Points System:

The Gold Country Challenge will award Prizes to the Top Overall Ace Pigeons of the Four Races.  The Ace Pigeon Standings will be determined by the total number of points each individual pigeon accumulates over the four races.  I have developed a unique Points Structure that I feel will truly determine the best and most consistent pigeons of the four races.  This system has worked very well in the first four years of the race series.  This structure is based on rewarding single birds, the first drop, and differentiating between drops of birds.  This system really takes into context how a bird did on a drop in relation to other birds in that specific race whereas average speed only goes by arrival time and traditional points only by clocking order. 

This system is somewhat of a hybrid between traditional points and average speed without the flaws that either of those systems sometime have on smash races or fast races.  I have also weighted this system to place a little more value on a birds performance in the Final Race as I think most people would agree that a good finish on the 300+ Mile race is important in determining the overall ace pigeon.  Often times with average speed if the first race is a smash and the slowest, the first short race will actually be the biggest determining factor in the final results.   I realize it's probably not the easiest system to follow, but it definitely works and this system is a much better judge of the best performers than traditional points or average speed systems that don't always measure how a bird did in context to the other birds in the race.  If you have any questions let me know. 

Points Formula:  (Small Revisions Made in October 2011 Based Upon Number of Birds Entered)

• 1st Place Points in Each Race are: Race 1 = 200 Points, Race 2 = 275 Points, Race 3 = 280 Points, Race 4 = 350 Points

• All Birds "on a Drop" receive 1/2 Point Less per position based on trapping order (275, 274.5, 274, 273.5, etc.)

• There are different point intervals for 2nd drop and so on for each race (See Chart Below)

• A "Drop" is defined as a single bird or group of birds arriving and trapping before next arrivals land

• "Arrivals" is also a key word.  Arrivals are defined as a bird or group of birds clearly arriving in the air before another bird or birds appear

• Clocking Order and times to be recorded with Unikon Champ+ System and WinCompanion Software

• Pigeons that Clock at the Exact Same Time (to the second) will receive equal points and be scored as a tie

• Points will continue until last arriving pigeon is clocked in "race time" (2 days) or points are exhausted

• All races will be considered 2 Day-Races for "Race Time".  Birds arriving after 2 days will receive 0 points

• Once the points reach the level of 50 points, each drop after the initial 50 will receive 1 point less (same drop 0.5 points still apply)

• The above helps ensure that the points don't run out too early and late returnees get a few points.

See Formula Below for the 4 Races:

 

Drop #	Race 1 - 165 Miles	Race 2 - 241 Miles	Race 3 - 245 Miles	Race 4 - 305 Miles
1st Drop	1st Place = 200 Points   Birds on drop are awarded 0.5 Points less per clocking position based on trapping order.	1st Place = 275 Points   Birds on drop are awarded 0.5 Points less per clocking position based on trapping order.	1st Place = 280 Points   Birds on drop are awarded 0.5 Points less per clocking position based on trapping order.	1st Place = 350 Points   Birds on drop are awarded 0.5 Points less per clocking position based on trapping order.
2nd Drop	-20 Points From End of Drop 1 Trapping Order Points Apply	-25 Points From End of Drop 1 Trapping Order Points Apply	-25 Points From End of Drop 1 Trapping Order Points Apply	-30 Points From End of Drop 1 Trapping Order Points Apply
3rd Drop	-10 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-15 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-15 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-15 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply
4th Drop 5th Drop 6th Drop and On	-5 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-5 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-5 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply	-10 Points From End of Previous Drop Trapping Order Points Apply
40 Point Mark	Once the points reach 50, all drops decrease by only 1 point and 0.5 Points for birds still on same drop	Once the points reach 50, all drops decrease by only 1 point and 0.5 Points for birds still on same drop	Once the points reach 50, all drops decrease by only 1 point and 0.5 Points for birds still on same drop	Once the points reach 50, all drops decrease by only 1 point and 0.5 Points for birds still on same drop

Below is an Example/Sample Race Report of How the Points Will Be Awarded:

Sample/Example Race # 1            Lovelock, NV  -  165 Miles

Traditional points systems lower by 1 point for each position regardless of where the bird clocked in relation to the winner or a drop.  The problem with a traditional system is if you say get 5 birds on a drop, the last bird to trap on that drop only gets 1 more point than the next bird/drop, even if that bird was clocked significantly later.  Another scenario would be if a single bird comes all alone to win the race, normally it would only receive 1 point more than the 2nd place bird.  In most other forms of racing there are added bonus points for taking 1st and winning the race and I feel the same should apply to the winning pigeon/1st drop.  Some races also use average speed to determine Ace Pigeon.  The problem with average speed is that one bad race can completely take out birds that did great in all of the other races or likewise elevate a bird that was late in every other race.  One isolated race should never determine the outcome of what is the best pigeon over a series of races.  I've seen a few major one loft races where the first short race turns out to be a disaster with few day birds and then the remaining races are all normal races with good speeds and plenty of day birds.  What happens in this scenario is that the first short smash race ends up essentially determining the results of the entire series and an ace pigeon should never be determined from the first and/or shortest race.

The Points Structure of the Gold Country Challenge was designed to reward the winning birds/first drop and reward single birds.  It is also a benefit in that even if your comes on a drop and traps last within that drop, it will still receive a significant amount more points than the next bird or drop to arrive.