UkPigeonRacing

9th January 2023 

A special request to DEFRA and APHA to clear the Surveillance Zone affecting the Winter Gardens at Blackpool was received with the required importance, and a Specialist Team was sent to the area on Friday 7th January to complete their audit. Unfortunately, as there are a cluster of affected premises joining each other, it is a very complicated situation and although they worked right through the weekend, at a meeting held this morning with an APHA representative at 10am, we were advised that they could not guarantee the lifting of the restrictions by the 20th January to allow us to continue as normal with the show. We could however have pigeons in Blackpool, if a suitable venue could be found in the unaffected area to the south of the town.

Show Chairman David Trippett and I went immediately to Blackpool and on arrival at 2:30pm, we made some arrangements to erect a marquee large enough to hold the 1600 pigeons entered in the 39 Classes with room to spare for sale birds to be housed safely, and although all are in agreement a written confirmation on the site is due tomorrow (Tuesday 10th). This will allow us to obtain a General Licence and the sale birds will have to remain outside the zone, but can indeed be sold by auction or on trade stands in the Winter Gardens to be collected by the buyers just as they are leaving Blackpool for home.

We realise this is far from ideal, and way out of the comfort zone of many fanciers, but it is just a short tram or taxi ride away from the Winter Gardens and the stark reality is that Avian Flu is here to stay, it is not just for this year, and we have to find solutions to work around any possible restrictions at any time in the future, be it for Blackpool or any other pigeon show, quite simply, we cannot let this beat us.

I am aware of the social media comments demanding constant updates and I stand first in line to accept that, but up until 10am on 09/01/23 it looked as though we may have been OK. As soon as we were told otherwise, we made the lengthy drive to find a solution and until that was done, there were no accurate updates to give. We now need your support to make the best of the situation for the prospects of all Pigeon Shows, because unless we try, they will die, and this could happen to any one of them.

Chris Sutton
CEO
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I’m not that surprised. Bird flu is going to affect racing too. I can see a lot of areas being shut down and still think the chances of birds being allowed into France where the situation is even worse is very doubtful.
I have never been to the Blackpool show and would imagine it’s quite a weekend but the fact that they are finding somewhere to hold the auctions is more about pleasing the money men in the sport.

I'm afraid bird flu looks likely to continue being a problem and is going certainly going to affect shows and possibly racing again in some effected areas.
I'm afraid Money is now becoming the biggest driving factor in our sport as it is in many other sports today

Trev wrote: ↑Wed Jan 11, 2023 9:09 pm I'm afraid bird flu looks likely to continue being a problem and is going certainly going to affect shows and possibly racing again in some effected areas.
I'm afraid Money is now becoming the biggest driving factor in our sport as it is in many other sports today

Yes Trev money is having an effect on the sport, but the only way to make any money is in the selling of birds. The prize money is not going to pay for the stupid prices some birds are being brought for. All the time that people are willing to pay these prices the sellers will be there. The problem is that many fanciers haven’t a clue how to breed pigeons to build a family and rely on others to supply birds that they can race. These are usually the latest fad.

That's the truth, Andy.
Like most things these days, people want instant results and just go out and buy the latest 'good thing'.
Good on them I guess, but I rather have a family of pigeons of my own.

Murray wrote: ↑Wed Jan 11, 2023 10:06 pm That's the truth, Andy.
Like most things these days, people want instant results and just go out and buy the latest 'good thing'.
Good on them I guess, but I rather have a family of pigeons of my own.

That is the most satisfying thing to me. Probably due to being a stockman. Breeding my own family of pigeons over a number of years.

As we all now know, Blackpool Show is going ahead, with trade stands from all over the UK and Europe in attendance. The hotels are very busy and local traders are making their preparations for the 51st “Pigeon Weekend”, and although no pigeons will be allowed in the Winter Gardens, many trade stands and auctioneers have made studious adjustments to ensure they can still present to the fancy a fantastic array of bloodlines and products which we all like to consider buying. The Gala Evening is going ahead to ensure all the RPRA Award winners receive due accolade, and although it is not ideal to have the Winter Gardens devoid of our beloved pigeons, the show this year has highlighted to many the cameraderie of the pigeon sport and the meeting of friends over a pint or two, in a relaxed yet exciting atmosphere, to brighten the cold and dark winter days. We should not throw the baby out with the bathwater, and make the most of the social side of our hobby.

The Show Chairman David Trippett and I accepted a huge challenge on Monday lunchtime; one in which we both have given our full and determined attention, and after a lot of hard work we had managed to make full arrangements to hold our annual show racer competition in a marquee based at the Blackpool Pleasure Beach car park. Plans had been put into place to fully satisfy the APHA General Licence requirements, with full biosecurity and veterinary supervision to ensure all competitors could enter their birds if their home loft is not within a 10km Surveillance Zone. The quotations for each element were received and accumulated, with more reasonable alternatives vigorously explored, until we finally concluded that although holding a show racer competition with 1600 entries is possible under the circumstances, the accumulative cost is far more than we had budgeted for at this time, and we have reluctantly decided not to proceed with the marquee and therefore cancel the show racer competition for this year. We realise how devastating this must be for those who have carefully prepared their birds over the past few weeks, but please be aware that we have left no stone unturned to proceed at an affordable cost. It has been a roller-coaster of emotions for us both, with each progressive step spurring us on to greater endeavours, only to be followed by the crushing realisation of the financial implications. We feel for all those who have entered – they will receive a full refund of their entry fee, and we would like to give due recognition to the diligent administration work which has been done in the RPRA head office by those who have worked on the show racer entries.

We will however be continuing with all other aspects of the Blackpool weekend, and we have secured the use of the Solaris Centre on the New South Promenade, with special thanks to VisitBlackpool Tourist Information, the Winter Gardens Management Team and Blackpool Local Government, to enable fanciers to view pigeons for sale prior to auction, along with a secure location to adequately house these birds until their handover to the buyers as they leave Blackpool. It is most important that we all fully understand that pigeons from any sale or trade stand purchase are not to be distributed and held in locations within the Surveillance Zone under any circumstances. All vendors must ensure they hand over the birds to the buyers as they are leaving Blackpool, and record their full details with a signed declaration stating that they will not re-enter the restricted area with the bird – in short, they should be going home. It has taken lengthy consultations to reach this point, and for all future shows we must all be in full compliance of this requirement. If this is done, the weekend will be as enjoyable as ever and I look forward to seeing you all at Blackpool. We thank you for your support.

Chris Sutton, CEO RPRA
David Trippett, Show Chairman