Pete Kent
23-12-2007, 10:41 AM
Had a good day out on a club field meet on Friday.
I was flying a homebred female peregrine 'Maude', she was at the very top of her flying weight limit at 2lb 2oz.
She had two flights, the first was a stoop and tail chase on a hen pheasant which made it to cover but as she 'through up' she spotted a moorhen flying along a large drainage ditch and had a crack at that which also put into cover on the bankside so I called her in.
The second flight was to be on 'spec'. We all thought that a small spinney looked good for a walk through so I put Maude up and waited for her to mount, as she was on her way up Gary Biddiss's dog (the liver & white GSP) went on point just behind where you can see her sitting in the photo in the ploughed field, right next to where we were standing ! Gary said he could see it was a hen pheasant and said we'd better be quick as it won't stay there for long.
Maude came over at around 3 - 400 feet so I decided not to wait any longer and signaled Gary to flush the pheasant, the dog went straight in and flushed. The fezzy took off like a rocket, Maude came down and clumped the pheasant which was by this time half way across the large ploughed field and motoring fast, it hit the ground hard, Maude 'through up' and then dropped straight on it, by the time I had huffed and puffed across the furrows of the field she had killed it and was starting to pluck.
When I walked back to the boys holding pheasant and falcon they straight away started the usual mickey taking suggesting I check the fezzy for lead shot as it looked to them like it had been shot first ! also it was flying funny as if it had some advanced debilitating disease ! etc., etc..
I was flying a homebred female peregrine 'Maude', she was at the very top of her flying weight limit at 2lb 2oz.
She had two flights, the first was a stoop and tail chase on a hen pheasant which made it to cover but as she 'through up' she spotted a moorhen flying along a large drainage ditch and had a crack at that which also put into cover on the bankside so I called her in.
The second flight was to be on 'spec'. We all thought that a small spinney looked good for a walk through so I put Maude up and waited for her to mount, as she was on her way up Gary Biddiss's dog (the liver & white GSP) went on point just behind where you can see her sitting in the photo in the ploughed field, right next to where we were standing ! Gary said he could see it was a hen pheasant and said we'd better be quick as it won't stay there for long.
Maude came over at around 3 - 400 feet so I decided not to wait any longer and signaled Gary to flush the pheasant, the dog went straight in and flushed. The fezzy took off like a rocket, Maude came down and clumped the pheasant which was by this time half way across the large ploughed field and motoring fast, it hit the ground hard, Maude 'through up' and then dropped straight on it, by the time I had huffed and puffed across the furrows of the field she had killed it and was starting to pluck.
When I walked back to the boys holding pheasant and falcon they straight away started the usual mickey taking suggesting I check the fezzy for lead shot as it looked to them like it had been shot first ! also it was flying funny as if it had some advanced debilitating disease ! etc., etc..