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Diary

May 1st, 2012.......Birds are arriving almost every day. The birds in the loft good great, thanks for sending high quality birds, it makes my job easier. Don't forget to notify me before you send your birds, I want to make sure I am available to receive your birds. We are getting new teams that did not reserve, this is fantastic, we expect a lot of teams to show up during May since other One Lofts claim they are not accepting birds after the end of April. We keep our delivery period open until the beginning of June. In the past we have found that the later arriving birds do every bit as good as the early arrivals. Our Empire Classic has a variety of pooling opportunities, we have bird pooling, Master Breeder nomination, loft auction and Master Breeder bird auction, on race day you can even pool some other fanciers bird. We DO NOT take a cut of the pools, 100% is paid out to the winners, in fact running the pools and auctions cost us money. We run the pools etc for two reasons, number one is because most fanciers love the pooling and loft and bird auctions, it makes for a fun time on race weekend. Secondly we run the various pools etc to put more money up for grabs on race weekend, not only do you have the prize money to fly for you also have the pools etc. The pools, loft and bird auctions etc can equal the total prize money therefore almost doubling the total amount of money that is up for grabs. When you are looking at One Lofts to enter and you are comparing prize payouts don't forget to factor in whether the One Loft has pooling or not.  You do not have to worry about bird pooling and loft auctions at this time BUT you you have to think about the Master Breeder when you deliver your birds. Last year, on race weekend, several fanciers asked me how do I get in the Master Breeder, I had to tell them they were four months too late. Your Master Breeder must be entered when you deliver your birds. Keep those birds coming, we are looking forward to a great year with a large amount of money to be won. Cheers..........................jim

 

SUNDAY, APRIL 22ND, 2012......Birds are arriving everyday, so the work has begun. A very nice group of birds so far. Don't forget, if you are delivering birds please call ahead to make sure I will be home. If you are shipping birds by air please sent via Air Canada to Kingston, Ontario unless you have made other arrangements with me. If you are from the USA please call Dale Zehr and make arrangements with him before you send via US Postal Service. Keep those entries coming, we accept birds up to June 1st so if you have some extra birds send them along to us. Cheers............................jim

 

MONDAY, APRIL 9TH, 2012.......The Empire Classic lofts are ready for birds, we will start receiving birds this Friday April 13th. If you are delivering birds in person please call me ahead of time to make arrangements for your delivery, I need the day and time of delivery to ensure that I will be home. If you email me it must be at least 24 hours ahead of planned delivery, I only check my email once a day. If you are giving me less than 24 hours notice please call me at 613 475 6052, I am home most of the time BUT not always so please call ahead. Birds sent to me via air must come via Air Canada to Kingston, Ontario. Please email me the flight information as soon as the birds are in the air so that I can be at the airport when they arrive. The total entry cost is payable when your birds are delivered, please make cheques payable to "Empire Classic". Your Master Breeder bird (one bird per team) must be selected and paid for when your team is delivered. Full Master Breeder rules and info are on our "HOME" page. Don't forget that there is only HST / GST on perch fee only, nothing on the prize portion of entry or the Master Breeder. Therefore here are the 5 bird team costs including HST:  USA, ONTARIO, QUEBEC, NEW BRUNSWICK = $ 1048.75 (with Master Breeder $ 1148.75).......BRITISH COLUMBIA = $ 1045 (with Master Breeder $ 1145).........ALBERTA, MANITOBA, SASKATCHEWAN = $ 1018.75 (with Master Breeder $ 1118.75). Keep spreading the word about the Empire Classic to your friends, there is still lots of room. If you are having a super breeding season why not send an extra team. Don't forget to make arrangements with me before you send or deliver your birds. Cheers.................................jim  

 

THURSDAY, 5TH,2012.....Bernie Bedard will deliver his 2012 Empire Classic birds on Monday, April 16, anyone wishing to send their Empire Classic birds with Bernie please give him a call to make arrangements. Please don't forget about the Master Breeder Award, it is a super opportunity to win great prize money and you do not have to be at or near the top of the race result. 100% of Master Breeder entry cost is paid out to the top Master Breeder birds, see detailed rules on our "HOME" page. Bernie has donated a beautiful silver cup to the best Master Breeder bird / fancier. See photos of the Master Breeder Cup.

 

 

SATURDAY, MARCH 31ST, 2012.........HST credits for 2011 are posted on the "RESERVATIONS" list. As promised  HST collected last year on all pooling and the prize portion of the entry fee has been credited to your 2012 entries, please see the reservations list for your credits. We are happy to provide $11,555.55 in HST over payments to our last year participants. This year there will be HST collected for "perch fees only", this will reduce your costs and greatly reduce my work load in book keeping. You will notice on the "reservations" list that I have credited the over payment to each team that was eligible for a refund. I will be updating this DIARY much more frequently now that the "action" is about to begin, so stay tuned so that you do not miss any information. Cheers....................jim 

 

Monday, March 27th, 2012.......IMPORTANT NEWS FLASH......we have important news regarding the HST that we charge our customers. First of all let me tell you that the HST we collected last year was based on information we received from Revenue Canada. Last year other Canadian One Lofts were not charging any HST, we knew this was wrong so we obtained information regarding HST collection so that we were abiding by Canadian Revenue Canada laws. The information we received last year was as follows, if our gross annual revenue was over $30,000 we had to collect HST. We were told that HST must be collected on all incoming income which means entry, pools, etc. We were also told that the amount of HST collected depended on where our customers lived, the HST would be based on the home Province of our customers, ie British Columbia have 12% HST so I collect 12% HST from them, Alberta has 5% GST so I collect 5% from them, Ontario has 13% HST so I collect 13% from Ontario customers and so on. Because we were the only One Loft collecting HST last year as we were required to do, we were "breaking new ground". This year I again reviewed the way in which we do business regarding the HST collection. I once again spoke with the GST / HST Rulings Department of Revenue Canada and I received information which differs from the information I received last year. I do not know if the Revenue Canada rules changed or if they were inexperienced with applying their regulations to our unique One Loft scenario.  Regardless, this is what they told me. I only have to collect HST on the "perch fee" portion of the entry fee, this means you only pay the applicable HST on $375, you DO NOT pay HST on the $625 prize money portion of the $1000 entry fee. The amount of HST collected is based on the HST of your home Province. This means that your total cost, including HST, on a team of birds is as follows: Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick customers pay $1048.75, British Columbia customers pay $1045, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan customers pay $1018.75, Nova Scotia customers pay $1056.25 and USA customers pay the Ontario rate of $1048.75. Also because we do not take any percentage cut of pools etc there is NO HST on all pools, loft auction, Master Breeder etc, we only collect HST on the perch fees. This is great news because it substantially reduces your cost for entering the Empire Classic and participating in all the special pools, Calcutta's etc. This also means that we collected HST incorrectly last year so we will be refunding ALL the HST we collected last year, including HST on entry money, Master Breeder, pools, loft auction, etc.  You will receive a full refund or given a credit toward this years cost, your choice. I have asked Revenue Canada to provide, IN WRITING, their current requirements on the collection of HST, as soon as I receive this information in writing I will send you your refund. I apologize for the incorrect information on last year's HST charges. We continue to do our best in providing a 1st class One Loft for you and we are looking forward to a super 2012 Empire Classic. Sincerely Jim and Judy.     

 

MONDAY, MARCH 19TH, 2012....Hope your breeding season is going well. It will not be long before the 2012 Empire Classic entries start arriving. Reservations are still coming in and we expect a large number of entries to arrive without showing on the reservations list before hand, we should have a great event this year, numbers are way up from last year. Please keep encouraging your friends to enter a team this year and if you are having a great breeding season perhaps you might enter an extra team. Don't forget entry money is due when your birds are delivered and also don't forget the Tax man. If you are from Ontario or the USA you must add 13% HST, if you are from another Canadian Province you add the tax that is applicable in your Province. Also please do not forget the Master Breeder (see rules on the Home page), Master Breeder is an additional $100 plus tax and is due when you deliver your birds and pay your team entry fee. When you deliver your birds you select one bird from each team to be your "Master Breeder bird", the top Master Breeder birds at the Empire Classic 300 win the money. This is a good way to win money even if your bird is clocked much later than the race winners. Like the pools, 100% of the money is paid out, we do not take any cut of the pools, Master Breeder or Loft Auction money. Keep those reservations coming. Cheers......................jim

 

Wednesday, FEB 15, 2012......We have had fantastic weather this winter, extremely snow free and mild here in Southern Ontario. I believe most parts of Canada have also had an easy winter. Most of you, most likely, have your birds paired up by now and perhaps have them down on eggs or even youngsters. I don't have mine paired yet but I am usually about the last to pair my birds. I hope everyone is having good luck breeding ie high percentage of fertility and strong healthy babies. Our reservations for the 2012 Empire Classic are continuing to climb in numbers, we are hoping for a great year. Each year we find many people do not send reservations until they see how their breeding is doing, we expect reservations to really pickup shortly. Also we usually find reservations pickup when the yearbook comes out and people see the Empire Classic ads. Hopefully the yearbook will be mailed shortly. We are pleased to see some new entries this year from fanciers that have never been in the Empire Classic before, this is super and we are excited to have these new fanciers on board. This year we are also getting fanciers coming back to us who have not been in the Empire classic for a couple of years, we are thrilled to have you back with us and hope you do well this year. Keep those reservations coming, if you are still "sitting on the fence" send us your reservations, we will do a super job looking after your birds and make sure they have the best care and preparation to get you in the winners circle. If you have already sent me your reservation, thank you, but also consider sending an extra team or get another partner to join you to send an extra team or two. We have several 'Club" teams, this is a great way for a pigeon club to have some fun and perhaps win some money. A special thank you goes out to those fanciers who have "spread the word" to other fanciers about the professional manner in which we manage the Empire Classic, word of mouth is the best form of  advertisement, thank you for your support and encouragement. If any new fanciers to One Loft racing need any advice or information please email me, I will be happy to answer all your questions. Next weekend (Feb 25th) I head down to London area to do a seminar for the South Western Ontario Combine, the topics I will cover are Old Bird racing, YB Racing and One Loft Racing. I will provide some advice which I hope will improve your chances of success in One Loft Racing. Tickets can be ordered from Zeb Talach (519 879 9846). Keep those reservations coming......cheers...jim  

 

SUNDAY, JAN 22, 2012.......Hope everyone is surviving winter, we have had a very easy winter here in Southern Ontario. Some of you have paired up and some may even have youngsters, time to think about which One Lofts you want to enter, there certainly are lots out there to choose from. I also enter a few One Lofts, in the past I have entered a few One Lofts in BC, mainly because they have supported my Empire Classic. We have had very good success, especially considering the small number of birds we send out, here are some of our results in One Lofts:

                  1ST CALGARY PACIFIC YB DERBY - 2009 (420 mile across Rocky Mountains, our bird was the only bird home in 2 days)

                  3RD & 9TH UPPER NEW YORK STATE YB CLASSIC - 2009 (only 2 Empire birds shipped)

                  11TH & 14TH CANUCK CLASSIC - 2009 (only 16 birds home in 2 days, both Empire birds shipped scored)

                  1ST (E) WESTERN CANADA CHALLENGE 2010 ( 4 birds on 1st drop)

In 2011, for the first time, we sent birds to the California Classic, at the final race, the 2ND WIND, which is like our Marathon race, we had a super race. We had 3 birds go to the race and all three clocked, there were only 39 birds clocked in 2 days. Our results are:

                  2ND CALIFORNIA CLASSIC 2ND WIND -  2011 (only 2 birds home on the day)

                  9TH CALIFORNIA CLASSIC 2ND WIND -  2011 (only 39 birds home in 2 days)

                  31ST CALIFORNIA CLASSIC 2ND WIND - 2011 (only 39 birds home in 2 day)

For this final race of 350 miles, all 4 One Loft races in Southern California are released together, this is called the MEGA CLASSIC, our bird scored:

                  2ND MEGA CLASSIC

Many fanciers with breeding stock from us have won One Loft races, if you want to score in One Loft races place some of our birds in your breeding loft. We have a few outstanding birds available, look on our web site under the "PIGEONS FOR SALE" tab. Also email me your Empire Classic entries.............................cheers......jim 

TUESDAY, DEC 20, 2011.......Judy and I would like to wish everyone a MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS and a HAPPY, HEALTHY and PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR. We look forward to a great 2012 with our EMPIRE CLASSIC, we have had a rough two years with our Empire Classic because of the new One Lofts starting in Canada. It is natural for people to want to try something new, we understand, but it is now time to come back to a One Loft that has proven itself over the long term (six years). Many of you that were with us have tried other options the last couple of years, we would love to have you back with us in 2012. Although we have kept our general format the same as in the past we are looking at one change that we believe will be a significant improvement in the Empire Classic, we are looking into a new CLOCKING SYSTEM. Our clocking system in the past was not capable of providing instant results on the internet (real time clocking). In the past I would have to download the results from the loft system onto a memory stick and then down load to my web site which may not occur for several hours. The system I am looking into will provide INSTANT results on our web site, this means all training tosses and races will show clocking results as the birds are actually clocked. Also we would be able to provide a large screen at Empire Farm so that people attending our races can also see the results as the birds are clocking. We are planning this change in an effort to improve the Empire Classic for you, our customers. We look forward to new participants in 2012 and WELCOME BACK to those we have not seen for a couple of years...................................Judy and Jim.

THURSDAY DEC 1st, 2011......The 2011 Empire Classic Triple Crown is now complete, to those who were successful, CONGRATULATIONS. To the rest, good luck next year. To everyone who supported the 2011 Empire Classic, a very heartfelt THANK YOU. Instead of looking backward, it is now time to look forward, forward to the 2012 Empire Classic Triple Crown. This will be our 7th year running our race, the 2012 rules are now posted on our web site. You will see that there are not many changes, if any, from 2011. We don't see the value in continually adding new twists that are confusing and difficult to understand. Our goal is to provide a world class One Loft experience for you, world class means outstanding facilities for your birds, a pleasing, spacious environment for your viewing pleasure AND expert management of your birds, world class DOES NOT mean a large number of birds. We believe our facilities and our time needed to provide expert management requires us to keep a maximum of 1000 birds, this does not mean we cannot go bigger. The plan has always been that if we get 1000 birds, the next year we will reduce the 5 bird team to 4 birds thereby allowing us to take more teams and therefore providing more prize money. You can continue this again by reducing to 3 bird teams, taking more teams and providing even greater prize money. I mention this only to point out that our race can still grow AND we can still provide outstanding care for your birds. The largest number of entries we have had in the past was 902 birds, I believe we can beat that number and get to our maximum of 1000 birds but I need your help, firstly I need your 2012 reservation immediately, the more reservations that go on our site the more it will attract new people. Secondly,  I need your assistance in spreading the word about the Empire Classic, talk to your friends and club mates, talk your club into also entering a club team, info you can pass on is that no one provides better care of your birds than we do, we have an average, over the last six years, of 75% of total entries going to the main event, this is better than anyone in One Loft racing. Over the last six year we have only had to provide 3 free teams in total, compare this to anyone else. We believe we have earned your support and we hope you agree. Thank you........................jim