ROYAL PIGEON RACING ASSOCIATION YEARLING RACE - RULES 2009
1. The race is to be named the “ROYAL PIGEON RACING ASSOCIATION 2009 YEARLING RACE”.
2. ‘The Committee’ is the Future of the Sport Committee in conjunction with T & J Davies.
Entry of Birds
3. The Entry Fee will be £150 per pigeon. Entries are limited to 180 pigeons and the allocation of spaces will be granted on a first come, first served basis, initially to entrants from the 2008 RPRA One Loft race. A £25 per pigeon non-refundable deposit will secure your place/s. Thereafter, purchasers of pigeons at the RPRA 2008 One Loft Auction will be allowed to fill any remaining places. Entries must be submitted by 1 December 2008. Full payment must be made by 31st January 2009. Cheques are to be made payable to ‘The RPRA’.
4. All pigeons must have been entered in the 2008 RPRA One Loft race and be rung with only one 2008 ring from any recognised Association/Union in Great Britain and Ireland.
5. All the relevant details of the electronic ring and registration ring will be entered onto a protected computer database.
6. Entries direct from the 2008 1LR will remain in the name of the General Manager. Pigeons purchased at the auction will be transferred to the new owner, then back to the General Manager for the duration of the Yearling race.
7. All pigeons will be vaccinated against Paramyxovirus and Pox by the loft managers.
8. No replacements/substitutions or refunds for lost birds or fatalities will be permitted.
Training Preparation
9. The loft will be maintained in a secure area and there will be a 24-hour security system in operation.
10. The pigeons will be housed in a luxury 60-foot loft, specially designed for this race. This loft will accommodate 180 in comfort.
11. The UNIKON electronic clocking system (manufactured by Deister Electronic) will be installed into the loft and used for all training and races.
12. All pigeons will be wing-stamped with the telephone number of the RPRA in Cheltenham to assist repatriation of strays. All birds entered into this race will be formally transferred to the General Manager.
13. The anticipated race programme will be confirmed by the Committee but is likely to consist of 4 inland and 2 overseas races with the final race at about 300 to 400 miles.
14. A proper pigeon transporter will be used for the training of these pigeons.
15. All the races will be dependent on the weather conditions and the relevant race controller, in consultation with the convoyer, will be the person to make the final decision regarding the liberation/release of the pigeons in his charge. There will be a comprehensive training programme, gradually building up the distance on a weekly basis. This will be strictly adhered to, so the pigeons have the proper education for the task in front of them but subject to the welfare of the birds and weather conditions prevailing.
16. Open Race licence numbers are SW01/09 to SW06/09.
Prize Money, Trophies and Pools
17. Subject to maximum entries the anticipated Prize Money on the four domestic Races will be as follows:
1st £300 2nd £200 3rd £100 £600 PER RACE x 4 = £2400 TOTAL
ANTICIPATED PRIZE FUND FOR THE CONTINENTAL RACES
Longest 1st - £5k 2nd - £1k 3rd - £500 4th £300 5th £200 6th £100
Ist race 1st - £1k 2nd - £250 3rd - £100
Ace pigeon (best over 3 longest races) £1000 Total Prize money £11850
18. There will a Trophy for the winner of the final race and diplomas will be awarded to the first 10 pigeons in each race.
19. There will be an “ACE PIGEON AWARD” for the pigeon with the best average over the three longest races. The winner will be the pigeon with the highest average velocity over the three races, based on time into distance basis. In the event of a tie, the pigeon winning the highest position in the “Final Race” will be judged the winner. A medallion and £1000 will be given to the owner of the winning pigeon. Any pigeon winning money in external organisations will be passed to the person who entered the pigeon.
20. All Races will close in accordance with the rules of the convoying organisation. If there are not enough pigeons clocked in race time to take the allocated Prize Money, then all the money not won will be added together and equally shared between those pigeons that have been clocked in race time. Any pigeons recording the same time will share any cash prize by adding the total of the place prizes, divided by the number of pigeons in the dead heat.
21. POOL MONEY will be paid on a 1 in 20 basis. (All pools will be less 10% for administration costs/FOS Fund). If there are insufficient pigeons in any of these races to win all of this pool money in any of these races, the remainder would be equally shared between those pigeons timed in those pools.
Publicity
22. News of the race will be published through http://www.rpra.org/ and information on training tosses and races will be accessible for all competitors, owners or the general public to log onto to get the results. Regular press releases will be issued in the “BRITISH HOMING WORLD” as soon as possible after each race and/or training races.
23. Race results will be published in the “BRITISH HOMING WORLD”. Objections must be lodged in writing to the General Manager within 7 days of publication in the British Homing World. Where objections to the results are upheld, the amended result will be published in the British Homing World as soon as possible, and again, objections must be lodged with the General Manager in writing within 7 days of publication.
Post Final Race
24. After the final race all the pigeons will be auctioned and after expenses have been deducted the entrant will receive 50% and the other 50% will go into a Future of the Sport fund. Separate rules for the auction will be published prior to the sale.
Committee Responsibilities
25. The General Manager and Jeremy Davies will be responsible for submitting entries to the relevant organisations. The General Manager will apply for membership of local and national clubs where appropriate.
26. A member of the committee will be present at the loft for the final race.
27. The decision of the Committee is final.