class prize because both the pigeons ahead of it that took 1st and 2nd OPEN were NOT-ACTIVATED PIGEONS, hence they were not eligible to compete for this prize. A GREAT START FOR DARRELL BARTZ. HOT SPOT CAR RACE 1, the 19 x US$1,100 (£917) CASH PRIZES were won as follows:- The pigeons that took 4th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 17th and 20th OPEN positions which are all mentioned above. Then the pigeons that took 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th & 26th OPEN won the remaining Hot Spot Cash Prizes, these included 3 x American pigeons, 2 x Polish pigeon and a German pigeon. WELL DONE TO ALL THESE WINNERS. THE 2-BIRD AVERAGE and US$2,000 (£1,667) was won by DARRELL BARTZ (Team 1) with pigeons named MOVE OVER and FLORIDA GIRL with an average velocity of 40.187 m/s. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 8th OPEN went to CRAMMOND, LANGSTAFF & GILBERT (Team 1) from FONTWELL and WINDSOR with pigeons named SOUTHFIELD JANE and SOUTHFIELD BLUES with an average velocity of 39.081 m/s. 1st IRELAND, 223rd OPEN went to MAURICE O’DONNELL (Team 3) with pigeons named LIADIN 9 and LIADIN 7 both bred by this fancier. THE 3-BIRD AVERAGE and US$3,000 (£2,500) was won by DIRK VAN DYCK (Team 2) from BELGIUM with pigeons named PHANTOM ONE, STANO and GANGSTA OF LOVE with and average velocity of 58.016 m/s. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 6th OPEN went to K CONSULTANCY (Team 1) with pigeons named BLACK DOT, BLACK HOUBEN and BLACK SL all bred by PIETER OBERHOLSTER from KEYSOE with an average velocity of 56.973 m/s. 1st IRELAND, 71st OPEN went to MAURICE O’DONNELL (Team 3) with pigeons named LIADIN 9, LIADIN 7 and LIADIN 8 with an average velocity of 51.916 m/s. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 10th OPEN went to MILLYS LOFT and with their pigeon named DUNDEES BACK which was bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE, which was officially clocked at 07.58.50.65, just 12.34 seconds away from the race winner. 2nd UK, 28th Open Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert Mark Gilbert GB from Fontwell & Windsor, 3rd UK, 38th Open Mr & Mrs Clayburn from Ackworth, 4th UK, 56th Open Speedbird Strain – Aylesbury Bucks, entered by the late Peter Entwistle from Aylesbury and with pigeon bred by Keith & Graham Jones from Aylesbury, 5th UK, 66th Open Syndicate Lofts UK with pigeon bred by Peter Fox from Bangor, 6th UK, 74th Open Alan Richardson from Whitby, 7th UK, 150th Open R Bartley & W Gardner from Lancaster, 8th UK, 165th Open another for Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 9th UK, 178th Open another for Speedbird Strain – Aylesbury Bucks, entered by the late Peter Entwistle and with a pigeon bred by Jones & Redman,10th UK, 201st Open Sue Bennett from Darlington with pigeon bred by Woodroffe Brothers, 11th UK, 211th Open Grumpy Old Men with pigeon bred by Tony Kent from Wareside, 12th UK, 216th Open Kingsmead School from Hednesford with pigeon bred by Johnathon Hamplett, it is great to see this school doing so well, 13th UK, 222nd Open Carlos Dream Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Jos Reilly from Dublin, 14th UK, 238th Open Tim Atkin from Rugby, 15th UK, 247th Open Rutland Loft with pigeon bred by AJ Whithouse, 16th UK, 267th Open Bartley & Tweats with a pigeon bred by this partnership, 17th UK, 281st Open a third pigeon for Millys Loft with another pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 18th UK, 283rd Open Farm Faster with pigeon bred by Geoff & Catherine Cooper from Peasedown St John, 19th UK, 292nd Open Guys Lofts Elite with pigeon bred by Graham Guy from Wolverhampton and then 20th UK, 293rd Open another for Tim Atkin from Rugby. All these 20 UK pigeons were clocked within 6 minutes and 17.00 seconds of the race winner. Another great race with 54 UK pigeons being officially clocked by 08.09, then 109 up to 08.17 and then 256 by 10.52, then 268 by 18.40, which left just 17 to return to base camp. The Monday morning Loft Listing showed 293 UK pigeons in the loft. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 218th OPEN went to SAFAT DURAN with pigeon named BOSNIAN PREDATOR, bred by SAFAT DURAN which was officially clocked at 08.04.01.75, 5 minutes and 23.46 seconds after the actual race winner. 2nd Ireland, 491st Open H+C Thorpe – McMorrow, 3rd Ireland, 658th Open Grove Hill Lofts, 4th Ireland, 834th Open Pat Maher, 5th Ireland, 865th Open Donnelly & Kirkwood and then 6th Ireland, 1119th Open Maurice O’Donnell. A good race with 16 pigeons being officially clocked by 08.17, then 25 by 08.27 and 31 by 08.49, then the final list showed 39 had been officially recorded by 18.40, which left just 6 Irish pigeons to make it back to the loft. The Monday morning Loft Listing showed 45 Irish pigeons in the loft. THE OVERALL AVERAGES after 7 official races now stand as follows:- 1st OPEN goes to ALDAHOUM LOFT from KUWAIT with his pigeon named BENT ALFAAKHER and bred by ALDAHOUM LOFTS, actual flying time 09.37.55.70, with 311th TR1, 270th TR2, 2nd TR3, 14th TR4, 733rd TR5, 1st TR6 and now 221st HSCR1, 2nd Open goes to Bader Al-Sanafi from Kuwait and 3rd Open goes to RMG Racing Team from South Africa. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 25th OPEN goes to CARLOS DREAM SYNDICATE, administered by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named CARLOS MAGIC bred by JOS REILLY from DUBLIN, actual flying time of 09.53.46.55, with 26th TR1, 697th TR2, 421st TR3, 531st TR4, 773rd TR5, 946th TR6 and now 222nd HSCR1, 2nd UNITED KINGDOM, 28th Open is Zandy Dream Team with pigeon named Zandys Pride bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and 3rd UNITED KINGDOM, 66th Open is Lloyd & Kelly from Didcot with pigeon named White Flights. 1st IRELAND, 122nd OPEN goes to DONNELLY & KIRKWOOD with their pigeon named CHARLIE 1 bred by KARL DONNELLY, actual flying time 10.14.00.24, with 1542nd TR1, 557th TR2, 207th TR3, 671st TR4, 11th TR5, 405th TR6 and now 1375th HSCR1, 2nd IRELAND, 158th Open is Safet Duran with pigeon named Bosnian Predator and 3rd IRELAND, 356th Open H+C Thorpe – McMorrow with pigeon named Cabelin. GLOBAL NOMINATIONS on HOT SPOT CAR RACE 1 amounted to US$12,507.75c (£10,423) and there was a total of 433 pigeons actually entered which included 35 from the UK and 3 from IRELAND and there was 1,347 nominations and all this money in this race was won by pigeons in the top 221 positions. There were no UK winners. UNITED KINGDOM NOMINATIONS amounted to $345.10c (£287) and there was a total of 15 pigeons entered and there was 44 nominations. There was two winners as follows:- KINGSMEAD SCHOOL from HEDNESFORD with their pigeon named KINGSMEAD HAMPLETT bred by JOHNATON HAMPLETT which took 216th OPEN winning US$26.35c (£22) for its efforts, well done to Richard Chambers and all the school kids for having a little gamble, keep up the excellent work, then Guys Lofts Elite with pigeon named De Vinchie Code bred by Graham Guy from Wolverhampton which took 292nd Open winning US$318.75 (£266) for its efforts. THE HOT SPOT AVERAGES after 1 race was as follows:- 1st OPEN goes to DARRELL BARTZ from UNITED STATES OF AMERICA with his pigeon named MOVE OVER and bred by this fancier, with a time of 02.13.40.80. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 7th OPEN goes to MILLYS LOFT with pigeon named DUNDEES BACK and being bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE, with a time of 02.14.35.10. 1st IRELAND, 174th OPEN goes to SAFET DURAN with his pigeon named BOSNIAN PREDATOR bred by this fancier, with a time of 02.19.01.75. THE COUNTRY CHALLENGE is a separate country competition which costs US$120 (approx. £100) per pigeon to enter and offers 3 cash prizes in each of the 5 Hot Spot Car Races and currently there is 143 UNITED KINGDOM pigeons entered and the Prize Money will be as follows:- There will be cash prizes of 1st Prize US$125 (approx. £104), 2nd Prize US$75 (approx. £62) and 3rd Prize US$50 (approx. £42) on Hot Spot Car Races 1, 2, 3 & 4. Then on Hot Spot Car Race 5 the prizes will increase to 1st Prize US$5,130 (approx. £4,275), 2nd Prize US$3,078 (approx. £2,565) and 3rd Prize US$2,052 (approx. £1,710). In The Final Race there will be just a 1st Prize winner takes all and that will go to the entered pigeon with the best average over the 5 x Hot Spot Car Races and The Final Race. The winning pigeon will be crowned THE UNITED KINGDOM COUNTRY CHALLENGE ACE WINNER and the Prize is now standing at US$5,920 (approx. £4,934). Of course only pigeons that were fully paid for and entered into this competition prior to basketing for Hot Spot Car Race 1 are eligible to fly for this ACE PIGEON AWARD. The UNITED KINGDOM TEAM have always supported this extra competition and the winners in this HSCR1 were as follows:- 1st UNITED KINGDOM and US$125 (approx. £104) goes to 10th OPEN MILLYS LOFT with pigeon named DUNDEES BACK bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE. 2nd UNITED KINGDOM and US$75 (approx. £62) goes to 56th OPEN SPEEDBIRD STRAIN – AYLESBURY BUCKS, entered by the late PETER ENTWISTLE from AYLESBURY with pigeon named JU87 STUKAB DIVE BOMBER bred by KEITH & GRAHAM JONES from AYLESBURY, 3rd UNITED KINGDOM and US$50 (approx. £42) goes to 165th OPEN MILLYS LOFT with pigeon named DUNDEE FLYER bred by MICHAEL MELLOR from CREWE. THE COUNTRY CHALLENGE AVERAGES after 7 races are as follows:- 1st UK is CARLOS DREAM SYNDICATE, administered by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named CARLOS MAGIC which was bred by JOS REILLY from DUBLIN and has a combined flying time of 09.53.46.55. 2nd UK is ZANDYS DREAM TEAM, administered by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET and with pigeon named ZANDYS PRIDE bred by Paul and has a combined flying time of 09.54.14.69. The IRELAND TEAM only entered 6 pigeons and will fly for 1st Prize US$125 (approx. £104), 2nd US$75 (approx. £62) and 3rd Prize US$50 (approx. £42) on Hot Spot Car Races 1, 2, 3 & 4. Then on Hot Spot Car Race 5 the prizes will increase to 1st Prize US$335 (approx. £279), 2nd Prize US$201 (approx. £167) and 3rd Prize US$134 (approx. £112). In The Final Race there will just be a 1st Prize winner takes all and that will go to the pigeon with the best average over the 5 x Hot Spot Car Races and The Final Race. The winning pigeon will be crowned THE IRISH COUNTRY CHALLENGE ACE WINNER and the Prize is now standing at US$440 (approx. £367). Of course only pigeons that were fully paid for and entered into this competition prior to basketing for Hot Spot Car Race 1 are eligible to fly for this ACE PIGEON AWARD. 1st IRELAND and US$125 (approx. £104) goes to 1185th OPEN PHILIP + MARK SMITH with pigeon named ELIZ, 2nd IRELAND and US$75 (approx. £62) goes to 1314th OPEN PHILIP + MARK SMITH with pigeon named JAMIE HAYDEN, 3rd IRELAND and US$50 (approx. £42) goes to 2024th OPEN PHILIP + MARK SMITH with pigeon named GAELIC HOPE. THE IRISH COUNTRY CHALLENGE AVERAGES after 7 races are as follows:- 1st IRELAND is G+J DOUGLAS with pigeon named LURGEN BELLE bred by these fanciers and with a combined flying time of 10.36.00.34. 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 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 2 ON SATURDAY 17th DECEMBER 2016. THE KNOCKOUT COMPETITION offers a US$25,000 (£20,834) First Prize and only fully paid up pigeon before basketing of Hot Spot Car Race 1 are eligible to compete for this great cash prize. This great competition offer the following conditions and one lucky winner will walk away with “THE POT OF GOLD” after the Final Race. These rules are as follows:- This competition will take place over the last four Hot Spot Car Races and the Final Race, if however any Hot Spot Car Race is cancelled the race committee can use a Training Race to replace any Hot Spot Car Race. As usual this competition is very well supported and this year was no exception as there was a total of 2,747 pigeons entered, which was made up of 2,571 International pigeons, which included 236 from the United Kingdom and 37 from Ireland, plus 176 pigeons from South Africa. KNOCKOUT ROUND 1 will take place on HOT SPOT CAR RACE 2 and 1,786 (65%) of the entered pigeons will move forward to the next round. KNOCKOUT ROUND 2 will take place on HOT SPOT CAR RACE 3 and 982 (55%) of the entered pigeons will move forward to the next round. KNOCKOUT ROUND 3 will take place on HOT SPOT CAR RACE 4 and 344 (35%) of the entered pigeons will move forward to the next round. KNOCKOUT ROUND 4 will take place on HOT SPOT CAR RACE 5 and 69 (20%) of the entered pigeons will move forward to the next round. Then KNOCKOUT ROUND 5 will take place on THE FINAL RACE on SATURDAY 4th FEBRUARY 2017 and just 69 top class pigeons will be competing and the first pigeon clocked of these remaining 69 KNOCKOUT PIGEONS will walk away this coveted First Prize of US$25,000 (£20,834). THIS REALLY IS A GREAT INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION THAT CREATES A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF INTEREST AND EXCITEMENT THROUGHOUT THE RACE SERIES. More short training tosses will take place on Monday and Tuesday giving these pigeons even more confidence and experience to cope with TR7 and Wednesday 14th December and Hot Spot Care Race 2 on Saturday 17th December 2016. LIVESTREAM was once again up and running and I logged on bright and early at 05.30 GMY (07.30 SA) time, the weather was beautiful with a lovely clear blue sky and fluffy clouds. The pigeons were liberated at 07.10 and formed into one big pack and headed straight for home. It was decided to liberate slightly later than usual so the pigeons would get used to the hotter conditions. I did not have to wait long until I saw a gang of about 60 pigeons swing round the loft and hot the landing area, smartly followed by another gang of about 100 pigeons, then another 200 plus arrived. The result came up on the iPad screen and I saw that 1st OPEN went to a fancier in KUWAIT. Within a few minutes of the winner being clocked over 1,000 pigeons had been officially recorded. If you have never logged on to watch the pigeons arrive, I strongly subject you give it a try, you will just love the experience. https://youtu.be/KdY3qZjhaJM TRAINING RACE 7 was held on Wednesday 14th December 2016 from 62km (39 miles) and for this race a total of 3,549 pigeons from 35 different countries were basketed and this included 3,278 International pigeons and 271 pigeons from South Africa and this figure also included 289 from the United Kingdom and 44 pigeons from Ireland. There was also 169 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. So the total in the loft was 3,718 pigeons. The convoy were liberated at 07.10 with a light head wind in fine and cool conditions and a temperature of 16c (60f). The convoyer reported the pigeons formed into one big gang and headed directly for home. A good race was anticipated. As the day progressed the temperature would steadily rise to around 31c (90f). . CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st OPEN goes to MOHAMMAD AL-FEZEIR from KUWAIT with pigeon named VLADO V bred by MOHAMMAD Al-FREZEIR, which was officially clocked at 08.07.02.40 to record a winning velocity of 1,204ypm (18.1159 m/s) (41mph). 2nd Fayez Q8 from Kuwait, 3rd Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from United Kingdom, 4th Team Florea Sorin from Romania, 5th Millys Loft from United Kingdom, 6th Ganus Family Loft from United States Of America, 7th Henrik Meldgaard from Denmark, 8th Defaulter Pigeon, 9th Abdullah Bohaimed from Kuwait, 10th Sheikh Abdulla Mohammad Al Thani from Qatar, 11th Wilfon – Rhodes from United States Of America, 12th Karl-Heinz Wichert from Germany, 13th another for Team Florea Sorin from Romania, 14th Mike Hines from United States Of America, 15th Team Strohhotel from Germany, 16th Karl Heinz & Timo Wagner from Germany, 17th Bader m f Al-Jwesr from Kuwait, 18th Didden-Ledder from Belgium, 19th Stanescu + Dobre from Romania and 20th Talal Alhebaydah from Kuwait. The top twenty were separated by just 51.05 seconds and had 8 different countries represented in this result with 11 different countries represented in the top 50 and these were 1 minute 07.19 seconds apart. A total of 2,764 pigeons were officially clocked up to 08.18, then 3,345 up to 08.36. A further update showed 3,397 pigeons were officially recorded by 09.03, then 3,407 by 09.30. The last loft list showed that 3,483 pigeons had been officially recorded by 16.36, leaving just 66 pigeons to make it back to base camp, however I am fairly sure that a few more will work back early on Thursday morning. With the 169 pigeons that were not sent that were still in the lofts the total left was now 3,652 pigeons. The Thursday Loft List showed a total of 3,647 pigeons in the loft. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 3rd OPEN went to CRAMMOND, LANGSTAFF & GILBERT, with their pigeon named FONTWELL FINE EXAMPLE which was bred by this partnership from FONTWELL & WINDSOR, which was officially clocked at 08.07.13.34 just 10.96 seconds away from the actual race winner. 2nd UK, 5th Open Millys Loft with pigeon bred by Michael Mellor from Crewe, 3rd UK, 28th Open Alistair Hogg from Winchburgh, 4th UK, 53rd Open Carlos Dream Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfichet and with pigeon bred by Jos Reilly from Dublin, 5th UK, 81st Open Paul Bamford from Pembroke Dock, 6th UK, 134th Open Zandys Dream Team, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and with pigeon bred by Paul Smith, 7th UK, 92nd Open Farm Fantastic with pigeon bred by Geoff & Catherine Cooper from Peasedown St John, 8th UK, 101st Open another for Carlos Dream Syndicate with second pigeon bred Jos Reilly from Dublin, 9th UK, 116th Open Manchester Maestros with pigeon bred by John Crehan from Manchester, 10th UK, 126th Open another for Zandys Dream Team with a second pigeon bred by Paul Smith, 11th UK, 138th Open Jutla Brothers from Upton Park, 12th UK, 140th Open Estuary Syndicate with pigeon bred by Pieter Oberholster from Keysoe, 13th UK, 157th Open Paul Smith Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and with pigeon bred by Jimmy Richards from Laindon, 14th UK, 160th Open UK Elite Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by Lee Fribbins from Fratting, 15th UK, 165th Open Les Green GB from Irlam, 16th UK, 167th Open another for Crammond, Langstaff & Gilbert from Fontwell and Windsor, 17th UK, 168th Open Premier Stud UK Syndicate, administered by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and with pigeon bred by Premier Stud from Patringham Haven, 18th UK, 178th Open Guys Lofts Elite with pigeon bred by Graham Guy from Wolverhampton, 19th UK, 184th Open Paul Smith – Regency Lofts from Stansted Mountfitchet with pigeon bred by David Coward-Talbott from Galleywood and 20th UK, 221st Open Syndicate Lofts UK with pigeon bred by Peter Fox from Bangor. A total of 255 pigeons from the United Kingdom were officially recorded up to 08.18. A later update loft list issued showed 269 UK pigeon had returned to the lofts by 08.36 and then 276 by 09.30 and by nightfall a total of 281 had been officially recorded, leaving 8 still to return to the lofts, however I am sure a few more will work back in the next few days. The Thursday loft list showed a total of 283 UK pigeons in the loft. CONGRATULATIONS on winning 1st IRELAND, 442nd OPEN went to JOHN BRYNE & SONS with their pigeon named SADHBH and bred by this fancier, which was officially clocked at 08.09.39.09, just 2 minutes 36.69 seconds behind the actual race winner. 2nd Ireland, 455th Open Philip + Mark Smith, 3rd Ireland, 514th Open Gerry McCourt who is the Irish Race Co-ordinator, 4th Ireland, 516th Open Moran & Bowden, 5th Ireland, 681st Open Maurice O’Donnell and 6th Ireland, 901st Open Donnelly & Kirkwood. A total of 43 Irish pigeons were officially clocked by 08.18, with a later report showing 44 were clocked by 09.03. The Thursday loft list showed 45 Irish pigeon in the loft. THE OVERALL AVERAGES after 8 official races now stand as follows:- 1st OPEN goes to ALDAHOUM LOFT from KUWAIT with their pigeon named BENT ALFAAKHER bred by these lofts, actual flying time 10.37.37.70 with 311th TR1, 270th TR2, 2nd TR3, 14th TR4, 733rd TR5, 1st TR6, 221st HSCR1 and now 464th TR7. 2nd Open goes to RMG Racing Team from South Africa with pigeon named Geerinx 101 and 3rd Open goes to Bader Al-Sanafi from Kuwait with pigeon named Alsanafi 5. 1st UNITED KINGDOM, 15th OPEN goes to CARLOS DREAM SYNDICATE, with pigeon named CARLOS MAGIC bred by JOS REILLY from DUBLIN, actual flying time 10.51.57.70 with 26th TR1, 679th TR2, 421st TR3, 531st TR4, 773rd TR5, 946th TR6, 222nd HSCR1 and now 53rd TR7. 2nd UNITED KINGDOM, 18th Open goes to Zandy Dream Team with pigeon named Zandys Pride bred by Paul Smith from Stansted Mountfitchet and 3rd UNITED KINGDOM, 58th Open goes to Lloyd & Kelly from Didcot with pigeon named White Flights. 1st IRELAND, 144th OPEN goes to DONNELLY & KIRKWOOD, actual flying time 11.20.22.99, with pigeon named CHARLIE 1 bred by KARL DONNELLY with 1542nd TR1, 557th TR2, 207th TR3, 671st TR4, 11th TR5, 405th TR6, 1375th HSCR1 and now 2,587th TR7. 2nd IRELAND, 181st Open goes to Safet Duran with Bosnian Predator and 3rd IRELAND, 306th Open also goes to G+J Douglas with pigeon named Lurgan Belle. THE UNITED KINGDON COUNTRY AVERAGES after 8 races are as follows: 1st UK CARLOS DREAM SYNDICATE, administered by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with pigeon named CARLOS MAGIC bred by JOS REILLY from DUBLIN with a combined flying time of 10.51.57.70, 2nd UK ZANDYS DREAM TEAM with pigeon named ZANDYS PRIDE bred by PAUL SMITH from STANSTED MOUNTFITCHET with a combined flying time of 10.53.37.34. GLOBAL NOMINATIONS on TR7 amounted to US$5,230.05c (£4,358) and there was a total of 247 pigeons actually entered which included11 from the UK and 3 from Ireland and there was 714 nominations and all this money in this race was won by pigeons in the top 76 positions. There were no UK winners in this race. UNITED KINGDOM NOMINATIONS amounted to US$101.15c (£84) and showed 11 pigeons with 18 nominations and the winners were MANCHESTER MAESTROS taking 116th OPEN with LADY LILLY winning US$11.05c (£9) and 1435th OPEN with LADY LOIS winning US$90.10c (£75), both pigeons were bred by JOHN CREHAN from MANCHESTER. More short training tosses will take place on Thursday and Friday providing the weather is OK in preparation for Hot Spot Car Race 2 on Saturday 17th December from 200km (124 miles). 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 2 from 200km (124 miles) on Saturday 17th December 2016, Training Race 8 from 80km (50 miles) on Wednesday 21st December 2016, Training Race 9 from 80km (50 miles) on Saturday 24th December 2016, HOT SPOT CAR RACE 3 from 250km (155 miles) on Wednesday 28th December 2016, Training Race 10 from 80km (50 miles) on Saturday 31st December 2016, Training Race 11 from 80km (50 miles) on Wednesday 4th January 2017, HOT SPOT CAR RACE 4 from 300km (187 miles) on Saturday 7th January 2017, Training Race 12 from 62km (39 miles) on Wednesday 11th January 2017, Training Race 13 from 100km (62 miles) on Saturday 14th January 2017, Training Race 14 from 80km (50 miles) on Wednesday 18th January 2017, 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 ]]>