how fast do homers usually fly/get home?

[sky]

although i have a 5 yr old and like 5 yearlings, this year is the FIRST i have ever taken them away from home and released them....I have done it 3 times so far only-from ONLY around 3 miles away..boo!...i will eventually extend it....BUT my main questions are: from 3 miles out, my guess is that it should only take like 5 minutes...BUT my flock takes like 10 min? too slow or normal?
AND when they fly home, do they fly Straight home or do they obviously as animals also make mistakes and have to search their way home?

[ddpowell]

It could be one of two things...they are somewhat lost and are searching for the way or they are fat and happy and not in a rush to get home and enjoying the scenery...I'm sure you already know this, but you should always fly them when they are very hungry, to ensure they come back quick.

They can fly up to 60 miles an hour, but for three miles, they should be home in less than 5 minutes. I did the same thing and it took 15-20 minutes to get home! Someone told me they don't start out less than 20 miles away and that for some reason, they can get more disoriented/lost being released too close to home. I don't know about this, cuz I decided I didn't really want to risk losing my birds trying that, but maybe more on the board could shed some light.

[Pigeons R loved]

I've realeased Rollers from several miles away, and suprisingly they home very well. But now their in pigeon heaven thanks to an evil hawk But it is best if you take them at least 5-10 miles away at first so they don't worry about rushing home right away, their pickin out land marks. For example if I fly my birds from the West they use the Missiouri River as a big land mark. Along with other water shed dam's and building tops. The color of your loft makes a big difference, if a pigeon is 2,000 feet up, it's going to spot a orange roofted house quicker than a brown or green roofted house right? Think about it. They are smart little boogars and won't get lost if they really want to come home to you
-Nick

[WhiteWingsCa]

everyone trains their birds differently. Some start at one mile, then 2, then 3, etc. Some start at 5, then 10, etc. Others start at 10, I've heard of some who start at 20, or even 30 or 40!

We've done it all ways, until we found one that worked best for us, in our particular area with hills, lakes, etc. around us (short tosses first)

Find a way that YOU are comfortable with, and stick to it. Generally though, no matter where you're starting, take the birds back to the same spot 2, 3, or 4 times, until they are returning home quickly, THEN move out to the next distance.

With good homers, once you hit 20 miles or so, you can usually jump them out more quickly afterwards...say, to 30, then 50, etc. Again, repeat the "toss" from the same spot a few times before moving out.

[Joel]

If your birds have been loft flying for a while then they are very capable of getting home fast at this short distance. They are probably just enjoying flying around for a while. I usually start at about a mile and then double the distance each release. Its a good idea to release at each distance twice. At about 50 miles out they're good to go!!! This assumes you are letting the pigeons out in the same direction each time.

Joel

[re lee]

An average basespeed for racing homers is about 45 miles per hour. Then you facter in tail winds for greater speed head for reduced speed and cross wind for off set distance and reduced speed. 3 mile out is not far and the birds will play per say more at a further distance speed will become more a facter. You will notice this better at or after fifty miles. Also k days reduce speed thats when high solar flares are happening increaseing the magnetic pull making it harder to fly at a better speed and altitude to cacth a better wind current