Rival homing pigeons who race against the clock across the UK have been banned from starting their race from Ripon Racecourse after a wagon used to house the birds got stuck on sodden grass.

Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing trained pigeons, which then return to their homes over a carefully measured distance.

Specially designed wagons collect up to 1,000 pigeons before releasing them at Ripon Racecourse in what is known as "pigeon liberation".

The aerodynamic birds then use a built in homing system to hurtle through the sky and reach home. They are microchipped and their times are recorded.

But following some recent wet weather, the trucks got stuck on the grass — which led to an upset racecourse having to call a local recovery firm to rescue it.

James Hutchinson, managing director and clerk of the course at Ripon, told the Stray Ferret there have been two incidents where drivers drove the heavy wagons "without due consideration" onto the sodden grass, leaving them stranded.

He added:

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