The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-12-12
BY TOM OCHHTRFF


MAYBE home to you is place
A'A where you change shirts be-
fore going to movie, but pigeons
are different.
Neither are they like the patriotic
gent" who thrilled, This is my
home, my native land, but where in
the heck am I at?" They are much
smarter than than. They always
know.
A pigeons love for home is such
a tremendous thing that he will fly
hundreds of miles, through rain
storms and high winds, to see his
mate and young.
So swift and gallant are these
birds that for years a considerable
number Of Sportsmen in all parts
of the world have bred and raised
them and entered them in races.
GcoTCH as killed British regi-
~ ment, David Alexander, 1897
w. 26th-st., is race secretary for a
local club of pigeon admirers.
AS a boy in Ayr Shire he kept
fast pigeons, and he has followed
this sport since coming to this
country.
1t isn't every one, he explained,
who understands and appreciates
these gallant feathered fellows. A
true pigeon lover sees as much diff
ference in these birds as a Ken
lucky hard boot does in race horses.
The blood Of stOut-hearted, intel
ligent ancestors must flow in the
veins of a good racing bird. He
must be bred from the right lines,
and like blue blood horses, the best
flyers have long pedigrees and repu-
tations.
The more famous pigeon families
are the Grooter, Taft, Logan, Guer-
ney and Wegge lines. 1t is from the
last two named that the Signal
Corps of the United States Army
is developing night flyers.
nURING the late unpleasantness,
~ pigeons played heroic roles on
all fronts. Time after time, de-
tachments, cut off from the main
body, would be forced to report
their condition and location to head
quarters by means of these birds.
Barring Gripping wound, they al
ways would make it.
This same courage is exhibited in
races where pigeons will fly at
speeds ranging from IS to over so
miles an hour to be first to the lofts.
Like horses, Mr.. Alexander ex-
planned there are distance birds
and sprint birds.
Some big lazy fellows that trail
the field on short races will spread
out and hold steady pace for
hundreds of miles"
The Indianapolis Racing Pigeon
Club, ali affiliate of the American
Racing Pigeon Union, holds IL races
a year. Eight of these events, rang
ing in distance from 100 to 1000
miles, are held every season for old
birds. Yearlings and younger race
four times a year over courses of
100 to 800 miles.
n
TECHNICALLY this is the "off"
Il season for pigeon racers, since
it is too dangerous to let birds fly
in winter. At regular meetings,
however, they hold post mortems
on the past season and brag about
their pets. At home they are busy
enough, too what with directing
the love life of their best flyers and
raising the young.
In the evenings from now until
Sunday, many owners are exhibit
ing their best birds in the poultry
show at the State Playground.
While here the birds are raced
only for sport, Mr.. Alexander eX-
planned that in many larger clubs
quite lot long green" changes
hands on races. Those clubs pool
the entrance fee and the winning
owner takes all.
The same procedure is followed
in all races. Owners seal a counter
mark band on the leg of each bird,
and the field then is shipped in
baskets to any distant point
An obliging railroad agent then