EXACTLY WHY OUR
SPORT IS IN DECLINE
By Jim Brown Edmond, Oklahoma Today I find myself troubled
by the anxieties expressed on the pigeon talk lines and discussion forums on
the Internet. Concern that perhaps the parent
organizations are failing the local clubs and members, asking too much by
increasing fees, not doing enough to better the sport, etc. are topics which we
have addressed with one another from time to time. Many of us believe that the elected and paid staff of such
organizations have given and continue to give of themselves for the betterment
of our sport. Decline in current members
and lack of new members coming into, and more importantly, remaining in the
sport beyond a year or two is a real worry to our associates. One needs only to look around at a
convention or gathering at a special race event to realize that it is the old
timers, the snow on the mountain crowd if you will, that comprises the majority
of the active membership in such groups. Some make honest inroads on
sport promotion by unique awareness efforts and give of themselves and their
time on behalf of our hobby and it's well being. There have been, and continue to be, excellent grass roots ideas
and efforts arising from within the ranks of our fellow flyers, which we
should, all applaud. I retired to the Oklahoma
countryside to enjoy the local people and my pigeons, which I feel blessed to
be able to do on a daily basis. A few
visitors to our simple surroundings and lifestyle have compared it to "a
life sentence without parole" but I find the faint breeze rippling through
the blackjacks and scrub oaks much to my liking. These days I have few causes to champion or wheels to reinvent
but one of particular concern is our sport and the ills confronting it today
around the globe. Why are these ills such a
mystery? Do we lack the inner honesty
to address and rectify the wrongs, which are right before us? Is the need to profit from our fellow
fanciers at every opportunity so compelling that sportsmanship and ethics are
forgotten? Are each of us unknowingly
or knowingly our own worst enemy when it comes to the survival of a sport we
are purported to cherish? Do we kill our own young? Each of the above questions
has troubled me for some time… and time is something in abundance for me. I visit with pigeon folks from down the
block and in distant countries daily thanks to the Internet. Decline and demise of the sport is always a
topic at some juncture along the path of conversation it seems. It has been said that all
roads lead to Rome. Perhaps all roads
lead to the awareness of some very basic truths regarding the future of the
sport. Two of the finest articles on
basic truths that I've read in the last several years can be found by clicking
on http://www.racingpigeonmall.com/loft/articles/
. Indulge and enlighten
yourself by reading What is Sportsmanship by Dr. Russell Gough of Pepperdine
University and Is The U. S. Going The Way of Taiwan? by Alex Cornella. Both
articles are worth several readings.
Defined within each are keys pertaining directly to many of the problems
threatening the future our sport today.
Are we are able to honestly come to grips with these ills and act on
them? Also adding some very valid
perspective are the articles A Champion of What? by John Vance and the always valid writings of Ad
Schaerlaeckens. "Wash the sand
from the eyes of a people who are brainwashed by a handful of
pocketfillers" borders on the ultimate in profundity! Hard to imagine how a few
articles could hold the keys to revitalizing our sport on a worldwide scope
isn't it? Yet each of these scribes
have offered the concepts do it… the solution is in our willingness and ability
to take the information and apply it honestly.
Knowledge is not knowledge until it is put to use! |