The Sacred Illusion

I remember the first time that I witnessed a Birmingham ball up, shrink, and show the hole. It was love at first sight and hands down the most beautiful display of acrobatic prowess that I had ever witnessed. Growing up in South Los Angeles it was not uncommon to look into the sky and see quality rollers giving you a show. This by no means suggests that every loft was filled with champion performers. Instead, the influence of great roller men filled the sky thus setting a standard for young and emerging fanciers to follow.  

Flying rollers in this environment was a brutal sport, almost blood sport. The bar was set so high that you could not fly a kit of mediocre rollers and expect praise. You could, however, expect an honest critique of your stock, and advice that usually guided you in the right direction.  If “real” roller men sensed that you were serious about the hobby a pair of rollers usually followed. They unselfishly understood that the preservation of the Birmingham Roller depended on great stock being in good hands. Also, they understood that your loft could serve as an extension of the space they needed to experiment with ”outside” matings; so all in all it was a win, win situation. Onward.

Many kits I witnessed in those days had many birds that rolled in the V pattern; some that rolled in the H pattern; and, even fewer that rolled with the hole. That said, when the hole appeared everyone stood motionless, almost in disbelief, wondering if all in attendance had seen the same thing.  This profound, and jaw dropping, display would sear an image into your brain setting off an unrivaled addiction.

The roller pigeon is more popular now than ever before. Everywhere I look there are kits of pigeons flying about and fanciers standing watch beneath them. There are many fast rollers out there which i feel is a testament to those pioneers that stayed committed to high velocity pigeons. There is also a fair amount of rollers that perform with decent style and are a pleasure to watch.

Sadly, however, we have not advanced to a place where I see–or hear about–an abundance rollers that roll to the true Birmingham Roller standard. Instead, I hear all the rhetoric suggesting that we have evolved past the sacred illusion. That at some point, while i was not watching, we have unlocked the key and bred high percentages of hole rollers. That we have somehow created a superior specimen which is more worthy of possessing the Birmingham title.

That assumption is laughable!

The hole roller remains just as elusive today as it has always been. Any performance description that omits speed, style, and the hole must also clearly elaborate that it is not describing the Birmingham Roller. If a new breed has emerged the necessary steps should be taken to qualify that breed. If not, breed hard, fly harder and lets preserve the true Birmingham Roller.

–PW

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