In pursuit of a smarter game

The Arab tradition of using falcons to hunt for food evolved into a sport when it was no longer necessary for people to be hunter-gatherers. Still, the ancient practice lives on, with the skill and dedication of a falconer and the strength and will of the falcon given much respect.
Today the birds of prey are participating in sports where drones and remote-controlled aeroplanes are used to get the game going. One of them is falcon racing, which has become a treasured sport in the UAE. Various teams spend much of their time and energy in fine-tuning training routines to encourage the birds to achieve peak performances.

Fighting to win

Dubai-based UAE Falcons is a racing team that trains its birds as well as other participants’ falcons. Its team leader and pilot is Peter Bergh, Co-owner and Director of Royal Shaheen, a bird show company that specialises in falcon displays. He has put together a team to participate in the Dubai Fazza Championship and The President’s Cup for Falconry.
A dead quail is used as the lure and is tied to one end of a long rope that is then clipped to the local model of a remote-controlled aeroplane. The plane takes off and a few seconds later, as soon as the leather hood is removed from its head, the falcon gives chase.
The pilot can control the direction and height of the falcon. In racing, he has to do some skilful low-level flying, as the birds go faster at lower altitudes.
When the pilot sees the falcon is ready, he allows it to strike the lure, which is released automatically and falls to the ground, slowed down by a small parachute. Bergh says, “The trick of using the plane is to keep the lure as close to the falcon as possible. If it is too far away the bird loses interest.” 
The DJI Phantom drone quadcopter works on a similar principle but is easier to fly as it’s more stable and better controlled. “The upward motion of the drone, which can reach up to 2,000 feet, works completely different muscle groups of falcons [in comparison] to those worked using a forward-moving aeroplane. The bird gets stronger [when drones are used].”
Bergh leads falcons skywards slowly in stages up to about 600 feet using a drone. The bird spirals upwards in pursuit of the robot, which has 10-15 minutes of battery life.
“The loud buzzing of the drone doesn’t faze the falcons — in fact they become excited when hear the noise as it means food to them,” says falcon handler James Bennett.
Each bird has a clip on a feather shaft on its back where a high-tech radio transmitter weighing about eight grams is placed just before it sets off. This emits an electronic pulse the falconer can track should the bird get distracted and go elsewhere — essential for falcons that cost thousands of dirhams each.
“The bond with falcons is purely food-based. These are not considered pets,” says Mark Williams, falconer and Managing Director of Marshall Radio Telemetry, a supplier of long-range tracking equipment.

Big prizes

There are various falconry competitions in the UAE, some commanding huge cash prizes such as the annual Fazza Championships in Dubai, established by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, to preserve the tradition of the sport in Emirati culture. The event is organised by the Hamdan Bin Mohammad Heritage Centre.
In Abu Dhabi, The President’s Cup for Falconry, supported by His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, and under the directive of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, also offers big prizes. This January, Dh15 million and 41 luxury cars were given away.
Competitions feature various routines but for the speed race the falcons fly one by one and are timed over a one-kilometre stretch before they return to the starting point. Each team has its own aeroplane and six birds are allowed per entry.
Despite all the sophisticated equipment, all trainers will still bring traditional bait — made of leather with  a bunch of feathers — to the site. “It’s our trump card if anything goes wrong,” says Bennett.