The more intelligent pigeons can orient themselves really well to any given location and have an innate feel of its coordinates. These types of pigeons can be found by looking for bloodlines that can fly at very long distances. Young ones can fly at a distance of 300-350 miles while yearlings can fly up to 500 miles. This way, you can easily control and maintain each one of them, depending on their needs. 3. Buy pigeons from a friend or a reputable source It is always easier to trust someone whom you already know. If you have a friend who's also a racing pigeon fancier, then that's good for you. He can walk you through the ropes of finding and buying pigeons of the highest quality, but are not that expensive. Train your racing pigeons to fly home from a long distance by placing them at a definite spot. Just make sure to make an estimate of the distance before doing this since it's recommendable that you tally a graphical data in order to monitor performance and trends. The first training usually sets the distance from the home at a mile or two. Usually, the distance racing pigeons have to cover runs anywhere from 100 km to 1000 km. Although the rules of the race seems straightforward the bird that finishes the race first typically wins these are actually more complicated. The Rules The long and strict rules of this sport are attributed to the fact that it has been around for centuries. Therefore, the exact time of arrival is recorded. Prior to the race, the distance between the starting point and the home has already been measured. The time that the pigeon takes to fly home is converted into yards flown per minute. That is then noted as the bird's speed. Several years ago before any of the special clocks being utilized now have been invented, the pigeon was taken to the central meeting point to time in. After all, the fascination with pigeons is in its truest form in the eyes of a child. Their minds are not subjected to corruption by the lure of money that comes with the sport, nor would they care much about a pigeon's type of pedigree. They only care about the pigeon's majestic appearance, the beauty it emanates through its stark shades of aquamarine, and most of all, the grace displayed as it streaks through the sky.