Texas! The Lone Star State is one part of America that everyone wants to visit, and if you were invited to judge there, what would you say? SAM WILDES said ‘yes’ and here’s how the pre-show adventure unfolded. It began at Derby Coach Station – but it did get better
LAST year, I was messaged by the American budgie breeder Joshua Anthony about judging the Grand National Show for the BAA (Budgerigar Association of America).
We discussed dates and details and I said that I would be honoured to judge for them. The agreed date of the show was October 12, 2024. The event would be held in Texas and hosted by two clubs: Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) and Houston Budgerigar Society (HBS). Joshua explained that I would staying at the hotel where the show was to be held, and also assured me that I would be well looked after during my stay.
Joshua mentioned that the day before the show there would be a judges’ meeting and also a board meeting. These were to be held at the event, because people would be travelling from all over the USA to attend this show. I asked if I could sit in these meetings and Joshua and friends confirmed that I could – which I looked forward to.
As the weeks went by, Joshua went through all the ins and outs involved during my time there. We agreed that I should make the most of the experience and stay a couple of extra days. Nearer the time we discussed my father travelling with me, and flight tickets were booked for both of us. Joshua and I also arranged that on the Friday evening I would give my presentation entitled “Specialist & Rare Varieties”, as many breeders in the US keep rares.
In our discussions, I said that I would like to see some breeders and their birdrooms. I also mentioned that I was allergic to cats! (Joshua had posted a photo of cats on Facebook.) Because of the cat allergy we changed the arrangement so that after the hotel I’d stay with another breeder, Stephen Higgins.
Our trek to Texas
Before we knew it, our adventure had begun. Because of the distance to Heathrow we had decided to travel by National Express coach to the airport, and the same for the home leg. So the evening before we set off I stayed at my parents’ house as my mother was taking us to the bus station in Derby. So I went to sleep at 8.30pm and woke up at 1am to get to the bus station. It was a five-hour drive with a lot of stops, but we arrived at Heathrow at 7.05am. Heathrow is such a huge place that it was initially confusing but in due course we found our check-in zone. I nipped to the loo quickly before checking in.
While I was there, my father was approached by some young influencers from TikTok. (For those who don’t know, that is an app for your phone where people post videos of themselves doing all manner of things.) When I came back they asked if I’d be in a video acting as a bodyguard for their British actor. (The others were from China.) So I got involved in a brief video, which made me laugh.
Eventually we checked in, which meant we got our boarding passes and our bags were sent off. Next job was to get through security. After that we were ready for breakfast as we had been up a good few hours. Eventually we boarded the plane ready to travel more than 5,000 miles – the flight was scheduled at 10 hours 20 minutes).
Thankfully no one was sitting next to us, so we used the central seat to put some of our things and give us some breathing room. That was handy as neither of us are small!
A timely touchdown
At long last, we landed at Dallas Fort Worth. It was about 4pm local time. Stephen Higgins, who was to be our host, was there to meet us at the airport and took us to the hotel. We were tired and ready for bed, but there were a few people already at the venue and we all went out for a meal. There was an Italian place locally, which was fantastic – the bread there was the best I’ve ever had. Then we got back to the hotel and got some sleep.
Down for breakfast the following morning and we met a few of the exhibitors. This was Friday, the day for the judges’ meeting and board meeting, with lunch (superb pizzas) between them.
Then on the Friday evening I did my presentation, which everyone seemed to enjoy and I got a lot of positive comments afterwards. There was a busy day to follow – show day – so we retired to our rooms in good time.
● Sam describes his experiences at the show in the next part of this feature.
Sam Wildes is a champion exhibitor and a Budgerigar Society panel judge. His business website is: www.sam1birdproducts.co.uk
Find more news and articles like this on the Cage & Aviary Birds website. Subscribe to Cage & Aviary Birds magazine now.
