Once more: Breeding (05-01-24)
If you have played fanatically with pigeons for more than half a century, it affects a person. You think you have learned things and also unlearned them.
In addition, as author in the biggest pigeon newspaper, you also get to know countless champions. And they don't make you dumber.
GOLDEN COUPLE
When I was in my 30s, few fanciers spoke English. And certainly not in Taiwan. Still, I communicated with someone from there who could make himself understood a bit. We communicated still 'by' fax. It was in the days when Taiwan was an economic superpower and its big brother wanted to become one.
In the days that you were bombarded with stuff 'made in Taiwan' instead of today's 'made in China'.
Natural was one of the very few to export pigeons to China. That cost 30 guilders (14 euros) per pigeon at the time. Now about 350 euros, about 800 old guilders. Again per pigeon. After a good result I was as proud as a 13-year-old girl on her first bra and the results were 'faxed'.
Few people here knew what a pedigree was, let alone that they made one for their pigeons. In the Far East they were already pedigree crazy at the time. That Taiwanese ‘friend’ had discovered that I had two good ones from the same parents, so a 'Golden couple'.
'Come on boy', I thought, not realizing that the real madness was yet to come.
NOT SO SIMPLE
Janeke Janssen (one of the brothers) was one of those who knew how to put things into perspective like no other. (To put things into perspective: Five hairs on your head is not much. Five hairs in the soup is a lot).
Janeke was the handler there, Charel the scraper, Sjef the errand boy and Louis the man of the money.
Adriaan let others talk, but if he opened his mouth, you’d better take it serious. Every word. For example, he claimed that a couple that gave one 'super' every year was already a fine breeding couple.
'Golden Couples?' There have certainly been some, but I have only known two in all those years. 'The breeding couple' from Meulemans and 'the Wonder couple' from Hans v d Veeke. The latter in particular has been badly misunderstood.
VERKERK
If you say that Verkerk is the best player in the Netherlands, few will contradict you. How many really good pigeons will he have bred over the years?
But he also knows how to put things into perspective. In case he is to discover another super pigeon, in the winter that follows the parents are NOT coupled again. Bas: 'After all, the chance that they will give another super is negligible.' It reminds me of what Klak used to say:
'The longer a couple is mated, the less the quality.'
But that may have to do with something else; Age. Older cocks produce less good sperm, the eggs of old hens have less nutritional value.
And always remember: 'Breeding couples' that only give supers only exist in the imagination and in sales programs.
CHAMPION AND BREEDING COUPLE
Putting together breeding couples for you is mainly done by charlatans. In practice, I write it more often, it usually goes like this:
First there is the good pigeon, only then is the predicate breeding couple attached to the parents. In other words: The breeding couple does not make the champion pigeon, but the champion pigeon makes the breeding couple
(A bit comparable to the eternal question: Did the Dutch national team become European champions at the time thanks to trainer Michels? Or did Michels become big thanks to all those good football players he was allowed to train?)
SCHELLENS AND VOETS
In the 90's, before the internet, I pretty often visited Voets. I bought several rounds of youngsters. Maurice was good friends with the very wealthy Karel Schellens for whom no good pigeon was safe if he had set his mind to it. It was 'before the Chinese came'. One evening around beginning of November I had the honour of meeting Schellens, about whom I had heard a lot, and what he said at the time has stayed with me: Karel: Of course, only good ones belong in the breeding loft. Preferably former good racers. For years I have had fun making couple notes. Until I got tired of it. From then on it became 'free mating' and... I started breeding better pigeons.'
A typical Voets bird.
OTHERS
- Johan Verhoeven Goirle and sons used to be great Champions in the south of the Netherlands. Son Albert: 'Pairing is a piece of cake here.' Just free mating and
you have to be lucky'.
- His big competitor was Vermeulen from Chaam, who had a pigeon that older people still talk about: His '05.' On the results you had to look at the amount of money behind the prize won and you had it: The pigeon with the most money behind it.
Vermeulen was my neighbour, our lofts were almost against each other. We lived with thirteen fanciers in a clump. Only long distance racer, is left.
Vermeulen was one of the first in the area who paid for pigeons.
And when ‘mating time’ was ehere, the most expensive were mated with the most expensive.
When, in that memorable winter, all birds were coupled, two pigeons remained: These were the pigeons he got for free, one from his hairdresser, the other from his brothers-in-law Stabel from Alphen.
The two would become the parents of the legendary 05.
- The late Miel Daems: 'If your best youngsters come from your favourite couple, you're not in a good position.'
VOETS EN ULRICH
I also remember Voets' great dislike of writing pedigree cards.
At the time, the Ulrich brothers from Arnhem bought pigeons here every year. They got some from my Voets pigeons.
'Voets? Never heard of him, ‘the brothers said.
But they had a blind faith in me. And that paid off.
When he sold 'totally' in 1997, a full-page advertisement had the headline:
'The Schaerlaeckens pigeons made Johnny Ulrich a star before he was 35 years old.' So that was Voet's origin.
They had made him 2nd NATIONAL champion of ALL Holland.
Eric Limbourg had been to that sale and I still remember his phone call.
Eric: 'I have your bloodline now. I'm curious.'
Me: 'Thanks for the trust Eric, but you as a long distance racer will not be able to be successful with it. 400 km. is pretty much the limit for those pigeons.'
Two years later another phone call from the Belgian superman: 'I won a 1st National of 900 km with a youngster from your pigeon.' So you see. When it comes to growing good ones, ‘an ounce of luck is worth more than a kilo wisdom’.
'Superstar', Also a sensational racer in my loft in the 90-ies.