G.N.E.O.
THE USA’s GREAT NORTHEAST OHIO RACE
Exceptional Young Bird Futurity Racing
By Coop Kohli (coopkohli@yahoo.com)
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| Lee Kohli, AU Lakes Zone Director |
26 Essentials of a Great Race
What makes a futurity race
great? Good men, first and foremost, with an appreciation for the uniqueness
of the great bird, and a sense of longing for the sport’s great traditions. From there, (1) it needs to have an impressive number of birds competing. (2)
It needs to be a great social occasion, and (3) be known and respected nationally. (4) It needs to be noteworthy relative to prizes, and have a payout
that spreads the wealth generously down the sheet. (5)
It needs to be able to be won by any prepared
participant, and unable to be dominated from one year to the next by any one
player. (6) Its victory needs to be awesome so that a winner might say, “I
can’t believe I actually won that race!”
(7) The race needs to be
affordable to the normal Joe who pays for the race, and who struggles to
stay within a working family’s weekly budget. (8) It needs to have a
reputation for honesty and timeliness, tempered with boldness when firmness is necessary. (9)
The race must thrive because of exceptional accounting and money handling
procedures while (10) being governed
by widely available race rules. (11)
It needs to draw in the best genetics from across the country making its
competitiveness meaningful. (12)
It needs to generate a sense of excitement among the participants that
make it possible, (13) and to be
championed by those that steer it because they love doing it, not because they
intend to profit from it. (14) It needs to be implemented by an
enthusiastic and experienced group of volunteers. (15)
It needs to be managed by a technologically astute race committee, and open to the
wide range of clocking systems used throughout the sport. (16)
It needs a comfortable, central location for shipping, supported by a volunteer
staff that makes race-entry and race-closing bird-safe, mistake free, timely
and welcoming. (17) It needs good shipping equipment that is in keeping with its
other qualities. (18) It needs honest, nonparticipating drivers that are ‘pigeon
men’ buying into the idea that the race is special, and that integrity and bird
care and is front and center. (19) It needs to be relevant to the sport’s
improvement, (20) supported by
superior auctions so participants can improve genetics, and (21) by seminars, and other learning
opportunities that improve race preparation and loft management techniques for those
willing to struggle in the pursuit of victory.
(22) The race needs to have a
long track record of success and satisfaction, and (23) needs to be flown on an off-racing day so unexpected
influences and intersections with neighboring combines and their own flocks of
racing pigeons can be eliminated. (24) A well run race needs to encourage
public critique, and to be massaged constantly between seasons by race managers,
adjusting for little things that make the race more competitive and fun for
everybody. (25) Then, finally, when they really know what they’re doing, they
need to do something about that dreadful wind!
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| GNEO Race 2011 |
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| GNEO Race 2011 |
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| GNEO Race organizers: Jan Capan, Bob Tauscher, & Pat Quilter |
The Breeder’s Cup
One of the best kept secrets
in pigeon racing is that there actually is a race in Ohio that measures up to many
of these suggestions, and it is championed by a great
club that seems always to be at the center of things positive in Ohio
pigeon racing circles. The men of the Greater
Akron Racing Club, (G.A.R. Club), with Jim Bedell as President, and Pat Quilter
as ABC Concourse Race Secretary, have been nudging and motivating improvement into
the hobby, regionally, for years. “Improvement doesn’t just happen. It requires generous contributions of your
personal time, occasionally your personal funds, and sometimes it gets done
without much appreciation from your friends.
But, you do it anyway, knowing it is necessary, and the right thing to
do”, said the 66 year old Bedell.
The GAR club has
always been noted by neighboring clubs for its leadership and originality. Debate is sometimes fast and furious in the
Akron Club, but from this intense discussion comes great direction and strategy. Under their guardianship, the GNEO Futurity Race
is run like a sound business, progressing with an understanding that profit and
innovation are both necessary, and not menacing. For example, in
2010, the new Breeder’s Cup format was started by the club as a way to redefine
and support ‘managed’ increases in out-of-area participation, leading to 32%
growth in the size of the race compared to the previous year. Growth in the race is planned and
measured, while individual racing participants continue to be respected and
appreciated. Determination, knowledge
and hard work characterize these men.
All in northeastern Ohio
benefit, and very few in Ohio
think about where regional pigeon racing would be without the exceptional
efforts of this great group of hard-working men and women.
(You can learn more about
the GNEO Breeders Cup program for
OOA flyers, or other important details about the race at www.gneorace.com.)
