THINK of pigeon racing and to many it conjures up images of Jack Duckworth tending to his feathered friends in his Coronation Street backyard.

But there is a lot more to the sport - or hobby as it is still classed in this country - than being used as a prop on a popular British soap.

Dubbed the poor man's horse racing, the pigeon variety is more popular than most would care to think, even though numbers have dropped in recent years.

And, if you're racing in the right circles, then there is big money to be made.

For example, £60,000 is up for grabs in Europe's top race while a cool one million is on offer in the wealthy haven of Abu Dhabi Such riches are simply flights of fancy to your average pigeon fancier but underlines the fact that it isn't just about flinging a bit of seed at a bird, chucking them in the air and hoping that they fly back.

"The amount of people who make reference to Jack Duckworth when you mention pigeon racing is incredible," said Terry Slattery, president of Accrington and District Homing Society and member of the Blackburn and District Federation. "But there is a lot more to it than that. There is a lot of money to be won in the sport and the best breeding pigeons swap hands for tens of thousands of pounds.

"But in our Federation, and many likes ours, you race more for the pride than the money, the buzz of seeing your first bird get home safely is wonderful."

For Terry, who moved to Accrington from Newcastle as a youngster, racing is in his blood.

His grandfather did it, as did his dad Joe Slattery, a former professional football er who moved to Accrington Stanley in the 1950s when he realised he had no future at his home town club as understudy striker to a certain Jackie Milburn.

"My dad had offers from a number of clubs but Stanley were the only ones who offered a house as well," said Terry. "He took me along to Accrington and District Homing Society when I was eight and I have been involved ever since.

"My dad is 82-year-old and he is still racing. It's in the blood."

While Terry's wife Diane has no interest in the sport, she is secretary of the Blackburn and District Federation.

"I can count the number of times she has been in to the loft to feed the pigeons on one hand and one of them was when I was recovering from an accident and couldn't move!"

The Federation has clubs across the East Lancs area including Great Harwood Homing Society, Clitheroe HS, Chatburn HS, Padiham Flying Club, Oswaldtwistle FC, Bentham FC and of course Accrington.

The racing season runs from April to September with a calendar of 24 races with short distance races from the Midlands to long haul flights from the South of France.

During the season, racing is a routine.

Members meet at the Griffin pub in Accrington on a Friday night with their birds. The pigeon colour and race numbers are recorded and a special rubber band flight recorder' is fitted to the bird.

Pigeon clocks are set before a transporter turns up to take the birds to the designated destination - as near as Stafford and as far as Weymouth or to the likes of Lessay across the Channel.

Then it is a matter of waiting.

"It's hard to explain the feeling of waiting for that first bird to return," added Terry. "It is a culmination of a week of preparation. You have a rough idea when they are going to get back by working out the wind directions. But you never know."

Once the bird returns home, the rubber band is taken off and clocked. Then it is back to the pub for the results.

Preparing birds for racing is an art in itself. And it starts from when they are just a few weeks old.

"We separate them from their parents at an early age and wean them ourselves," added Terry. "After a few weeks old, when they begin to find their barings we take them out on training flights."

First stop for Terry and his new additions to the team is Haslingden before working up to as far as Warrington. After that it is the real deal.

Different race methods include Widowing, Roundabout, Jealousy and Natural Racing - all varying themes of separating the bird from either their partner, egg or young to give them the incentive to get home as quickly as possible.

"I suppose you play little mind games with the birds and all have different degrees of success. You just pick the one that is most suited to yourself and your birds."

While pigeon racing is a far cry from that Coronation Street backyard, the sport is a soap opera in itself. The excitement of releasing (or liberating) the birds, the drama of whether they come back and the heartache when they don't.

"You could start the season with 35 birds and end with 15," added Terry who has 36 birds in his impressive back garden loft. "There are different reasons why you lose birds. The mobile phone masts play havoc with the homing systems, some simply get lost while others fly in to telephones wires.

"Then there are the Peregrine Falcons and Sparrowhawks. We call the run from Hameldon to Rossendale Valley Death Valley because we lose so many birds there."

As with all minority sports, the aim is to attract more youngsters - something Terry is keen to do.

He has already linked up with Peel Park Primary School, winning two trophies for the Accrington school after entering a national competition.

"Every city up and down the country has a pigeon racing club and back up in the North East it is a way of life. I would love to see more children take it up because it is very rewarded and gives you a lot of pleasure."

Something Jack Duckworth would certainly agree with.