A flying start to the 2017 pigeon racing season
This was the first of seven short distance races on the GPU programme
ON Saturday, the Gauteng Pigeon Union (GPU) started the 2017 season from Theunissen in the Free State, which is an average distance of 294km for Riverpark Pigeon Club (RPC) members.
This was the first of seven short distance races on the GPU programme.
The weather was clear with no wind when both the young birds (yearlings) were liberated at 7.30am and the old birds (two years and older) at 8.15am.
Riverpark Pigeon Club had 13 members with 179 young birds in the young bird race and 16 members flying 251 birds in the old bird race.
What a surprise the club had when the results were finalised on Saturday afternoon. Two members, who did not fly in the 2016 season, took first place in the young and old bird races.
In the young bird race, Le Roux Lofts (Pieter le Roux) won the race by 48 seconds from G & E Lofts (Graham Cheary and Elaine Russell). Henry Mostert took first, second and third place in the old bird race. The winning pigeon was a yearling in the old bird race. Mostert was followed by Blackie Swart in fourth position, two minutes and 55 seconds after Henry’s first pigeon.
The young birds took eight minutes 45 seconds to fill the first 30 positions on the result sheet and had a nett flying time of three hours 14 minutes and 32 seconds. The final results were:
Le Roux Lofts 1st and 23rd; G & E Lofts 2nd, 7th, 8th, 9th, 12th, 16th, 17th, 24th, 28th and 30th; Blackie Swart 3rd and 18th; Hilton Pitout 4th, 19th and 29th; Fred van Rensburg 5th, 6th and 15th; Sky Lofts (Corrie Möller) 10th, 22nd, 26th and 27th; Bakgat Lofts (Danalien Snyman, a novice) 11th; Knoesen Lofts (Attie Knoesen) 13th, 20th and 21st; Reinhold Brichta 14th and Pieter van den Broeck 25th.
The old birds did slightly better time wise with the 30 positions being filled in seven minutes and five seconds and their nett flying time was three hours seven minutes and 51 seconds.
The old bird final results were:
Henry Mostert 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 14th and 29th; Blackie Swart 4th, 12th 13th and 15th; Beno Daschner 5th; Albert Neilson 7th and 20th; Connie Coertse 8th, 9th and 19th; G & E Lofts 10th and 21st; Reinhold Brichta 11th; Flip van Staden 16 and 17th; Hilton Pitout 18th; Sky Lofts 22nd, 27th, 28th and 30th; Fred van Rensburg 23rd, 24th and 25th with Tallies Lofts (Jan Taljaard) in 26th position.
Kosmos Pigeon Club
HANS de Noon of Kosmos Pigeon Club kicked off the new racing season with wins in both the young bird and open series races from Theunissen on Saturday.
The full results were:
Young birds: Hans de Noon 1st, 2nd, 8th; Jaco van der Westhuizen 3rd, 5th, 7th; Hannes Maree (team 1) 6th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 23rd, 25th; Hannes Maree (team 2) 4th, 15th, 17th, 18th, 22nd, 24th, 26th, 28th; JK Lofts 16th; Holtzhausen Hokke 10th; Panorama Lofts 14th; K & L Meintjies 19th, 20th, 21st; Lucas Klopper 27th; Stander Lofts 29th; 30th.
Open series: Hans de Noon 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th,8th, 9th, 13th; Hannes Maree 6th, 7th, 10th, 20th, 24th, 25th; AM Wilken 11th, 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th; K & L Meintjies 12th; Jaco van der Westhuizen 14th; Lucas Klopper 15th, 18th; Van Heerden Hokke 16th, 17th; Holtzhausen Hokke 19th; Panorama Lofts 21st; Tielie Kotze 22nd, Essie’s Lofts 23rd, 26th.
This weekend sees the GPU pigeons being liberated from the first of two Winburg races.
