Pigeon Fanciers Society of NSW Inc

Judging at the 2010

PFS Show

By Layne Gardner, Colton, California USA

June 2010 was a month not soon forgotten. My wife Kenna and I had the opportunity to travel to Australia and take in a couple of pigeon shows and see the sights. This was our first trip to Oz but I hope not our last.

After judging at Adelaide and seeing the tourist sites, we flew to Sydney where we were met by John Hanson, our host during this portion of the trip. John set us up in a lovely resort near his home and a person couldn't ask for better accommodations. In the morning John picked us up for a tour of his spacious lofts and a chance to see many differing breeds in wonderful quality. The racing pigeons obviously are dear to his heart and a significant amount of loft space is dedicated to them. I was allowed to examine at length a number of breeds, including some excellent Pigmy and Brunner Pouters. Since I was scheduled to judge the Pigmies, I was skittish about looking through the birds in the loft until John set my mind at ease by informing me that he was the only exhibitor of Pigmies. The afternoon was spent at the nearby beach, watching the feeding of pelicans and enjoying moderate weather. John was a wonderful host and showed us a grand time. I am a bit envious of the loft space John has available and also of the fact that he was his lofts cleaned daily. Now that's the way to keep and breed pigeons!

The next day we were joined by Kyle Christensen of Utah, one of our pigeon friends of some years. We spent our time with John's son and his family at the nearby reptile park where we fed kangaroos, wallabies, emus, ducks, pigeons, etc. Like many pigeon hobbyists, we enjoy nearly all types of animals. I must mention that one of the most impressive things for me was the bird wildlife. Although I breed solely pigeons, I enjoy looking at all types of birds, including various hookbills and exotic doves. I had lots to see, with my favorite being the Rosellas. Beautiful!

Finally, it was show time and we entered the show hall. A local club owning its own show building is unheard of in the states. What a fortunate situation to be in. At both shows I attended, the cages were set up and available at all times, allowing for minimal time to get a show underway and cleaned up and also reducing the number of team members needed to put on the show.

One of the first groups of pigeons I judged were Pigmy Pouters. I wanted to do them in the morning, while they were still fresh and in the mood to perform. As I said earlier, I had looked at this same group at John's loft and had a fair idea of some possible choices for best of breed. There was an exceptional blue young cock bird that had two of the most outstanding legs I've ever seen on a pigmy. He was rather timid, staying in a corner of his holding pen while I walked through the aisles cooing at the birds. After going through and placing the majority of the pigmies I finally got to the young cock bird and was pleasantly surprised to see him “wake up” and begin performing. His great legs accompanied by nice body style and round globe earned him best of breed. Unfortunately, when it was time to select best of show, he became timid again and would not show. Such is the frustration with performing breeds.

Next, I went through the Color Pigeons and Frillbacks. There are some real challenges in Color Pigeons and achieving perfect markings with white barring, free from bronziness or peppering requires great skill and dedication. These breeds are not for the faint of heart and congratulations go to those who are willing to persevere in upgrading the quality of the various breeds. The Frillbacks have the basis for some very nice birds. The best was a red grizzle with good curl. As with most Frillbacks, a bit better closure is needed in the bar area along with more structure at the wing butts. The breeder is definitely on the right track.

The Archangels were good representatives of the breed, with the best being a dark bronze blackwing. The challenge is to extend the band of iridescence down the feather to result in greater sheen. The champion was a fine pigeon with good bronze color all the way through and deep green, iridescent wings.

I had heard that Australia's English Shortface Tumblers were of above average quality and I was not disappointed. Beak setting, head shape, station and type were all representative of very good show pigeons. I was pleased to select a wonderful kite as champion. There were a few birds showing some crookedness to the beaks, but as a group, these were very, very good.

Czech Ice Pouters are a breed not often seen. The quality of the birds exhibited was impressive. In most stocks that I've seen, the globing ability is very poor. However, I enjoyed seeing birds with good personalities that not only globed well, but had nice ice color as well.

The Tagenroger Tumblers and Old German Owls both had nice groups of birds shown. For the most part, markings were in order and the type was correct. Champions from both breeds were good examples of their respective varieties.

The Dragoons were well represented with some very good birds in a number of colors. A young red bar grizzle had the best head of any bird in the breed, but was lacking in body. Champion was a difficult  choice between two blue bars. The frontrunner tired out at the end and would no longer station, so best was given to the other fine blue bar. There were good birds throughout the classes but many birds would benefit from a bit of beak filing.

Perhaps the most difficult group of birds I evaluated was the Egyptian Swifts. There is considerable difference of opinion whenever one discusses these middle eastern breeds. Note that the Swifts are a group of breeds, rather than a single breed. This accounts for variation in beak and neck length as well as overall length of each bird. Taking this into consideration I judged the birds based on the standard at hand. The array of colors found in the Swifts is unusual and striking. The frosty neck ring in combination with various bronze factors and andalusian results in a bird that is a ready flyer and also visually attractive. The best went to a bird with good color, type, head, and beak.

I appreciated the services of my steward, Walter Hitchell throughout the show. He not only helped with the paperwork but we had a nice visit along the way. We both breed Brunner Pouters and have an interest in pigeon genetics, so it was lovely time discussing things.

Saturday night, a large group of us were treated to a seafood feast courtesy of John Hanson. Prawns, crab, various fish—everything a person could want. Great food, great company! It was fun to meet new friends and have the opportunity to visit at length in a casual setting. I found Australians to be a friendly and engaging people, eager to enjoy a pleasant evening.

On Sunday morning, after going through the assigned breeds, Kyle and I were asked to select best of show and reserve best of show. We examined the winners of each breed and after considerable thought we chose the Jacobin to be best of show and the Brunner Pouter reserve of show.

Congratulations to Clint DeBoni and John Hanson on their wins! Overall, I must say that I am impressed with the quality of pigeons in Australia—especially considering the limitations on importations and expense involved. The ability of Australia's pigeon fanciers to achieve excellence is impressive and it should be obvious that the Australians can hold their own with anyone in the pigeon world.

After the show, Garry Edwards generously drove us to our hotel in Sydney, then after dropping off our luggage, took us to see the sights in the city. Of course, being a music teacher one of the highlights was visiting the Sydney Opera House. Thanks Garry, for spending the afternoon and evening with us.

A trip to Australia wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Great Barrier Reef. We took the opportunity to fly up to Cairnes and do some snorkeling at the reef. In a word, wow!

Our thanks to all those who helped us to have such an enjoyable time. I look forward to returning! For those coming to the San Diego National in California, I look forward to seeing you there. Until then!

JUDGING IN Australia

2010

By Kyle Christensen, Utah, USA

I have just come in from the 100* F heat that we are having here in Utah. I have been working in the garden, while I have been working in the garden I have been pondering my trip to Australia.  It brings a big huge smile to me face when I think of my trip to AU (did do OK with my Australian in that sentence mates?). The food, the weather, the people, the beaches, the beaches, the beaches, did I mention the beaches, the wildlife ( not Clint DeBoni at dinner silly) everything about my trip was just grand. I have never experienced such hospitality anywhere in the World. Not that I have been everywhere in the World, but I have been a few places. Now to the pigeon shows.

What a delight both shows were for me. I am amazed that the pigeon clubs have ownership of the buildings where the shows are held. What an awesome priviledge it is to have this. As far as I know it is unique to  AU. I know there are some racing pigeon clubs in America that own clubhouses, but that is not a building large enough to host a pigeon  show. Make sure that you take care of this privledge so the future generations will have a lasting legacy. I am not one of those people that cries wolf that the hobby is dying. It will survive and flourish. Sure it will ebb and flow, everything does, but we will have pigeon shows for years to come. I was a little disheartened to learn that some individuals did not show at both shows because of some personality conflicts. This happens everywhere and it is a sad part of the human existence. You have to remember that there is only one side on this round Planet of ours, when you choose not to show because of old so and so you are only depriving yourself of the fun, and hurting the club financially. It nevers hurts the other guy. There is an old saying that says “if you seek for revenge, you better dig 2 graves”. So I guess the moral of the story is, put down your shovels guys and start showing your pigeons.

The fantails I judged at the PFS show had some challenges to overcome.  Steve Pithers is doing a great job keeping them alive in spite of some extreme personalities in the breed. Head setting need serious attention. The best  non marked fantail on the day was a blue, it was straight in the pocket, small and had a better set of legs than the others. The red saddle was the best fantail at the show. It was a good pigeon, nicely marked and  well balanced.  The Brunners were a nice lot of pigeons overall. Some of the birds were not prepped for the show, which I don’t understand feeding and caring for your birds all year long and then not spending the time to prep them for the shows. It’s like running a marathon, and not crossing the finish line. Some of the brunners are World class. I have traveled to Europe and seen the best  Germany has to offer in Brunners and a few of the Brunners I judged are on par with the top Brunners in Germany. I really liked the kite Brunner young hen. She never stopped showing and represents all the refined features a top Brunner should have. She carried the day all the way to reserve in show. A wonderful Brunner indeed.

Next up were the Nuns. I have bred Nuns off and on since I was a kid so I can appreciate a good Nun. I was very excited to see the crest height and the wealth of feather in the manes on some of the Nuns. Nuns as a bred a plagued by axe marks and it was nice to see Nuns with well developed manes. The winning Nun was a wonderful Young Black hen owned by Terry Stevenson. She was a hand ful when handled which I happen to really like. Nothing like picking up a pigeon that has a real body, not a hand full of feathers.  I may have raised some eybrows, oops wrong word to use when talking about judging Nuns, when I picked a non traditional color as a reserve champion Nun. The Kite hen  had all the great features the champ had, just not to the level of the champion hen. Next I judged the Muffed and LFCL Tumblers. They were few in number, but some very good birds were on display.  Champion was a black LFCL hen. Champion muff was a black teager cock. He was not the most powerful bird, but he very good outlook and station.

I waited to judge the Jacobins last so the Clint DeBoni could finish his judging assigments so as to be able to view the judging. I was very impressed by the quality of the Jacobins that I judged. I was looking for the modern type Jacobin with the proper leg setting that allows the bird to display it features to the fullest. What a gem the Champion was. A red young cock of Clint DeBoni’s had the leg setting I was looking for . Because of the proper leg setting the bird was like a statue for the entire time. It was porcelain smooth as well. The feather fit was precise. The Yellow reserve champion also of Clint’s was a masterpiece too. In time the Yellow may be the better bird. I liked the almond jacobins I judged. We do not see the amount of break in them in the US like they displayed in OZ. Being a Norwich breeder I anticipated a good showing of Norwich. It was a let down to only have 2 shown, but I have to tell you the Champion was a very good Norwich. Isaac remember what I taught you, long straight slender smooth legs, narrow shoulders so the globe can break from all angles, and a long neck so the head can be on top of the globe allowing the Norwich to have full control of the globe at all times. Your Champ is a good one, breed more of them like that one and you will be the man to beat.

Best in show came down to four pigeons. A Carneau, an Archangel, the Brunner, and the Red Jacobin. At this point of the competition it is an honor for all the breeders to have their birds left up for contention. There are no losers at this point, only personal preferences. I loved the personality of the kite brunner, but you could not fault the red jacobin standing like a statue for 20 minutes. He was true showmen at this point. Layne and I debated back and forth between the 2 birds for a few minutes and we both decided the Jacobin was the best pigeon of the show. Another day and we may have shuffled them around a bit. To all the breeders of those birds you have something to be proud of.

At this point I have to tell you how impressed I was with the awards for the show. You have to know that having a sponser like John Hanson is a real blessing for the club. I have not seen the quality of awards, nor the numbers of awards at a pigeon show ever. What a magnainmous gentleman John is to give the amount of money he gives to the PFS club for awards. How special it is to have a man of the genorosity in your club. If every club could only have a John Hanson.

While staying at John’s I read an article in an ANPA magazine written by a Carlos Mendoza of the US. Apparently Carlos is a Carrier Breeder of some fame.  Let me diverge a bit here.  Here in Utah where I live we have these legends about these ‘Lost Spanish Gold Mines” that are guarded by indians. Legend has it that if you find one of the mines you will be captured by the Indians and thrown in the mine never to be seen again. A few trusting souls have been shown the mines, legend has it,  according to their eyewitness accounts there is enough gold to pave the streets of New York 1 foot thick with pure gold. Many a peson has lost their  life looking for these mines. In fact, true story, 3 men dissapeared just this July searching for one of the mines, they have not been found at this writing. So back to Carlos. Upon reading the the article I decided to find Mr. Mendoza. So far I have not been able to locate him. Knowing the value of a Carrier I promise to continue the search for Carlos Mendoza. I hope I can do it before he dies. How fortunate I could be to have Carrier from such a legendary breeder like Carlos. Wish me luck in my quest, adios  I have to go fill my canteen for my next excursion.