Fly fishing in Montana too pricey a getaway? Golfing a little too prosaic?

Why not try a sport with a genteel European heritage. And we’re not talking fox hunting try pigeon racing.

While the pigeon has the reputation of a dirty, unappealing animal in the United States, racing the bird was a rage among the British elite during the first half of the 20th Century and is still the domain of the Royal Pigeon Racing Association.

The low-tech sport which involves taking homing pigeons a set distance from their coops and then timing their return has taken off in the United States, courtesy of the high-tech Internet. Winning purses total more than $1 million and top-flight birds can cost thousands of dollars.

“It’s a hobby where you get to meet guys from everywhere and the Internet has absolutely helped expand the pigeon game even more,” said racing enthusiast Mike Brazil, a San Louis Obispo resident who attended the American Pigeon Racing Union’s annual convention earlier this month in La Mirada.

Held in a nondescript conference room in a Holiday Inn, the convention had all the feel of a low-rent affair that was until bidding started on the champion flyers at auction.

Each bird’s breeding, lineage and racing history was up for review. Winning bids came in as high as $700.

“Five hundred, six hundred, that’s the norm for auctions in this area,” said Bill Barger, a pigeon enthusiast from Long Beach. “Some of the Internet auctions, they go a lot higher.”

The record sale price of a racing pigeon is $225,000, and with good reason a yearly race in Sun City, South Africa takes place in February with prize winnings surpassing $1 million in U.S. dollars and the top bird earning $200,000.

Domestically, the Vegas Classic annual race is the big event, with the winner taking home $100,000 and the purse in several events totaling $1 million.