Cost of channel racing

[Andy]

I can recall at least 16 lofts in Lancing Trev. Probably not all at the same time. The birds would come over Lancing after a lot would already have dropped out too the many lofts in Worthing and Broadwater before getting to us in Lancing.

[Andy]

We've got a few members down here like that too Andy who stopped sending after losing a few and I remember the same thing happening back in the 80s when Worthing turned North. The funny thing is that most of the members who continued to send to most races had less losses than we were getting along the coast from shorter distances The racing has certainly been more interesting and fairer with a greater spread of members hitting the top spot.

Yes Trev. That’s why the Wigmore club was formed by members of the Worthing club that just wanted the corridor racing. For others of our members who don’t know we had the sea, English Channel, one side and the South Downs on the other. There was a corridor of around 2 miles between the two. The birds would come through in there droves through this corridor and it was just a case of pulling them out.

Yes Andy I remember
It was quite a sight though as kids watching on race days from the bedroom window wasn't it Andy Waiting to see those batches coming through and watching to see who they dropped for, back then there must have been about a dozen lofts just around where we were so it really was a race to see who could get their bird into the clock quickest. I still think some of the beauty and skill of the sport has been lost due to electronic clocking !!!

I remember being up in the bedroom window Trev. We had a good view of the batches coming through and seeing birds peel out. When I was racing to my small loft in the garden against dad we would both be up there watching. A bird would close its wings and drop towards the garden. We would both run down the stairs and out into the garden not knowing who’s it was. Mum said that one of us would come back down the garden happy and the other disappointed. It was when a couple dropped together one for each that the fun began seeing who get theirs in the clock first lol.

[Trev]

Yes Trev. That’s why the Wigmore club was formed by members of the Worthing club that just wanted the corridor racing. For others of our members who don’t know we had the sea, English Channel, one side and the South Downs on the other. There was a corridor of around 2 miles between the two. The birds would come through in there droves through this corridor and it was just a case of pulling them out.

Yes Andy I remember
It was quite a sight though as kids watching on race days from the bedroom window wasn't it Andy Waiting to see those batches coming through and watching to see who they dropped for, back then there must have been about a dozen lofts just around where we were so it really was a race to see who could get their bird into the clock quickest. I still think some of the beauty and skill of the sport has been lost due to electronic clocking !!!

I remember being up in the bedroom window Trev. We had a good view of the batches coming through and seeing birds peel out. When I was racing to my small loft in the garden against dad we would both be up there watching. A bird would close its wings and drop towards the garden. We would both run down the stairs and out into the garden not knowing who’s it was. Mum said that one of us would come back down the garden happy and the other disappointed. It was when a couple dropped together one for each that the fun began seeing who get theirs in the clock first lol.

Happy memories