Welcome to 2010.

In talking to several of the breeders, it sounds like it could be a banner year. We are trying to build the Louisville Young Bird show into a nice Bokhara meet. However, it is so early in the year, many are unable to have birds mature enough to show there. This year's winner was Jim Feasel. Tim Stajkowski won reserve. Birds were judged by Victor Payjack.

2009 saw a great bokhara meet in Des Moines. We had over 100 bokharas judged by the master himself, Clair Hetland. Champion went to Leon Hurst. It was a great way for Leon to show up on the scene after quite a few years of not attending our show.

The NPA Nationals in Salt Lake City only had two bokhara trumpeters. Champion went to Tally Mezzanto.

This year we are gearing up for the NPA Nationals to be held in San Diego, CA in Janurary 2011. Funds have been raised through donations to bring Neil Pratt from England to judge this show. So if you have not thought about coming, start saving your pennies and join the fun in San Diego. We don't want to forget the other shows in 2010. We will have the young bird show in October in conjunction with the Louisville Young Bird Show in Louisville, KY. We will also hold our meet in Des Moines, December 11th. Dick Hermann will perform judging duties.

Speaking of Dick Hermann, it is with sadness that I share his getting out of the hobby. He has been breeding bokhara trumpeters for almost 50 years and has been a steady, strong supporter of the the club and breed over that time. I am happy to say that his birds were dispersed among a half dozen breeders, so his breeding will continue. Dick was responsible for introducing the andalusion color to our breed. He has worked on several projects over the years to improve the color and quality of the bokhara. He will be missed as a breeder but remains a good lifelong friend. He encourages everyone to keep in touch with him.

With that said, we also welcome several new members and breeders. I invite you all to join in. I would encourage you to send me a note about yourself, what you are breeding, etc. so we can include it in our bulletin.

We have offered club bands to IBTC members the last couple of years. It is the first of February and we have already sold the 1000 bands we ordered for this year. That is great news. Last year we had unsold bands which we don't want to do again. We use 14 mm NPA bands with the word BOK on them, as well as the year date. I know some of us have ordered extra bands, so if you did not get bands or need more bands later in the year please post your need and I would bet someone can help you out. Mike has ordered 1000 bands for 2011. If you do share bands with others, be sure to let Mike know so he can mark those band numbers under that breeder.

Tim Stajkowski has volunteered to put together our bulletin this year. He is planning on sending out a 4 page bulletin every couple of months. This will get info out to the membership and not break our bank account. So if you have material you would like in the bulletin, please send it to Tim at timsty@charter.net.

Here's wishing you all a great 2010 breeding season.

Orin DuChien, President IBTC