Three from the district of forchheim take part in the olympics. Yes, three pigeons will compete in the international olympic long-distance flight on 11. August in london. The international racing pigeon federation FCI has this "marginal competition" in mind announced in cooperation with the olympic committee, as deaf people are a symbol of peace worldwide.
On 7. August she and her "colleagues" will be from kriegenbrunn and erlangen-bruck loaded into a pigeon transporter in bischberg, which takes them to rotterdam for transport. With special food they have built up fat reserves. Electrolytes, as marathon runners keep it, were in their drinking water.
The pigeons belong to georg drummer from kirchehrenbach. Drummer is part of the "hard core of the long haul", female reinhardt gebhardt, his offspring colleague from "gut flug herzogenaurach. Both are not worried about distance. "I always take part in the bavaria marathon. This year we started in chadeaudun, blois and laval in france." Distances between 750 and 900 kilometers.
Worries about the weather
He is more concerned about the weather and especially the wind at the armel canal and the north sea. Especially because no one knows which flight path the birds will take: a detour along the coast to the narrowest point or the direct route "following the compass. But so far no route went over the sea at the bavarian marathon. "But I want to try out how far it goes", drummer cites the following motive. And olympia was more important to him than the 1000-kilometer distance from montauban, to which on thursday fancier colleagues "used" their pigeons in bischberg, so loaded into the transport vehicle.
Pigeon breeders never know which route the birds will take, because they don't attach tracking devices to their animals. In good wind they can fly 100 kilometers per hour, but at night in complete darkness they rest. Gebhardt has long since obtained the right to take part in the olympic flight. 15 euros entry fee per pigeon. The transport costs are included.