NEHU Queens Cup Roye 7th June
NEHU Queens Cup race to be flown from ROYE.
Our first channel race from ARRAS on 27th May gave us a good indication of what can and what cannot be achieved in regards to the number of birds that can be marked and how to complete all relevant paper work for Vets and Shipping Agency to comply with the regulations for export and import.
Just over 1,540 birds were race marked basketing from 9am until 3pm.
All paper work for vets and shipping agency were supposed to be completed by 4.30pm.
This was unachievable due to the amount of paper work involved.
Luckily our Vet Ian Taylor was on hand to help assist and Shipping Agency pulled out all the stops for our birds to have documentation for the French authorities and we have identified where we can make small procedural changes to improve the process.
Therefore the 230 lofts who are signed up for channel racing will be guaranteed 8 Entries placed in correct order on entry sheets. Cocks first, followed by hens (the same procedure as for Arras). All members to put there reserve birds in the correct order on entry sheets, so any spare capacity will be registered in spread sheets.
Looking at the amount we had away for the first race with many lofts sending less than there guaranteed number all reserve birds went to the race, hopefully the same will be possible for the next race.
THINGS THAT NEED ADDRESSING BY YOU THE MEMBERS
1.Baskets for your birds must be brought or already at Sappers corner.
(No baskets will mean no birds marked for the race) if your baskets have been dropped off it is your responsibility to find them. If your racing organisations panniers do no fit the UNC transporter, it is your responsibility to make arrangement with a Fed whose panniers do to provide capacity for your entries.
2. Members must bring there NEHU entry sheet with them and all ring numbers be correct, other wise will not be allowed in baskets. Due to the ring numbers having to be typed into spreadsheets (along with the basket number each pigeon is placed into) to meet the import/export regulations it is not possible to accept additional entries or late substitutions which have not been declared on the entry sheet.
3. Members bringing multiple baskets from different lofts within their Club/Fed must make sure they have 5 or 6 helpers to help assist race marking birds, basketing and sealing baskets. It is not acceptable for 1 member to arrive with the pigeons for their Fed and expect others to mark all the pigeons.
4. ETS clocking systems, printers (and sufficient paper) must be brought and a member who knows how to set them up should attend to operate them unless prior arrangement has been made with another Fed to use their equipment has been made. There were far too many members just standing back thinking some one else will do it.
5. All entries must be in to Union office by midnight Sunday before basketing, they must be clear and correct. Members sending by post need to make sure they have posted with plentry time to spare, if not received in the office in the saturday post they may be refused if there is not sufficient time to type them into the spreadsheets. It would help enormously if all entries can be done on the .pdf form available from the NEHU website and emailed out to Feds to send to members. It would be far better if they were emailed into the NEHU office as the ring numbers are clear and can be read easily. Some of the handwritten entry forms were very difficult to read and if the ring numbers in the spreadsheet do not match the life ring the pigeon due to the form being unclear the pigeon will have to be rejected at marking and still paid for.
6. Once you have entered your birds they must be paid for via your racing organisation regardless whether they have actually gone to the race or not. The simplest way is to just pay for the full number in advance to your Fed.
7. All necessary documents must be brought with you each time you basket:
CPH Number printed
Proof of registration with vet practice
Loft Declaration Form
Vaccination Form signed by 2 club officials
Attestation Form supplied and signed by the vet on their loft visit
If possible please place them in plastic folders that can be read without the need for the documents to all be pulled out and sorted into order and checked, this will speed up the process.
8. Members must step up at the station to help and assist. The first session was manned by volunteers and a request was made for members who intended to compete from France to volunteer to help out and notify the Office of their availability. Unfortunately no one stepped forward to assist in the running of the marking apart from those who had already volunteered. Some of those will not be available to assist going forwards or don't compete from the Channel and stepped in to ensure the race went ahead, if members sending to France do not step in to help run the marking tables etc. pigeons will have to be turned away if they are not marked by the scheduled time the paperwork has to be signed off by the Vet and signed/stamped and sent to the Shipping Agent.
Some fanciers will already be aware that as a result of the process not being followed correctly marking station in the Midlands 400 of the entries were refused permission to leave the Country due to incorrect paper work. If they had not been removed from the transporter the whole convoy would have been rejected at the port
1 or 2 people more computer literate people with familarity of MS Excel are needed to help Karen in the office with a laptop to input the basket numbers into the preprepared spreadsheets of entries would be a great help. If not then someone will have to be hired in which will increase the costs therefore increasing entry charges to members.
Vice President
Richard Wade.