It is without dispute that the South Africa Million Dollar Pigeon Race (SAMDPR) captures the pigeon world’s attention unlike any other race every year.  With so many pigeons, so many countries and such a significant amount of prize money available it is followed by 1,000s of breeders around the world, most of which are not even in the race.  The SAMDPR is a type of Olympics where breeders greatest desire should they not win is that one of their countryman stands atop the podium!

Thank you again to everyone for your words of encouragement, ideas to make this better and support!  As always, if you see any mistakes please let us know.

Yours in the Sport,

Joe Nemelka and Drew Lesofski – drew@theLoftReport.com 

% of Birds to the Hot Spots

The stats below take the initial inventory provided by the SAMDPR and figures out the percentage of birds who made it to the Hot Spot #5.

The Loft Report is only tracking the American breeders who sent more than 1 team, country results and some other well-known international names due to large number of entries from all over the world.

 % that Finished in the Top 10% 

Below are the breeders ranked by the % of birds they had finish in the Top 10% of the birds entered into Hot Spot #5.  *Disregard the rankings once the % in Top 10% gets to 0% as they are all equal beyond that number – 50^th Position.

% that Finished in the Top 10% in HS1 – HS5

Below are the breeders ranked by the % of birds they had finish in the Top 10% of the birds entered into Hot Spot #1, Hot Spot #2, Hot Spot #3, Hot Spot #4 and Hot Spot #5.  We do divide the number of Top 10% positions by the number of races so as to give an accurate % with respect to the birds and the races.  *Disregard the rankings once the % in Top 10% gets to 0% as they are all equal 83^rd.

BOARD POLICIES, PROCEDURES, & RULES
of the
AMERICAN RACING PIGEON UNION, INC.

POLICY #AU 400

POLICY TITLE: Administration of Prohibited Substances to Racing Pigeons

Effective Date: July 12, 1998

Last Revision: June 11, 2017

Introduction:

The Union has determined that the administration of performance enhancing substances or any substance harmful to racing pigeons shall be banned. Reasons for this ban include the destructive effect that use of such substances has on the concept of fair competition, the potential harm to racing pigeons from administration of such substances, and the detrimental effect on member participation in racing events. The policies adopted by the Union, and the specific substances, which are banned from use, are subject to review and revision from time to time as advances in technology and science may warrant.

Adoption of Testing Program

400.01 Application to All Union Members

Each member of the Union, by application for, and acceptance of, membership in the Union and his entry of any pigeon in any race of competition sponsored or sanctioned by the Union, or by any Union affiliated organization, agrees to abide by, and to comply with, any and all policies of the Union pertaining to administration of substances to racing pigeons owned by him or under his care and control.

1. The AU exercises its authority over every race flown by AU chartered organizations, according to AU rules and which are submitted to the AU National Database for national awards, or for which an AU diploma or other AU awards are issued by the chartered organization.
2. Should an AU club choose to drug test birds entered in any race over which the AU has authority, that organization shall submit a full and complete copy of all drug testing results to the AU national office.
3. Under no circumstance many (sic) any AU chartered organization, sanction any AU member, based on the results of a drug test, until the AU has reviewed those results, and the proposed sanctions, and authorizes the organization to enforce those sanctions.
4. All drug testing by AU chartered organizations, on races over which the AU exercises no authority are not covered by this policy. However, should sanctions by that AU organization, as a result of a drug test, effect any AU member’s right to participate in future AU races, then that would bring those sanctions under AU review and the organization must follow #2 and #3 above.

Disciplinary action against a fancier who uses a banned substance is contemplated by the AU Rules of Conduct and Disciplinary Rules, which provide (section 14.01{01}) that it is a violation of those Rules for any fancier to “violate any policy or rule of the Union regarding the administration of any prohibited substance to any pigeon.”

400.02 Administration of Certain Substances Prohibited. Any member of the Union shall not administer the following substances to any racing pigeon at any time:

1. Opiates
2. Broncho dilators (sic)
3. Corticosteroids
4. Stimulants
5. Any drug or substance, regardless of how harmless or innocuous it may be, which interferes with the detection of any substance which fall with categories a – d.
6. The local AU organization hosting the race has the right to test as they deem appropriate, paying related expenses.
7. Organizations doing testing shall submit all test results to the AU national office.
8. Known drugs/substances that have appeared in drug tests in pigeons and that have been banned are:
9. Diclofenac (VOLTAREN) (6/17)

Photo courtesy of Jurie Erwee

Winner of the Final 2018 South Africa Million Dollar Race sold to American (SAMDPR) pigeon fancier Mike Ganus of Grange, Indiana for $95,000 USD on Saturday, February 17^th at auction in South Africa.

“MIX” (ZASLIM 17 2697) was bred by the South African partnership of Gaddin Brothers and Carl Stander and incredibly won the Final Race by 18 minutes against a field of 1,576 pigeons from 324 miles (521 km) on February 3^rd.

The most expensive American bred bird was “Kleine Blue” (AU-17-WF-760) bred by Wichita Falls, Texas fancier Bobby Brown.  “Kliene Blue” sold for $38,000 UDA to none other than Holland fancier Jan Hooymans of “Harry” fame.

Congratulations to all the winners!

While it is fun to follow the Hot Spots and other training tosses in the South Africa Million Dollar Pigeon Race (MDPR), the race is truly all about the Final Race.  The whole world watches with anticipation to see who will be crowned the latest winner of the most famous one loft race in the world.  Below we have provided the final results for the MDPR that we tracked.  People often acknowledge those breeders who enter large number of pigeons are at an advantage, but by the taking the percentages in the results below it attempts to negate the size of the entry and level the playing field so that as best as possible breeders are treated as equals regardless of entry.  We hope many of you found this interesting and insightful into those breeders who were able to get birds to the Final Race and then performed well.  It is also interesting to compare countries and how they perform and wonder what are the differentiators in why some countries do well and others struggle.  Is it the import process?  Quality of pigeons?  Testing in the local club races?  Always fun to speculate!

Thank you again to everyone for your words of encouragement, ideas to make this better and support!  As always, if you see any mistakes please let us know.

Yours in the Sport,

Joe Nemelka and Drew Lesofski – drew@theLoftReport.com 

% of Birds to the Final Race

The stats below take the initial inventory provided by the SAMDPR and figures out the percentage of birds who made it to the Final Race.

The Loft Report is only tracking the American breeders who sent more than 1 team, country results and some other well-known international names due to large number of entries from all over the world.

% that Finished in the Prizes

Below are the breeders ranked by the % of birds they had finish in the prizes (Top 300) based upon their initial entry.  Keep in mind that a breeder may have had an entry be activated by someone else and if that pigeon scored in the prizes we gave that recognition to the breeder and counted them in the results below.  *Disregard the rankings once the % in Top 10% gets to 0% as they are all equal beyond that number – 56^th Position.  We did, however, sort all those 56^th to 110^th by the number of birds entered as it would stand to reason that the more pigeons someone entered the higher the probability of having a bird finish in the prizes.

The Loft Report recently caught the eye of Pigeon Paradise (PIPA) website regarding the One Loft Race (OLR) stats project that Joe Nemelka and yours truly compiled and published weekly here on tLR.

Both Joe and I had several communications with owners of PIPA, brothers Nikolaas and Thomas Gyselbrecht about the project and the need for reliable stats from OLRs in the United States.

They agreed that the growth of OLR is growing not only in the USA but they are also growing with leaps and bounds worldwide as well.

With that, please take a look at our article on PIPA………

 Impressive growth of one loft racing in the United States leads to a need for available statistical information

On behalf of both Joe and I, we’d like to personal thank Nikolaas and Thomas for their professionalism and for believing in the OLR stats project. ~ Drew

Ivo Renders has been increasingly leaving his mark on modern-day pigeon racing in Belgium. He has had some spectacular results since switching over to the longer middle distance in 2010. Ivo has been winning an impressive number of prizes with just a small team of racing birds, including most notably the title of 1st Best Yearling of Belgium 6 races and 7 races PIPA Ranking 2017 with Eef. Today the entire racing team of this loft of champions will be sold in an exclusive PIPA auction!

Can the kids count on you? This auction is our main fundraiser. This year, the auction also celebrates our 16^th Anniversary as a club! This auction supports our Loaner Loft Program. We built 3 new lofts last year and repaired 2 others, which we gave away to our new junior members. We have several in need of repair and some others that need to be replaced. We also use the money from this auction for free race shipping and free medication for members that may need assistance as well as to maintain our building at the Cummington Fairgrounds.  Our auction will be held on Sunday, April 8, 2018; both young and old birds can be donated.  Your generosity will be what carries this next generation of pigeon flyers along!

The loaner loft program was started 10 years ago to help junior flyers that could not afford to buy, or have the skills to build, their own loft. Someone is very misinformed if you ever hear them say that this sport is “dying out” or “going away.” Please come to the auction and see the love and dedication our kids have for this sport

Auction Location:

Burgy Bullets Snowmobile Club
12 Laurel Road
Haydenville, MA 01039

For more information, please contact Tim Tessier at home (413) 296-4359 or at work (413) 586-6611 or by email florenceprecision@verizon.net .

When mailing birds send to one of the following:

Tim Tessier
Box 325
Chesterfield, MA 01012

Jim Bernier
92 Mathews Road
Conway, MA 01341

Moe Litchfield
17 Walsh Road
P.O. Box 444
Hinsdale, MA 01235

We have just received birds from the Texas Shootout Race for our auction!

We need to know if you are donating pigeons to the auction by March 16, 2018. Please call or email Tim today.

Thank you to everyone that donated last year and, hopefully, there will be more people this year to help support this GREAT youth program!

We were just contacted by the ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) Family Charitable Foundation. We will be building a small loft for a young man (21 years old) who has a strong interest in having pigeons.

In 2017 The Loft Report presented to the pigeon sport for the first time a fairly comprehensive statistical analysis of the top one loft races (OLR) and participating breeders in the United States.  The vision for presenting the statistics was to create transparency into the races and breeders who deserve recognition for their success; not just those that send a lot of birds or entry dozens of OLRs that have few entries.  Under just about any measure the 2017 OLR Stats Project was a success as there was a lot of positive feedback culminating with the final statistical results being published on the most prestigious website in the world for the racing pigeon community PIPA – www.pipa.be.

2018 presents an opportunity to build on that success and recognition and to improve the information presented to the pigeon sport.  The Loft Report has consulted with several races and many breeders in how to improve the information and will be implementing those suggestions as the statistics are presented throughout the Fall culminating with the Final Report that is anticipated being published on PIPA again in early 2019.

Below is the criteria that will be used for the 2018 statistics.  The Loft Report will track ALL the races that meet the criteria.  For the breeders, they will track many well-known and successful fanciers as well as any fancier that meets the criteria and notifies them they would like to be tracked.  The Loft Report will start to publish the races and breeders who will be tracked starting in June or July and breeders must notify them by late August if they want to be tracked.  Once the races start no new breeders will be added to the list.

One Loft Races

• Only races on Wincompanion
• Race must have at least 300 birds when entry close
• Only tracking 2018 banded birds in 2018 races (no Spring/OB races)
• Races must conclude by 12/31/2018
• Only races in the United States will be tracked

Breeders

• Must enter at least 3 separate qualifying races
• Must enter at least 25 total birds
• Will only track easily identifiable breeders/partnerships that meet the criteria
• Will not aggregate a single breeder’s birds entered in multiple partnerships for a breeder to meet the criteria
• Breeders who sell pigeons may not opted out of being tracked

As was discussed last year, the goal of the OLR Stats Project was to create multi-year project.  In 2018 there will also be cumulative statistics for 2017/2018 showing those races and breeders who have excelled in both years.  The more data that is made available in the coming years for races and breeders the more valuable and informative the data will become.

Good luck to everyone in 2018!  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Drew Lesofski of The Loft Report at:  drew@theloftreport.com.

Joe Nemelka and Drew Lesofski

North America’s First Million Dollar Pigeon Race

©2018 By Silvio Mattacchione BA MA
 silvio@silvio-co.com

Silvio Mattacchione BA MA

“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, and it’s yours.” (John Galt, Atlas Shrugged, by Ayn Rand)

My friend, a retired law professor from Arizona, some time ago called me to ask if it were true that pigeon events existed, today, that offered prizes of $1,000,000.00 US and that the winner of such an event would walk away with $200,000.00 US as first prize? I assured him that, as unbelievable as that may have seemed to him at the time, the information he had received was “indeed accurate”. I further advised that the first such event, as unlikely as it may seem, was actually the result of South African insight into the evolving nature of “pigeon racing” that had concluded that a shift in the sport was taking place, such that, an international event would draw entrants from multiple countries from around the world. At the time the concept was radical and most fanciers doubted that any such venture could ever succeed. Why? Well given that many issues would need to be addressed including logistics ( the actual successful transportation by air of live young pigeons) in most cases, from not only various countries but also different continents).These young racing pigeons required pre transport inspection and quarantine at the countries of origin, protocols acceptable to all sides needed to be negotiated by the various individual national ministries of agriculture that were acceptable to agricultural authorities and ministries in the recipient country ( these protocols took time and  a lot of effort on  behalf of all parties).Airlines needed to approve appropriate shipping containers and protocols that allowed for the safe transport of their cargo  and in this case the cargo was living cargo, namely young racing pigeons. Upon arrival, more inspections  by local South African veterinary authorities, checking of originating inspection certification assuring that bilateral protocols and testing was faithfully adhered to, then transportation to the approved quarantine facilities and  more testing, more observing and final release to the approved one loft race  facility. It was no easy task at the time and it remains a tedious task to this day to coordinate and oversee for both the safety of the pigeons that are intended to race as well as the assurance to the host country that no adverse effects might result to their indigenous poultry operations. Against all odds the organizers through, perseverance and negotiating skill made it all happen. The first million dollar race took place in South Africa in the 1997/98 race year.

The following stats were garnered from recent a press release of Paul Smith, United Kingdom Race Team Co-coordinator/Shipper and International Race Co-coordinator for the 22nd South African Million Dollar Pigeon Race.

That first million dollar race in 1997/1998 drew 1000 entries. Six years later, that is for the 7^th   million dollar race the organizers attracted 2,473 entries. It was not easy attracting participants but by the 8^th year the entries totaled 3,703 racing pigeons. However in 2005 by their 9^th race the million dollar race attracted an unheard of number of entries 5,096 (3,711 international entries and 1,385 South African entries) from 30 different countries. These numbers are huge given all of the potential problems including technical, logistical, customs, and health issues, inherent in such a venture. Needless to say by the 15^th running of the race the entries came from 36 countries and totaled 6,611 young racing pigeons. This year marks the 21^st running of this race (2017/2018) with entries from 38 countries totaling 6000 racing pigeons. The entries have originated from Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Kuwait, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States of America.

That very first million dollar pigeon race hosted in South Africa was actually won by an American by the name of “Qualls” who had purchased two late breds from Bob Kinney and then mated these together and entered the very 1^st million dollar pigeon race in South Africa. Here is what I wrote in 2007 in an article following the death of Bob Kinney:

“Two of the “Silverado Family” birds, sold at public auction as late bred’s bred the winner of the “Sun City Million Dollar Pigeon Race” in South Africa for “Qualls” of the USA. This event, without a doubt is the most coveted event in the Racing Pigeon World carrying along with the glory the enormous 1^st place prize of $200,000.00 US. That winning bird was “Silverado family” a Janssen/Gordon family and it was about 10 minutes out in front of the next bird. They came that day one at a time. No doubt about whom was out front and where they were that day. Less than a dozen lofts in the world have ever have bred the first place winner of this race .”

Qualls was not the last American to win this race I can remember the victory in 2003 of “Never Say Die” bred by David Clausing of Florida and the 2005 Jeff Smith victory of “Four Starzzz Dream” an incredible $200,000 US pay day on a hot and windy day in 2005 !

The cradle of the racing pigeon sport is without a doubt Europe however the Americans have shown themselves to be fierce competitors literally dominating this one loft race over the past few years.

David & Anna Clausing have stunned the racing pigeon fraternity by leading the pace in the Million Dollar prize pay-out package with their staggering results in this event. Since inception of the race in 1997 a summary of some of the top results that the Clausing’ s have scored are: 1st, 3rd, 4th, 24th, 26th, 26th, 36th, 45th, 58th, 68th, 90th, 93rd, 99th – and numerous other places in the top 250 cash prize positions. The win which came in 2003 with their pigeon named, ‘Never Say Die’ netted them a cool US$ 200,000 in hard cash. Their own results & and those of others with Clausings will fill all the pages of this magazine. As opposed to fainting during their flight in the heat of the day, they kiss the morning sun.” ~Thomas Smith

My old and dear friend Jim McLean had a favorite saying “Talk is cheap and it takes money to buy whiskey”. For 21 years the South Africa race has been considered the “Olympics of the Racing Pigeon Sport”. The guaranteed prize money, the competition, the reality was simple if you could win in Africa you were the very best in the world.

I asked Jim what he personally felt the role of One Loft races was and were they good for the sport. Additionally which events did he personally compete in?

“The role of one loft races, are to offer a level playing field for all the entries.  All birds are treated equal from medication, feeding, training, and loft location.  All birds are flown on the same system.  In one loft racing you are not competing against another handler but a breeder.  I truly believe here in the United States one loft racing has helped the pigeon sport.  Not all fanciers have the luxury of flying in a club let alone a big club.  With clubs closing because of decreasing membership, fanciers still have the option of competing with one loft racing.  In most cases a fancier can compete against the best in their country and sometimes the world.  We compete in several races a year.  San Francisco Triple Crown, Breeders Fall Classic, Southern Bell, Pacific Northwest Challenge, Big Andy’s One Loft Race, South Africa Million Dollar Race, Victoria Falls, & Crooked River Challenge are the races we entered.”

What makes a truly great one loft race? According to Jim Ward :“A great loft, a great location and finally a truly great handler”  to this I would add – a great team, including an experienced avian vet,  an extraordinary loft manager, along with sufficient and capable  staff to handle all day to day activities, the very best feed  and supplements possible. Then pray for the best because “things” happen to the very best laid plans.

For 21 years the South African race has essentially had the market to itself, it has grown and prospered. I often wondered whether others might one day have the courage to put up the serious financial and human resources as well as the very real expertise in a whole host of areas. No one had really risen to the occasion. But as I understand it that situation is about to change.

Towards the end of 2017, after five years of successfully operating ,one of the finest one loft races in the USA the  Ward family of Indiana  stepped up to the plate prepared to take their successful  race over the top. Thus the Wards have personally guaranteed the largest payout in the history of one loft racing in North America and in so doing created the very first million dollar pigeon race in the America’s. It takes a very special person, a very special family to undertake such an enormous venture. The Wards eat and breathe racing pigeons, they race in one loft races across the USA, they regularly compete in the African races, and they market a full range of products, supplements, and paraphernalia through their recent purchase of the highly successful “Vitaking Products” company originally started by the Ganus Family.

It took the South African organizers a full six years of operation to finally achieve an entry of 2,473 birds. As of January 5^th 2018 a Facebook posting by Lia Zonnekeyn indicated that the “Hoosier Classic Million” had already received 2300 reservations (that number now exceeds 2700). That is impressive and a huge testament to the reputation of Jim and Kelly Ward.

So what do we know about the Wards? Frankly I knew very little and decided that I needed to know a great deal more. It’s not every day that we are witness to the birth of a “million dollar race”. The Wards are serious, very serious people, they work endlessly, the research exhaustively, the love their racing pigeons and the love our racing pigeon sport and strive to achieve in all areas. It however takes more than a family, more than a guarantee of one million dollars in prize money it takes an incredibly talented team to turn an incredible idea into a powerful reality. Time will tell but I believe, the Wards have everything necessary to turn the “Hoosier Classic Million” into a must race for serious one loft race aficionado’s world- wide.

Here are the important feature points of interest to date. The Hoosier Classic Million will pay out guaranteed $1,000,000.00 US and there will be 150 prize positions, live clocking, weekly updates, video updates, and monthly vet testing, live GPS tracking on all races, Top quality products to be used including “Ropa B-10% liquid oregano” products and “Vitaking products”, full time 7 day per week staff.

Jim Ward was born in 1975 in a tough Chicago neighborhood called “Back of the Yards” to Charles and Beverly Ward. Quite a number of pigeon fanciers were located in this area. Interesting that Jim ward’s parents, much like my own 24 years earlier had understood the positive benefits to promoting children to experience the joy of taking care of animals be they pigeons or dogs or poultry whatever.

“As a child I grew up in the south side of Chicago in a neighborhood called “Back of the Yards ” this was a tough part of Chicago and had quite a few pigeon fanciers in it. As far back as I could remember my parents always allowed me to keep pigeons and chickens in our yard and always a dog. This was their way of keeping me from running the streets and getting myself in trouble.”~ Source Jim Ward

Jim ward learned at an early age respect for hard work and his grandfather had started the very first guard dog security service in Illinois and it was the almost daily access to his grand-fathers security dogs that Jim developed a “passion” for working dogs that continues to this day.

“My grandfather owned the 1st “Guard Dog Service” in Illinois.  So at a young age I was around a kennel full of dogs almost daily.  My uncles took over the family business by the time I was a teenager and allowed me to work evenings and weekends.  It was here I learned many things and developed a passion for working with dogs.” ~source Jim Ward

By the age of 19, having completed his High School and one semester of College Jim started his own business that, ( security service) interestingly enough he continues to operate to this day almost 20 years later.

Jim’s uncles, during his formative years, kept fancy pigeons so Jim developed a keen interest in all pigeon varieties. So the reality is that Jim’s uncles nurtured his fascination for these birds by allowing Jim to feed the birds and clean the lofts. Visiting his uncles, scrapping floors and perches, feeding and observing the birds is a sure fire way to insure that you become a causality to the lifelong “in your blood” pigeon bug!

“Whenever possible my uncles (who did not race birds) would take their birds to Wisconsin or Indiana and let them fly home.  It would always amaze me how these birds could make it home under all weather conditions.”~ source Jim ward

It was not long before Jim actually began racing, in fact it was 1987 at the ripe old age of 12, as a junior member of the South Side Racing Pigeon Club.

“I first started racing as a Jr. Flyer in 1987 at the South Side RPC.  I only had 6 youngsters to race and had very poor results.  Somehow I managed to fly 7 of 10 races.”~ source Jim ward

“Historically the most important pigeons to me should be the $5.00 pigeons my parents bought me as a kid.  These were the ones that got me hooked!  When I was flying as a Jr. Flyer I partnered up with my best friend (my Uncle Marty).  We had two super pigeons – 5183 which was a De Klak Janssen given to us from Bob and Judy Alexander. They flew under the name Family Loft and were unbeatable in the late 80’s in Chicago.  5183 was the first bird we scored with winning a club diploma.  Another bird was 3058 Chicago AU 1991 from Steve Plant.  She was a Voss Janssen line from Hackemer.  This was an incredible hen and always first to our loft.  Marty is only 4 years older than me so we were both Jr. Flyers and won Jr. Average Speed.  Needless to say we were very happy that year. It’s amazing we can remember band numbers from 30 years ago and I can’t remember my anniversary!” ~source Jim Ward

Jim as indicated earlier started his own security service company at age 19 leaving little time for racing pigeons as he sought to build clients and grow his business and start a family. However by 2006, after purchasing his first home the pigeon bug resurfaced and he has been with it as a family sport ever sense.

“After taking a long break from the sport I focused on business and started a family.  In 2006 we moved to Wanatah, Indiana and bought our first house.  In 2008 the bug bit me again and I joined the Gary Racing Pigeon Club (Michiana Combine).  We had birds from everyone and tried every popular strain at the time.  Our first year back we won 3 – 1st Combines, Champion Bird & Average Speed.”

His initial success not withstanding Jim  learned quickly that you can waste a great deal of hard earned money on purchasing racing pigeons without first developing a very clear plan of action and doing a great deal of legwork and research. Tons of strains, tons of claims, endless high hopes and not a great deal in terms of results. Most never get off of this treadmill but Jim finally realized what he needed to do and actually did it. After being in business for oneself you quickly learn that average, in anything is just not where you ever want to be. Hard work and great dedication divides average and “far above average”. From 1997 until 2007/2008 Jim did not follow the sport at all.  When Jim returned to the sport one of the first things that he noticed was the growing popularity of one loft races.  He started to study the names of fanciers who were consistently at the top of these one loft races and came to appreciate that if he could acquire birds from these breeders it could provide a good foundation for his future aspirations in this area…

“I started researching different strains and systems for racing when I got back into the sport.  I learned very quickly that there were several different systems for racing and multiple strains that had been proven here in the US.  I also learned the quickest way to achieve results is by starting with good stock. Early on I wasted so much money on pigeons… Finally I realized I’m going to buy the best I can afford and start paying attention to my bird’s results whether it be breeding or racing. I also learned don’t be afraid to ask questions.” ~ source Jim ward

Jim developed a fascination, as so many of us have especially given the technology that makes it possible for the whole world to watch results unfold in real time in One Loft Races world- wide One loft race birds are competing on a level playing field all flying to the same loft, all fed the same, all exposed to the same management system, all exposed to all of the same variables. With these thoughts in mind, when you see the same names dominating the winners circle, year in and year out it’s more than just luck. The reality is that these are exceptional pigeons that can handle a variety of courses throughout the United States, Canada and the world. The list of Great Breeders is actually growing every year. What you are witnessing is the emergence of a class of professional pigeon breeders who participate every year, testing their birds in well managed, well- funded, serious races.

By 2009 Jim Ward entered his first one loft race the Shasta Classic run by Dan Welch. Not surprisingly Jim’s birds were beaten in every race in this series.  Not an easy lesson to learn, actually one that most people never really learn or contemplate. The question in Jim’s mind “ how I could get great results racing in my local club and win with these same birds but get beat up in a one loft race?”  After speaking to Dan Welch he explained to Jim the many factors that need to be considered before entering ones birds into a One Loft Race. The upshot of all this, heart to heart chatting, was in its essence quite simple, simple in theory but complicated in day to day execution . If you are going to compete with serious professionals, you need to get really serious about your pigeons and your evaluation of your pigeons: “… so I reevaluated the list of breeders who were winning in One Loft Races.  I decided to buy the best I could and hope to achieve better results.”

The Wards fly as a family however Kelly Ward, Jim’s wife had like most fanciers wives to be never heard of racing pigeons until she met Jim. Jim’s was very lucky  that his wife and children developed a keen interest in the sport especially after Jim made the decision to start his own one loft race  some 5 years ago called the “Hoosier Classic” .Once that step was taken then the family really did become “FAMILY LOFT”

It is not the norm to see a family come together to participate in a sport, especially the sport of racing pigeons the way that the Ward family has. Jim outlined the roles played by the family members in the Hoosier Classic One Loft Race: 

“My three sons Ryan (15), Jimmy (13), Colin (12) love all sports, however once breeding season starts all the way through races they can be found in the lofts.  Colin can point out something wrong with a pigeon from a distance.  He amazes me when we are loading 1400 pigeons on a hot July morning and he will pick a bird out of a group and inspect it from head to toe and let me know very quickly if something is wrong.  He almost seems to have a 6th sense about pigeons.  Jimmy and Ryan are equally talented in their own ways always watching that we do not overlook anything.  My daughter Morgan (18) will help when shipping the One Loft Birds but doesn’t have an “interest” like the boys and my wife do…  My wife Kelly handles everything related to the Hoosier Classic from intake of birds, putting chip rings on, to loading birds for training tosses and races.  Kelly is now running Vita King Products on a daily basis. We had the opportunity to purchase Vita King in 2017 and have been very busy with pigeons and products ever since.” ~ Source Jim ward

I was curious as to the genesis of the original “Hoosier Classic” and how it all began and the why of it .Jim was happy to oblige and so he related how it all began on a visit to, of all places, Belgium.

Quarantine facility on the Ward property is a wonderful building including outdoor aviaries.

  “In 2012 I was visiting Belgium and Holland with a very good friend Al Hilaert and a few other people.  While visiting lofts we were able to stop and see The Belgium Masters One Loft Race.  It was a beautiful building and the staff was very professional.  At dinner that night we started talking about the idea of hosting a race back home. Al and I decided to partner on the idea after doing some research and looking for advice.  Some thought we were crazy for wanting to do a one loft race while others thought it was a great idea. In the end we built a loft and started with a 72ft loft and began accepting birds in March of 2013.  About 2 weeks before we started accepting birds I got a phone call from Mike Ganus wishing us luck and some advice I still use to this day…”You only get out what you put in them and don’t take any short cuts.  Stay on top of vaccinations and medications.”  In our first year we had just over 300 entries and year two we couldn’t get anything right.  We had agreed to host a 7 race series and living just south of Lake Michigan you run out of good weather in a hurry come fall.  We struggled in year two and almost threw in the towel on the Hoosier Classic.  Then I remembered reading an article written by Joe Nemelka about one loft racing.  In the article he mentioned what he wanted out of a one loft race and that if a fancier started a one loft race they should plan on staying with it for 5 years.   I remember thinking then “Do you want to be the best or do you want to be a one loft race nobody remembers?”   By the time year 3 came we were adding on to the loft 24 ft. and beginning the season with just over 500 birds and taking 350 birds to the final race with 282 clocking.  Year four we took in over 700 birds and took 523 birds to the final race clocking 373.  This was the year it was decided that I would buy Al out of his half of the Hoosier Classic.  Al lives about an hour away and couldn’t help on a daily basis.  We added another 72 ft. in year five and accepted 1642 birds.  We took 1331 birds to the first race and ended the season taking 989 to the final race clocking 869.  In 2017 we introduced a new exciting format for the Hoosier Classic race. Any pigeon raced in 2017 can have the option to fly a five race old bird series 100- 200- 300- 400- 500 miles. Old birds will be flown from our original Hoosier Loft 164 ft. long. Old bird races will start in May of 2018. The great thing about this old bird series is you can fly your birds for as long as you would like as a 2-3 or even a 4 year old. We feel this will be a great test as we know not every great young bird makes a great old bird. Another great way to test your breeding program” 

the original founders of Hoosier Classic were Al Hilaert and Jim Ward two long- time friends on the deck of the original loft! The new Million Dollar race loft is 208 ft. long complete with 208 ft. of attached outdoor aviaries.

Five years of successfully operating the original “Hoosier Classic” laid the foundation for the “Hoosier Classic Million”. Research, endless research, study, continuous questions, constant seeking of advice from top flyers, consultation with Family members all leading to a final positive conclusion.

 “We have been asked several times over the past two seasons if we would ever see a million dollar race here in North America. Again we have been seeking advice and studying international races as to what format would best work here in the States. It’s very important to ask the advice of top flyers before starting such an important race like this.  Anyone in the sport could have easily tried what we are doing. My Family and I have never set out to do anything half -heartedly. When asked if we would ever consider this endeavor we asked each other if this was something we can handle. The answer was YES! We feel North America needs a race like this and would be very good for the sport. In order to last in the one loft race business you must be Honest and Hard Working we have proven this over the past five years. We also know we will never make everyone happy. However if you stick to your rules and do what you say you are going to do it makes it very hard for anyone to question your actions. We were the first to use GPS tracking in our country on our trailer and we consult with a veterinarian on a monthly basis. Our race has grown every year because of the hard work we put in. As our race has grown so has our staff. We now employ five more individuals for administrative duties as well as loft management. Our hope is to have a race that everyone can trust and turn the Hoosier Classic into the Best Race in the World. We know this will not be an easy task and my family and I are taking a big risk. However it comes back to hard work and honesty! NO SHORT CUTS! By following these two rules we see us reaching our goals. The Hoosier Classic is a family owned and operated business with no partners. We designed a new 280ft long loft 16ft wide with a 12 x 200 fly pen attached to the front of the loft. A spacious loft helps with keeping pigeons healthy. Every decision we make is with the best interest of the birds in mind. Our loft sits on 20 acres of land in the country and a great place to have a one loft race. There are many great one loft races and we fly many of them. We still believe one loft racing is the best way to test your pigeons.”

It’s clear to me, from all the research undertaken, that the Hoosier Classic International Race is committed to the highest standards of accountability and quality. Planning began in late 2016 with the Wards seeking advice and input from top fanciers worldwide. This highly valued input enabled the Wards to begin construction of the first Million dollar loft Race in the USA.  The new loft is designed to comfortably accommodate 7,500 birds; the Hoosier team takes a genuine interest in ensuring that your pigeons are met with the highest professional standard of care.

The newly constructed lofts for the Hoosier Classic Million Dollar race are 280 Ft. Long and 16 ft. wide with a 12 ft. X 200 Ft attached aviaries, all situated on 20 acres or prime farmland.

“… I also read everything I can get my hands on. The internet is amazing with all the knowledge on our great sport. Another passion of mine is the studying of pigeon health. There is so much to learn on this matter. I am sure I drive my veterinarian crazy with all my questions. This interest spiked once we started the Hoosier Classic. The mixing of so many birds makes it a mixing pot of potential viruses. We learned early on that vaccinating youngsters once is not enough a second vaccination four weeks after the first is just as important. We always use the best products available. We do not use products blindly and study the benefits and negatives of such products before using them. Recently we have seen the benefits of Ropa B 10% liquid used in one loft racing. In 2018 Ropa B 10% liquid will be a product we will be using. The benefits of Ropa oregano have proven to be so beneficial to the digestive systems of our birds. Our feed is imported from Belgium and I do think that we were the first one loft Race to feed Versele-Laga and Jovati Grit the best on the Market also imported from Belgium. Vita King Products have always been our products of choice. In 2017 we were presented with the opportunity to buy Vita King Pigeon supplies. After careful consideration and asking our family their opinion we purchased the company from Mike and Debbie Ganus. Vita King has been serving the fancy and racing pigeon sport for 32 years. Needless to say we are involved with the pigeon sport in some manner every day of the week.” ~source Jim Ward

Above is a photo of the location of the Hoosier Classic Million dollar race. It is absolutely beautiful surrounded by farmland incredibly well maintained, safe secure just ideal!

Jim Ward is an excellent business man but the reality is that he (and his family) love to breed and race their pigeons. They understand the sport, they participate at all levels of the sport, as pigeon products suppliers through their ownership and operation of Vitaking Products, as breeders and competitors at local and combine levels, as one loft entrants in most major races both domestically and internationally, and as One Loft Race operators themselves being the founders of the Hoosier Classic.

With some 280 Ft of outdoor, walk in, aviaries in the Hoosier Million Dollar lofts, there is room for every bird to be outside in the sunshine.

Jim had left the sport in 1997 as he dedicated all his time to his young family and returned in 2008. Upon his return Jim did a lot of research but was impressed that one of the top fanciers in 1997 was certainly Mike Ganus and Mike Ganus was still at the top over 11 years later in 2008.

“When I left the sport in 1997 the name Ganus Family Loft was very popular.  When I returned in 2008 it was clear this loft was still at the top of most big races throughout the United States.  I live about an hour from Ganus Family Loft so with the close proximity and great results I decided to purchase our stock from them.  In 2009 I told Mike I wanted to purchase a couple of grandkids of his #1 breeding hen “Mona Lisa.”  While vacationing with my family in the summer of 2010 I received a call from Mike stating he had 10 grandkids of Mona Lisa who were to go to South Africa Million Dollar Race but he had missed the last shipment and I could purchase one or all of them.  When I got off the phone I told my wife and she said “Don’t buy them all!!”  Once I had a chance to see them it was so hard to pick one over the other.  Needless to say I bought them all and never looked back.  These 10 are the foundation of our loft and we still have 8 of the original 10.  We have since added other pigeons from Filip & Nicholis Norman, Chris Hebberecht, & Gabby Vandenabelle.” ~Jim Ward

Jim Ward “Family Loft” has a “performance family” of racing pigeons made up of several strains that themselves have impressive origins.

each section in the Million Dollar loft has wire bottoms, room to spare, endless perches so every bird has a place, truly an incredible set up.

Jim Ward’s personal colony of pigeons is, performance based, made up of several strains and include, arguably, some of the most respected individuals in the sport, in their back ground.

Rocket – NL 9669302-96 1st National Ace Pigeon of all Holland

Hollywood – NL 40553083-93 1st National Ace NPO All Holland 97

Topo – NL 1968025-93 1st National Ace Pigeon Middle Distance NPO All Holland 95

Phantom – BLG 6162096-97

Natural Marvel – GFL 917-2008 (Natural x Mona Lisa)

Primetime – GFL 793-2008 (Natural x Mona Lisa)

Davinci- GFL 623-2006 (Prize Fighter x Showgirl)

Mona Lisa – 487-2006 (Phantom x Memories)

Abraham – Belg 3129113-05 Father to 1st place South Africa Million Dollar Race

Sun City – DV 02656-10-85 Father to two 1st Place South Africa Winners

Jim Ward has one guiding star and that is performance, pedigree’s are only important once performance has been proven:

“I do enjoy reading pedigrees; they are an important tool in record keeping and for preserving a family of pigeons… As I stated they are a great tool but remember pedigrees don’t fly ~ pigeon’s do! Race your pigeons and don’t worry about how they size up on paper unless its race results.” ~Jim Ward

and as already mentioned Jim stresses performance above all else. According to Jim his birds have been proven in almost every one loft race in the country and flown in all conditions.

“I’m very particular about my pigeons as far as looks and how they handle.  There are good and bad traits in all families of pigeons.  Keep weeding out the weak and it will make the strong, stronger!  Keep the strong and keep the winners and this will pass on consistency, toughness and the will to come home to their youngsters.” ~ Jim Ward

Jim Ward has had success with his birds in one loft races in addition to club and combine racing in his area…

Grand Average Winner 7 Race Series – Winners’ Cup

2nd Equal 1st – Flamingo International

1st Place 300 Miles – Southern Belle

1st Place 250 Miles – Southern Belle

3rd Place Equal 1st 325 Miles – Southern Belle

12th Place 350 Miles – Breeders Fall Classic

6th Place 360 Miles – Breeders Fall Classic

14th Place 350 Miles – San Francisco Triple Crown

Equal 1st 175 Miles – Southern Belle

Equal 1st 250 Miles – Southern Belle

Equal 1st 330 Miles – Winners’ Cup

Equal 1st 125 Miles – Winners’ Cup

Equal 1st 250 Miles – Winners’ Cup

5th Place 325 Miles – Winners’ Cup

9th Place 325 Miles – Winners’ Cup

1st Place GHC Classic 2013

1st, 2nd, 3rd, Indiana Combine Auction Race

1st Place Great Lakes Invitation Auction

1st place NWI auction race

Jim maintains, on average, 24 breeding pair with about 15 extra hens.  His young bird team usually consists of 60-70 youngsters.  However, in 2017 he competed with 35 youngsters and according to Jim he had great results and a lot more fun. If truth be known the average fancier probably only needs 10-12 breeding pairs. Jim Ward has a simple overall philosophy and that is to win!

 “If you want to be successful you have to be enthusiastic about what you do.  When I fail I don’t sit around and complain.  I pick myself up and learn from my failure.  As far as reaching goals I have achieved some and still try for others.  When it comes to the Hoosier Classic my number 1 goal every year is to keep the birds healthy.  This is why we consult with a veterinarian on a monthly basis. By accomplishing this goal it helps to reach our next goal and that is making the Hoosier classic race the best race in the world!”~Jim Ward

Design of the loft was done to insure the comfort of the entries without the stress of competing for a perch, overcrowding and the stress that would go with it have been addressed in this excellent design of the Hoosier Million Dollar 280 ft. Long loft!

Though, throughout this article I often refer to Jim Ward the truth is that it’s really “FAMILY LOFT” and Jim and Kelly and their sons really enjoy competing and working together as a family. Over the past nine years they have achieved just over 50 – 1st place wins in their club and combine.  They were able to fly old birds for three seasons and clearly had a great deal of fun doing that.  They won Average Speed, Champion Loft, and Champion Bird seven of the nine years they have competed.  With their total commitment to the new Hoosier Classic Million they will not be flying in their club in 2018, which is totally understandable but they will continue to ship their “FAMILY” birds to one loft races across the USA and Africa.

really appreciate seeing the interiors of the Hoosier Classic Million Loft I do not ever remember other major races allowing the interiors to be photographed!

In their personal lofts the Wards are great believers in giving your breeders a healthy start!  “So many fanciers think about their breeders only about a week before pairing them up.  As I stated earlier winning starts in the breeding loft.  I spend more time with my breeders in late summer then I do any other time of year.  My breeders are vaccinated for both PMV & Salmonella in the fall every year.  Then they are put on Enrofloxyn for 10 days followed by a canker treatment.  If a breeder becomes weak or ill and needs to be medicated after this it is eliminated.  No time to play doctor.   Our lofts are cleaned daily and fresh food and water is given daily.  We provide our birds with the best products on the market so there should be no reason for a breeder to get sick.  If they produce weak babies they as well as the youngsters are eliminated.  You need to remember when participating in one loft races if your youngster did not have a great start at home and become sick at a one loft race…game over.  Put the work in at home and give your youngsters a head start.  Look at one loft race entries.  You can see breeders who enter 12, 18, 21 youngsters and never lose a one to sickness.  This is because their breeders were well cared for and it showed in their offspring. 

*Don’t keep to many birds

* Clean loft daily

* Vaccinate regularly

* Good Feed

* Vitamins & Minerals

ALL of the aforementioned leads to success in the breeding loft. 

Birds out flying perfect location , surrounded by fields of green, for this great one loft race!

To the Ward family, in my humble opinion you all are making HISTORY and I want to personally express my gratitude for all of you having the insight, the courage, the willingness, the foresight and the expertise to undertake, what I believe will be the greatest one loft race in the America’s the “Hoosier Classic International”. Congratulations and I look forward to watching your progress as your race grows yearly from strength to strength.

The Ward Family, Jim Ward, Kelly Ward, daughter Morgan, sons Ryan (15), Jimmy (13), Colin (12).

 “My father would come home from work and catch me standing on the corner with my friends and he would always tell me surround yourself with good people. Surrounding yourself with hard working honest people will make you the same. I always applied this advice in business and the pigeon sport.” ~ Jim Ward

Editor’s Note: The Hoosier Classic was one of the One Loft Races that was tracked by the Loft Report in 2017 for our One Loft Race Stats Project. Click here for final results and rankings.  The Hoosier will be tracked again in 2018. Good luck and much success to all participants and to Jim Ward and his family in 2018. ~ Drew Lesofski

This afternoon it was learned that longtime pigeon fancier Ron Steinbrenner has passed away. He was believed to be 81 years young.

The Loft Report would like to extend our condolences to his family and friends at this time.

Drew Lesofski

L-R Mr. Xiang, Jelle Roziers holding his son Gust and Luc Houben.

  ©2018 by Silvio Mattacchione BA MA

“…success in life does not come easy. It is fraught with pitfalls, obstacles, failure, and mistakes. Success requires persistence, mental    toughness and emotional toughness in overcoming these pitfalls. Its pursuit pushes you to the edge emotionally and physically. You must grow a thick skin and become accustomed to struggle if you hope to succeed.” ~ Tom Corley

Andy Laranzakis or “Big Andy” as he is known throughout the racing pigeon world is a long-time friend of mine. I first met Andy, together with another Canadian fancier Frank Muscat at my home loft in Pickering, Ontario almost 30 years ago. Andy was pigeon crazy and they had come to visit my small collection of Spanjaards Janssens. Over the following years I saw Andy only occasionally, usually at open races like the Englehart Classic in Hamilton, Ontario. These were the days prior to the advent of One Loft Races. It turns out that Big Andy has some uncommon ability to ferret out really great upcoming racing and breeding stock before it becomes the fashion. I saw him do this many times. The De Rauw Sablon were quietly being collected by Big Andy several years before others became aware of their importance and soon to emerge popularity. In time this line generated some staggering prices at public auction…

Well it turns out that Big Andy and Jelle Roziers are close friends and over the past decade or so I was oblivious to that friendship as well as the incredible results that were being accumulated by Jelle Roziers and his “Queen L” line. All of this is even more surprising given that in 2010 I had been involved in producing a book for Big Andy entitled “Big Andy Presents Global Champions 2010”.

Why do I say even more surprising? Well in that new book that my company designed and printed for Big Andy there was a two page spread that I had totally forgotten about until just a few days ago.

During a recent conversation with Big Andy, I told him, that I had paid a visit to Bill Weima and Dan Horner in Guelph, Ontario with my good friend Ben Vettese. I had gifted Ben several Spanjaards Janssens which he proceeded to mate together and out of which he had bred two entries to Bill Weima’s One Loft Race “The Silvercreek Quad”. It was an average speed race and Ben and I had gone to the loft to pick up the youngster out of my gift pair that had scored 3^rd Average speed overall for Ben and his partner.

Ben asked Weima if it was possible to look at and handle some of his excellent pigeons and he handled a blue hen, I believe her number was “770” and poor Ben fell in love with this hen, clearly “smitten”. Ben was a boy again, in love with this incredible hen, not just any hen but a performance hen that was not only a lovely handling pigeon, it had soft supple muscle, moist flesh, feathering that was soft and lush and she had already proven  very successful racer including taking 2^nd place at the Oshawa Gold Bond race ( Bill Weima and Dan Horner also that day took 1^st) in 2015.So what was this hen, I asked. Bill Weima chimed in “It was a Jelle Roziers from his “Queen L line”. I drew a blank about Roziers but the “Queen L” name struck a chord but for the life of me I did not really remember why? Well not long after I recounted the story to Big Andy who said “Silvio, you must be getting old, do you not remember Queen L and Roziers were in my book that you produced”. Well that evening I went into my archives and low and behold there was indeed a two page spread that I had produced in mid 2010 entitled “Queen L”. Included in that spread were three birds “Brooklyn”, “Havana” and “Bumie” as well as a photo of Jelle Roziers, his grandfather August and his father Paul. In that spread “Queen L” was 6 years old and in hindsight I should have paid a great deal more attention as a “pigeon man” but at that time it was my “book publisher” identity that was in control and I needed to complete the book and not get distracted from the task at hand. So the reality is that Jelle Roziers path and my path had crossed almost a decade ago and that is why subconsciously Weima’ s reference to Queen L sparked a distant memory.

“Queen L” “was featured in a two page spread in Big Andy Presents Global Champions 2010″

Weima and Dan, Ben and I went to lunch that afternoon and Bill Weima continued to tell us all about Jelle Roziers and his Queen L line. That afternoon I decided to look into Jelle’s story further with the intention, if it was warranted, of writing an article. I am glad I did.

Breeding (successful breeding that is) is much more complex than most fanciers will ever appreciate. A bird or animal of any variety is the sum of many, many traits, and, each is influenced by varying degrees of genetics and we won’t get into environmental factors. Success in breeding is more than the ability to acquire expensive birds. Expensive birds do not necessarily guarantee success. Successful breeding is so much more than science it truly is an art and as we all know “great artists” are few and far between.

As fanciers we all need to be careful and focus on producing a whole pigeon. “An honest, hard-working,” racing pigeon should be the goal. That, I assure you, is easier said than done. The vast majority of racing pigeon fanciers are not up to the task. Even when they are provided with superior genetic stock they somehow lose their way and fail to maintain the quality as it was originally received. Stock sense is essential!

Having said this I must also quickly add that, there really are some people who do have a gift with animals. These are the past giants of our sport. Very few have created a line that impacted, locally, than nationally and finally internationally. But some have! Those that have, had a gift of recognizing real quality in animals (and the ability to perpetuate it for generations and generations) is called stock sense. This talent, in most cases, cannot be taught; you are born with it or you do without.

Stock sense stacks the probability of potential success much more in your favor than in that of someone with no such stock sense. Bottom line is that the vast majority of racing pigeon fanciers don’t have it! That is why I am fascinated when I discover this rare “gift” in someone at a very young age. It would now seem to me that Jelle Roziers does indeed have this rare gift!

Jelle Roziers was born August 4^th 1983 (in Lier, Belgium) so he is not quite 35 years old as of this writing .Jelle  spent an enormous amount of time at the home of his grandparents (August Roziers and Eveline Busschots) with whom he felt very close. Jelle remained within the local school system till the age of 16 (approximately 1999).He, like most Belgians, loved soccer till the age of 15 and from that  year on his life can be summed up in three short words “pigeons, pigeons, pigeons”!

“When I was 4 years old, I used to climb the ladder to the pigeon loft all the time, and was afraid to come down again. When I was 10 years old, I was even more fascinated by racing pigeons, because of my grandfather, August Roziers.”~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

After leaving school in 1999 Jelle, who was not afraid to work, immediately sought employment initially in landscaping, followed by a variety of endeavors including the building of swimming pools, security assignments, and yes even a stint in local governance.

Raised to a great extent by his grandparents it is easily understood why pigeons became Jelle’s fascination, correction, no not fascination, more than that, his obsession. However Jelle’s natural inheritance of pigeon genes originated from both sides of his personal pedigree that is from both his maternal and paternal line. On his paternal side Jelle’s father loved pigeons as did his uncle, his grandfather and his great grandfather and from his maternal side his uncle and grandfather. That takes care of the “nature” side but it goes beyond as well to the nurture side to include distant relatives like the “Jeff Houben” clan and others.

Grandfather August Roziers with his grandson Jelle Roziers.

However, I think it safe to speculate that most of what he inherited, in the genes, as well as by a process of osmosis was, without a doubt, from his beloved grandfather August Roziers who was a successful, knowledgeable and very intuitive when it came to both breeding and successfully racing.

“Mostly my grandfather, August Roziers. He was one of the best in our area in the seventies-eighties, and was even beating lofts like “Houben”, “Engels”,… Because he had a small number of birds, he was not that commercial. That period, Jef Houben was even asking him how he was beating them.”~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

By 1995, at age 12 Jelle began on his own with a loft of some 2 meters by 2 meters and the birds that he cultivated in that tiny loft were those of his grandfather August.

I have already advised that both sides of Jelle’s ancestry were pigeon fanciers, however it is interesting to discover that Eveline Houben the loving wife of legend Jeff Houben was a niece of Jelle’s grandmother, that is his Father’s Paul’s mother so it is not really a surprise that in 1997, when Jelle was 14 he decided to make direct contact with Jeff Houben and the Houben clan. Jelle took the initiative and called by telephone and spoke to Jeff Houben, explaining who he was and how they were related.

“In 1997 I called Jef Houben and told him who I was. I asked him if it was possible to get a bird from him. Few weeks later I could go to his loft and got 2 brothers that were ready to wean.”~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

Jeff Houben Jelle and Nadia in 2005 handling youngsters from the joint breeding of Pinocchio X Queen L.

It was not long after that first telephone contact that Jelle was spending as much time as possible with the Houben clan. He was, initially, allowed to scrape the lofts. Jelle became a family member and made it a point to listen intently to all of the daily conversations, their plans, their philosophies, their strategies, there protocols, their theories, their breeding insights and little by little young Jelle internalized all of this information and of these insights. The universe had delivered to this youngster a gift not just an education of sorts but truly a “pigeon university” undergraduate degree and then straight to a post graduate degree. Jelle handled the truly great Houben champions of the time, learned to recognize the finer points, muscle, flesh, feather and so much more. Everything was important and he, young Jelle was given an unheard of opportunity. He had become, little by little, a member of the Houben family. Money could never have paid for the education that on a daily basis unfolded before his eyes. Jelle the student and Jeff Houben, Nadia, and Eveline the professors. All of this began because a young boy dared to make a single telephone call to a distant relative who happened to be a superstar in his field!

I do not believe that I or for that matter most North Americans can fully appreciate who the Houben’s really were, what their reputation really was and how they were viewed by so many in their own county, the level of respect that they had earned globally.

200-250 fanciers would camp out behind the Houben home lofts waiting patiently to see the returns of the internationally famous Houben racing pigeons from Bourges.

The continuous success that they had attained, the desirability of their stock. This one old photo tells an incredible story. Imagine 200-250 people showing up, with lawn chairs and lunches and drinks, waiting patiently to see the return of the Houben team in these major national races that garnered them such international notoriety. I had no idea. I now, personally view the Houben’s and their birds in a different light. I more fully appreciate why American Mike Ganus purchased Houben’s very early on, and why David Clausing had so often visited  Jeff, Luc and Nadia, why the Clausing’ s and Houben’s raced in the big European One Loft Races together and  why David had so often  purchased direct Houben stock. Imagine young Jelle being witness to this type of international notoriety and being part of events like National Bourges but not from the outside on the street, but rather from the inside of the Houben home  pictured below at  number 12!

#12 the address of the Houben home that Jelle first visited at age 14 in 1997.

When I first ran across the photo (see Figure 4) I contacted Jelle to ask what I was seeing. What were all these people doing in the street behind the Houben home? He responded as follows”

“People were waiting when the birds came home from Bourges national. 200-250 people…I remember the Houben were always burning candles at home and in the place of pilgrimage Scherpenheuvel especially for this race from Bourges. That’s why Bourges was and still is THE RACE in my family”~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Our_Lady_of_Scherpenheuvel )

Jelle the attentive student  in the 90’s was to become, by a strange twist of fate, the teacher helping Luc Houben after the demise of both Luc’s father Jeff Houben as well as his beloved sister Nadia, in 2007. After the passing, with Jelle only 24 helping Luc Houben with the care of the entire Houben colony.

All that Jelle had learned from his mentors Jeff and Nadia Houben had earlier been put to the test in 2004 when Jelle, then only 21 had the unique opportunity to become the official loft manager of Jeff Houben’s brother in law Mr. Hubert Schroyens and in 2006 Jelle partnered with Chris Cleirbaut racing as Cleirbaut-Roziers and raced at the top of the national races. By 2007 Jelle had already held the loft managers position at two facilities and he became even more serious as regards the management and the expectations regarding his own colony. Jelle had seen and essentially been groomed at one of the most successful colonies of racing pigeons in the world. He would always remember what true Champions were. Jeff, Eveline, Nadia and Luc true Champions who loved each other, their family, and their pigeons in that order.

Jeff Houben with Jelle Roziers. Jeff the master and Jelle his prize student.

Jelle paid very close attention to his mentors:

“I was very attentive to what my mentors, Jef Houben and August Roziers, told me. These old timers had a lot of experience….I tried to stay steady, and never gave up. And that’s the only thing that brought me to a higher level. But, I always told myself, I wanted to be like Jef Houben. Building up a family of pigeons that was doing good, for other people also, and not only for myself. It’s all about common sense.” ~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

Entire rooms of the Houben home were filled with trophies won over the years.

After 2007 Jelle became very serious about his future. Along with the Houben family he also learned a great deal from his grandfather August and his long- time friend Eddy Noel:

“I was very fascinated by the Houben’s way of line breeding to “Young Artist”. Also my relationship with Eddy Noël, who was at that time working for feed company “Matador”, gave me a better view of how I had to feed my pigeons. Basically, my grandfather had the same way of feeding, but now I had the opportunity to work with more modern types of feeding mixtures.”~ Jelle Roziers personal communication.

The Jeff Houben Family portrait. They loved and respected each other and together loved their birds and built a dynasty that continues to win to this day.

So the most conscience re-cap of the actual family connection in Jelle’s own words:

“The Houben family: The wife of Jef Houben was a niece of my grandmother. Luc Houben’s wife, Monique is the godmother of my youngest son, Mil. The Houben family was on the top of the game when I was a kid. I loved going there, to learn more and more. I helped cleaning lofts, training pigeons on the road, co-breeding… Now, Luc Houben finished his pigeon sport, and he’s still helping me, when needed”. ~Jelle Roziers personal communication

Jelle you will recall had made his first phone call to Jeff Houben in 1997 at the age of 14 and in 2004 when Jelle was 21, Jelle’s father Paul Roziers bred what in hindsight just may be the most import Foundation Hen ever bred in Belgium. She , “Queen L”  was bred by Jelle’s father Paul, and she was raced in 2004 as a youngster in partnership with Tom Guldentops, racing as Roziers/Guldentops) and winning 1^st National La Souterraine destroying her competition against 16,000 plus birds. “Queen L” was a daughter of “Angelo” X “Nathalia” and her band number was BE 2004 6277729 BC hen.

Queen L was 1st National La Souterraine against 16,297 birds for Paul and Jelle Roziers in 2004.

The strain cultivated in the loft of Paul and Jelle Roziers was that old line of August Roziers. Paul selected a cock of this old Roziers line called “Angelo” mated to a hen of the line of Theo Yskout called “Nathalia”. Given that “Queen L” received her mtDNA from her Dam “Nathalia” it would be interesting to research this Theo Yskout hen ( which I have not had the time to do yet) to better understand the incredible ability of Queen L as both a performance pigeon as well as priceless breeder. What follow are the results of Mr. Theo Yskout’s birds in 2003 the year before “Queen L” was bred by Paul Roziers. Now clearly these results do not reference Nathalia but they clearly reference the level of overall quality that existed within the Yskout colony at the time.

YSKOUT Championships 2003
1th General Champion “Neteverbond Hulshout”

1^st  Champion “Old Birds”
1^st  Champion “Yearling”
1^st  Champion “Youngsters”
1^st  General Champion “Noyon Neteverbond”
1^st  General Champion Middle Distance “De Tamme Duif”
1^st  Champion Yearling – Middle distance
1^st  Champion Youngsters – Middle distance, Winner “6 Days” Noyon
1^st  Champion Old Birds, “H. H. H. Zuiderkempen”
2^nd  General Champion “H.H. H. Zuiderkempen”

1989: 6^th  National As-pigeon Middle Distance K.B.D.B.
1991: 8^th  National As-pigeon Middle Distance K.B.D.B.
1993: 2^nd  National As-pigeon Middle Distance K.B.D.B.
1996: 3^rd  National As-pigeon Middle Distance K.B.D.B.
1996: 6^th  National Champion Youngsters K.B.D.B.
1999: 1^st  National Zone B Argenton 1124 Yearlings.
1999: 2^nd National Argenton 3259 Yearlings
2002: 5^th National Champion Youngsters K.B.D.B.

So we can see the outstanding quality evident in these results of Yskout and why Paul Roziers would have chosen the hen “Nathalia” of Yskout to breed to “Angelo” of the Old August Roziers line. Inspired? Yes and Inspired mating!

The first congratulatory call to Jelle, after the news of the “Queen L” victory at La Souterraine in 2004 (against 16000+ birds) was confirmed, was from Jeff Houben. In 2005 Jeff called and spoke to Jelle and asked Jelle to bring “Queen L” over to the Houben home. Jelle did as his mentor requested. Once at Houben’s Jeff instructed Jelle to go upstairs and to bring “Pinocchio” to him and again Jelle did as instructed. Once he returned they went over to one of the lofts and Pinocchio and Queen L were put into a separate section and the “Houben/Jelle” co-breeding partnership began in earnest!

“The basis of our birds was from my grandfather. After Queen L winning the first national of La Souterraine against 16000+ birds, we started co-breeding with the Houben’s. For me it was easy to get better birds on a cheaper way, because I had just had to drive to the Houben’s. Also the co-breeding with the Engels-brothers, and Queen L was successful for us and for them also. The last few years, I’m focusing more and more on pigeons that are based on a family of birds, where I know of that they can handle tougher circumstances. What I see, and Jef Houben told me, that it’s better to get birds from guys that are flying good with cock birds, and not only with hens”. ~Jelle Roziers personal communication

There were certainly many other co-breeding requests including the Engles brothers. These combinations of line-bred Queen L with the very best of others famous birds essentially form the basis of the Jelle Roziers colony today. Out -Crosses of the line Queen L blood have been successful with the birds of Geernick, Vercammen, Casaert, Heylen, Engels and Eddy Noel. All of these outcrosses proved very successful!

Jelle Roziers and Eddy Noel.

Jelle gives great credit to Eddy Noel as regards what he feels is his edge, nutrition wise in the feed mixes he uses. Eddy is also personally very close friend of Jelle and his family being in fact god-father to one of his children. Jelle spends many visits to Eddy’s home, discussing feeds, nutrition, and strategy, either in the unique garden setting or in front of this antique stove ( in the home of Eddy Noel) which no doubt was the ultimate foot warmer as they discussed all things pigeon on winter evenings.

At Eddy Noel’s unique home garden where he and Jelle spend quality time together.

At this point in Jelle’s story I am going to make a number of points that I believe are absolutely essential to understand. The readers of this article can  I believe more fully understand the value of This young man’s line, I mean the true value only if you come to appreciate the following concepts and observations. These Jelle Roziers pigeons (especially the hens) just may be the most potent breeders you may ever encounter over the next 30 or 40 years. Here is why I believe this to be true.

As I research deeper and deeper into this unique Foundation Hen “Queen L” I can -not but chuckle as she is the perfect poster girl for an article I wrote a long time ago entitled “Mitochondrial DNA And The Significance of The Maternal Line” reference: http://www.silvio-co.com/pigeons/pdf/Mitochondrial-DNA-Explained.pdf.As such my personal belief is that genetically “Queen L” is actually priceless!

Professor Anker in his book confirms all that I have stated above and provides a real world example as well. Here is what he has to say on breeding “Best to Best” which he refers to as “Good with Good”

“The expression “good with good” is well known among pigeon fanciers in connection with mating. This expression is only valid in case of additive properties. You often miss the target with the non­-additive properties. When we study the previous text, we´ll quickly find the solution. Janos Horvath, a fancier in the thirties and forties, possessed a super flyer at the time. It was a Hopfner crossed with an American pigeon. He had a lot of vitality, was always in form flew many first prizes and usually finished with the first five up to a distance of 960 km. His power was not in the additive properties, but in his excellent organism, vitality, form properties etc. During 15 years, Horvath mated him with ever better partners, but he offspring was far below expectations. In connection with this subject, I remember that there lived a horse phenomenon named Gladiator in the sixties of the last century. He won  the  English  Derby  in addition to  the  French  Grand  Prix, a fete  accomplished  by  only  4  horses in  100  years. One of them was the Hungarian stallion Kisber. Why was it that he had so much class? Well, by luck his organism became a super organism. Such a super organism is being established by numerous factors which cannot be determined in advance. Just as unexpected as a card player receiving only trump cards. So, pure chance. But, this by chance ­created organism, developed from tens of thousands of threads, cannot pass on his qualities to his Page | 4 offspring at such level. That’s why  such  individuals, despite  their  performance,  do  not succeed in  the  breeding  stable. They cannot reproduce themselves. They are excellent in the non additive properties, but unfortunately, they cannot pass them on, or only every now and then. In this case “good x good” is of no help.” ~ Reference Professor Anker

So if “best to best” is not the optimal breeding model then how does a breeder of any stock, but in our case, “racing pigeons” go about manipulating the odds in his favor?  Well research is the key and a number of successful stockmen in our racing pigeon sport have understood that they must constantly be on the lookout for exceptional foundation pairs whose success is proven to have been intergenerationally transmitted. Freddy Vandenheede, in personal correspondence with me, put it very succinctly when he said: “Good pigeons make master breeders.” Another exceptional breeder of high quality racing pigeons and partner in PIPA and the “PIPA Elite Center” also makes this same point in a slightly different way and helps us further focus on the key element in breeding champion racers and breeders. Dr. Carlo Gyselbrecht puts it like this: … It is in their ‘genes’, it is in the family! Dr. Carlo says its “in their genes, it is in the family!” Piet de Weerd said: “only a few families rule the nationals and these are the very best!” Our job as breeders of thoroughbred racing pigeons is to locate those exceptional pigeons that consistently produce winners inter generationally that derive from a family or line. In the past some breeders have been fortunate enough to stumble on to one of these “jewels of the sky” and have quickly built a reputation for themselves and unfortunately just as quickly lost that reputation when the original golden pair was no longer producing because they failed to maintain, through a proper breeding program, the quality genetic package that they stumbled on to.

So if step one is to locate these exceptional specimens and then even more important step  two is to figure out how you  can maintain  or perpetuate this exceptional genetic material  for as long as possible. Most breeders of racing pigeons fail miserably on both of these counts. In 1992 one of my authors and friend Bob Kinney explained this two-step process in very easy to understand terms. Here is how he put it so that it was very easy to visualize:

“….To put my thoughts on breeding into the very simplest of examples. Consider the following. Image a jar in front of you with gold dollar coins in it. Imagine that each gold dollar coin represents a winner gene and you want to reach into that jar and pull out another winner. There are say 20 gold dollar coins in that jar. So long as there are only gold coins in that jar, every time you reach into it you will pull out a winner. So let’s imagine that you now decide to bring in a cross, unproven, an  unknown quantity, that you now mix into your loft ( or jar).So now your jar is full of the 20 gold coins to which you have just added 20 copper pennies. So it is easy to understand that your odds of pulling a winner out of your jar have just been reduced by 50%.Now do that for another generation because the bird that you imported or bought cost so much and is claimed to be so good and you now have say 60 copper pennies and the same 20 gold coins. If you multiply the number with even more unknown gene packages the likelihood of ever finding one of those gold coins is even further reduced. The above is a formula for lifelong mediocrity. When I found that super pair I literally culled everything and worked with that pair and their children. Some were proven as youngsters others were bred for stock. I proceeded to mate them together because I had no choice. With a total of seven pair I started over. I was LUCKY enough to find the “gold mine” my jar was full of gold coins… Over the years I have twice cut back to seven pair only. Each time resulted in a leap forward in performance…”  Reference: Bob Kinney from personal correspondence.

Well I have attempted in the preceding pages to make a number of important points. Some readers will understand most will not and that quite frankly is Ok. The bottom line that what all of the world’s Champions have discovered is this “great pigeons make champion pigeon fanciers” not the other way around. So our job is to diligently research and locate these exceptional pigeons before other fanciers realize that they are truly special.

So let me not beat around the bush any longer Paul Roziers bred that one in a million hen, her name is “Queen L”. The Roziers resisted the urge to “cash in” on Queen L given that they refused to sell her. Paul and Jelle suspected her true value as future breeder of outstanding racing pigeons for generations to come. Most fanciers would have given in to the temptation of money, lots of money, but they did not! Queen L is a rare jewel, possibly the rarest jewel? Jelle Roziers and Paul Roziers raced her to greatness and then the breeding of this hen immediately proved her truly unique gifts. She passes on that special something inter-generationally. That magic, that special energy, to her daughters, daughter’s daughter’s and son on and so on!

Energy is the essential key to Success without energy everything comes to a standstill. Well let me state that racing pigeons are intricate biochemical species (as all forms of life including man are). Every single organ in their bodies would find it impossible to function if they could not depend on a constant supply of energy. These organs include the heart, the liver, the kidneys, the brain and all of the muscles. The energy is produced by the body, in the form of a chemical called ATP (adenosine triphosphate) which is then used by the body for essential body functions. Reference http://www.hitechbloodstock.com/ The Open Secret! In one quick sentence, the open secret is that only females can pass mtDNA to their offspring and the Mitochondria are the energy powerhouses of each and every cell in the bodies of every living thing on earth. Mitochondrial DNA is only passed along the maternal line.  The main job of the mtDNA is to produce energy… However, it’s the way that the mitochondria and, more importantly, the mtDNA inside is passed on to the next generation that is of most interest to genealogists and people looking into their past. In one quick sentence, females pass mtDNA onto their offspring. Therefore, everyone will have received mtDNA from their mother and in turn, those mothers received their mtDNA copies from their mothers too. In this way, the path of the mtDNA has travelled down the generations through the direct maternal line. Reference: http://www.dnaheritage.com/mtdna.asp

Blue Hens Thoroughbred breeders have classified especially potent mares as “blue  hens” and Ellen Parker has developed a “reines de course” list and  made an in depth study of the female families. (Reference http://www.sport­horse­breeder.com/the­Mare.html ) A proper understanding of the function of the Mitochondrial DNA as the “power house” of each cell the engine that actually produces the energy for all organic life forms on this planet and the further understanding that these powerhouses can only be passed on by the females of any given species should assist us all in viewing any pedigree in a very different fashion from here on. The female plays a markedly more profound role in producing individualChampions and perpetuating a winning family for generations than has hitherto been realized.

It’s time we stop looking at our hens as “incubators” and start understanding that they are truly the genetic powerhouses that can make or break our efforts to breed exceptional racing pigeons. It has taken a great deal of time and study but I have come to understand  that long term success depends much more upon your hens than it does upon your cocks and with this knowledge in mind you might want to study your pedigrees in light of this newfound understanding

I posed the question of the importance of the hen line to Jelle Recently and his concise response was:

“My grandfather told me all the time that hens are more important in the breeding loft than cock birds. What I see is that Queen L is passing her mtDNA to her daughters, grand-daughters, great granddaughters, who are doing good in races or breeding, in my and other’s lofts. But it’s not easy to find a basic hen like that. In my opinion, very good racing cocks are also very important, because they give the power, and the hen gives the heart.”~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

Jelle has made a conscious effort to use both inbreeding and line breeding to insure the long term future of the “Queen L” line

“Yes, we tried to build up our Queen L family, and I learned a lot from the Houben’s breeding. Also Bobby Gonzales taught me some things about line breeding, especially the first cousin combination. I do both. First cousins, mother x son, father x daughter, cousin x uncle, for example: son Queen L x granddaughter Queen L. In general, everything is based on Queen L. What’s working good for me, is : descendants of first-cousin mating’s, tested in the race loft, crossed with another family of birds, gave me a lot of success. ~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

I repeat myself however it is important to note that the very first person to intuit the true value or potential of Jelle’s “Queen L” was Jeff Houben. We need to think about this carefully and allow it to sink in thoroughly as this is very significant: “Pinocchio” was without a doubt Jeff Houben’s very best breeding cock!

Pinocchio (pictured above) in 2005 was mated to Jelle’s “Queen L”. Descendants of this pair continue to push Jelle’s colony to higher levels to this day.

“When Queen L won first national in 2004, Jef Houben called me to congratulate us in 2005.I drove to his place with “Queen L”. He told me to pick up Pinocchio from his box, and bring him downstairs. We went to another loft. He told me to sit down on the floor. He sat next to me. He put “Queen L” in a box; I had to put Pinocchio with her. Then he said: son, now you’re going to be a pigeon fancier. We split the babies, and 3 out of 4 of this mating, bred me birds in the top 10 national, and are still in the background of my best birds of today. Queen L, crossed with the Houben birds, are the basis of my birds today. Every time when the babies were ready to wean we just tossed with a coin and chose. We had 4 youngsters (Fifth Avenue, Wall Street, Texas Girl and L.A. Woman).Fifth-Avenue, Wall Street, Texas Girl gave us birds in the top 10 and 100 national. They are still in the background of our birds today.
So Jeff was right. Still that pair “Pinocchio x Queen L” are pushing my birds to a higher level.
 ” ~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

While Jeff Houben was still alive “Queen L” was jointly bred to several other Houben superstars. It is interesting to note that if you research the pedigrees Pinocchio was a grandson of Young Artist, but there were others as well including Rivaldo, and Jack. However Carlton, Nardo, Reno and Tequilla were also taken to this super, once in a blue moon super foundation hen “Queen L”

“Queen L was also mated together with “Rivaldo, Carlton, Nardo, Reno, Tequilla Jack, Washington, Jack,…Most of them did good for us but what I see is the combination of Pinocchio x Queen L and Rivaldo x Queen L are the very best for us. Also the last daughter of Queen L is doing great. She is from Jack x Queen L. Pinocchio, Rivaldo and Jack are all grandkids to Young Artist.”~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

2012, 2013, 2014 Luc Houben sent the 1st and 2nd rounds to Jelle Roziers to race and in 2015 when Luc Houben sold the remaining birds of the Houben line Jelle Roziers essentially had his pick. The Houbens at Roziers are winning straight and crossed to the Queen L line. Jonge Artiest line is carefully maintained in Roziers lofts.

“Queen L” daughters have proven outstanding some that come to mind are “Texas Girl”, “Little Queen”, “National Daughter”, “Ocean Drive” and the list goes on and on and continues down the generations.

‘What I see is, the descendants of Queen L’s daughters are creating my family of birds of today.” ~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

Others were so very keen to form co-breeding agreements with Roziers. Names that come to mind are Van Hove, as well as Mit and Geert Gust who wanted to mate “Shinji San” and “Golden Boy” to “Queen L”. It was then no real surprise that both mating’s were hugely successful given that five grandchildren of “Queen L” from these joint breeding efforts scored in the top 10 in the eight National young bird Races of 2006/2007.Queen L was also mated to key cocks of Jos &Jules Engels namely the “34” and “Father Argenton”

Just as an aside, it is quite interesting to note that Jelle’s talents as a handler and conditioner of racing pigeons were appreciated far and wide. Certain American fanciers had come to appreciate the unique talents that Jelle Roziers had developed tried and tested in the hottest competition in the world. They were not bashful about attempting to entice Jelle into moving to North America. Here is a direct quote regarding one such invitation made by a fancier that I highly respect:

“I was invited to come work for Neil Migliore, (Lions Gate loft), but he suffered a heart condition in the winter of 2012-2013. Eventually, I stayed in Belgium, and a few months later I met my wife, and so… I’m still in Belgium. Neil Migliore gave me a better view on how I had to road train my birds and he gave me also advice about inbreeding. He is a very nice man and he helped me a lot. I’ve visit him in the winter 2011-2012 and I had the opportunity to stay a few days in his house and had a good time at his place.” ~ Jelle Roziers personal correspondence

Jelle had a very real plan and that was to be at the top in Belgium with young bird racing. The goal, try to put as many pigeons as possible in the ace bird ranking KBDB for young birds. And also to win the national race from Bourges, which the Belgians call the Royal Race. After being beaten by seconds, and ending up second place in 2007 and 2016, Jelle finally won the Royal Race in 2017, against 59000+ pigeons. From 2013 only, and in the last 5 years, Jelle had several birds in the Ace bird ranking KDBD, also

Winning the first national Ace bird in 2017. So I think it safe to say that he achieved his goals. But it does not end there, as Jelle keeps moving the goal lines ever further. Jelle on his philosophy towards his birds:

1: Breeding (try every combination possible in order to uncover the very best)
2: Training (train them hard and the basket determines which pigeons are ‘good’ or ‘bad’)
3: Performance (irrespective of their pedigree only keep proven performers)
4: Long Term (‘never’ sell your best pigeons, they are the key to your future)

Jelle’s philosophy is simple but certainly not very easy to follow; his “4B” philosophy has kept him at the very top. Fanciers often are short sighted and inadvertently sell off their future success and never therefore develop from strength to even greater strength! That is Jelle’s goal from strength to even greater strength!
It is safe to say that only the very best will survive therefore his colony consists of serious prize winners. In turn these prize winners breed the next generation of serious winners. Once the quality is present it’s up to the fancier to bring it out!

Jelle with his mentor the legendary Luc Houben. From the age of 14 on one could say that he apprenticed at the Houben Family Lofts.

Jelle was very observant, he listened intently to all that transpired, all that was said, he watched carefully, seeing not just looking, he wanted to learn, learn everything he possibly could. And so he did, quietly, patiently, methodically always coming to his own conclusions.

“You cannot imagine how proud I am, to be part of the Houben family. Also what they did for me when I had some hard times. I cannot describe the respect I have for the Houben’s. I want to keep that family of birds alive and still they are in the background of my winning birds.” ~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

After the deaths of Jeff and Nadia Houben the Houben colony remained with Luc Houben and Jelle greatly assisted Luc in every way possible. Luc Houben had Jelle race his youngsters in 2012, 2013 and 2014 was the last season they did so. The entire remaining Houben colony was sold to China in February 2015.

“I got the last round of babies from his breeders that time and I selected 20-25 birds. Also I could breed from several breeders from him before they went to China…” ~ Jelle Roziers personal communication

The Roziers colony today is a combination of the very finest Houben’s crossed on to the Queen L genetics. There is constant crossing with other performance pigeons as well and virtually all of these crosses, from what I have been able to gather are proving successful.

Jelle leaves nothing to chance, he is a consummate professional, not arrogant, not boastful, not conceited, but a true professional who has a goal, knows how to achieve his goal and then moves the goalposts further and further ahead so that he is always learning, always progressing, never stagnating. Young Jelle has remained, even in the face of an incredible racing and breeding record, well grounded; humble just a really good, honest, hard -working and innovative fancier.

Part 2 of this article will post Sunday May 6, 2018.

Frank McLaughlin has been a pigeon fancier since he was 7 years old. His father bought a pair of fantail pigeons to add to Frank’s chicken coop. Over the next few years, the fantails went from 2 to 12 pigeons, and Frank decided to release a few of them. The fantails flew around and returned to the chicken coop.

Frank’s father knew a person who had racing pigeons and thought that it would be interesting if Frank would enjoy them. When the 10 year old Frank saw the racing pigeons, he was hooked and started racing in 1974.

Jelle Roziers flying his hens in the early morning.

They Win For Jelle, But Bottom Line, The descendants Of Queen L Win for Virtually Everyone.

HOUBEN J-L-N, Itegem

1^st Semi National. Issoudun 5,815 pigeons 2008 (5 minutes ahead)
1^st Provincial. Issoudun 2,300 pigeons 2008 (7 minutes ahead)
1^st Provincial. Vierzon 2,564 pigeons 2011
2^nd   Fastest Angerville 15,570 pigeons 2011
1^st  Price Final Quaoyou One loft Race Beijing 2008
2^nd  Ace bird Belgian Masters 2010
2^nd  Ace bird Beijing Qiaoyou One Loft Race 2008

LOOYSCHELDER FRANS, The Netherlands

NL-20141671410
1^st Duffel (135 km) 6,410 birds

Lv Yabin, Beijing , China

1^st  550 km 13,000 birds

CASIER BERNARD, Ingelmunster

1^st Provincial Argenton 4,549 birds.
2^nd  National.Zone A Argenton 8,261 birds.
7^th  National. Argenton 22,721 birds.
1^st  Provincial Ace bird ybs KBDB heavy middle distance  West-Flanders
9^th  National Ace bird ybs KBDB heavy middle distance

SCHOOLMEESTERS ARMAND, Spalbeek

1^st   Provincial Nevers 1,312 birds (BE10-5020054)
1^st  Provincial Gueret 1,362 birds. (BE12-5015039)

DAEMS ALFONS & DAVY, Voortkapel

1st Provincial Souillac 381 p.
6^th  National. Zone B2 Souillac 1,081 birds
48^th National . Souillac 3,641 birds
BE11-6301331 ‘Lady Ashley’
1^st Ace bird heavy middle distance yearlings Houtvense Fondclub
1^st  Ace bird heavy middle distance yearlings Zuiderkempen
1^st  National Championship Van Robaeys National. races yearlings

DE WILDER VIC, Berlaar

4^th  National. Zone B Bourges II 11.286 birds (6309375-06)
7^th  National. Bourges II 26.984 birds
7^th  National. Zone B Argenton 5,642 birds (6309368-06)
9^th  National. Argenton 14,534 birds

GOMEZ JUAN, Los Angeles, USA

Sunny Wall (6201275-12) Father to Lady Mexico:
1^st  Final Winner Global International Mexico 360 miles (winning of $15,000 dollars)
1^st  Semi-final Winner Global International Mexico 300 miles.
Grandfather to 1^st  Winner “Fred Breezy – Coast to Coast race “2,054 b. 350 miles (winning $ 30,000 dollars) New Jersey, USA

Paul Kiekens (Koningshooikt) with BE11-6249476, a grandchild of Queen L:

6th Provincial. Perpignan 699 birds
70th National. 5,673 birds
132nd International. 15,106 birds

Willy Daniels (Kessel) BE13-6051137, with a great-grandchild of Queen L:

Union Antwerp. Zone Oost 956 birds
Union Antwerp. – ZAV 2,729 birds.- 2nd fastest of 5,441 birds.
National. Zone B2 Bourges 4,016 birds.
82nd National 18,478 birds.
28th National.Zone B2 Châteauroux 1,725 birds.
56th National. Châteauroux 12,071 birds

OKLAHOMA CONTINUES BREEDING SUPER PIGEONS

OKLAHOMA from A granddaughter of Queen L, Deep Ocean BE12-6201072

Queen L, it can be argued, who as a youngster scored 1^st National. La Souterraine

Against 16,297 birds has turned out to become, the most important matriarch in the history of Belgium racing pigeons. I do not claim that the following lists are      complete however they certainly paint an incredible portrait of breeding success at the very highest level of National competition in Belgium young bird racing.

The results achieved by the Roziers “Queen L”   line pigeons at the National Level make it impossible to ignore. The world’s most exclusive racing pigeon auction house has been tracking Jelle Results from the very beginning and finally in late 2017 PIPA and Jelle Roziers agreed to an exclusive 5 year contract confirming their belief that Jelle Roziers is without doubt the best young bird racer in all of Belgium.

PIPA SIGNS EXCLUSIVE CONTRACT WITH JELLE ROZIERS

Jelle Roziers signed a full exclusive contract to work with PIPA for the next 5 years. He is considered to be the best young bird racer in Belgium. PIPA and Jelle are looking forward for this next big step.

I find it very interesting to note that  the “Queen L” line of Jelle Roziers is being crossed successfully with  performance pigeons of various strains.

Jelle Roziers has arranged some very interesting mating’s for the 2018 breeding season all his pairings are carefully studied in a continuous effort to always improve.

2006-2013 Results of the Descendants of “Queen L” at races of 190 miles to 400 miles.

1^st  Nat. Derby Juniors NL 56.613 pigeons ’10

1^st  NPO/Nat. Orleans NL 13.186 pigeons ’10

1^st  Nat. Zone Bourges 13.049 pigeons ’07

1^st  Nat. Zone Gueret  2.290 pigeons ‘13

2^nd  Nat. Bourges 31.824 pigeons ’07

2^nd  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 7.161 pigeons ’07

2^nd  Nat. Zone Argenton 8.261 pigeons ’10

2^nd  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3.340 pigeons ‘13

3^rd  NPO/Nat. Orleans NL 19.692 pigeons ’09

4th  NPO/Nat. Sezanne NL 12.647 pigeons ‘11

4th Nat. Gueret 11.894 pigeons ’13

4^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 11.286 pigeons ’06

4^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1.725 pigeons ‘13

5^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 9.732 pigeons ’09

6^th Nat. La Souterraine 18.973 pigeons ’07

6^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 4.661 pigeons ’07

6^th Nat. Zone Souillac 1.081 pigeons ‘13

7^th Nat. Bourges 26.984 pigeons ’06

7^th  Nat. Argenton 22.721 pigeons ’10

7^th  Nat. Issoudun 16.615 pigeons ‘13

7^th  Nat. Chateauroux 12.071  pigeons ‘13

7^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 5,642 pigeons ’06

8th  NPO/Nat. Sens NL 14,000 pigeons ‘11

8th  NPO/Nat. Sezanne NL 12,647 pigeons ‘11

9^th  Nat. Bourges 37,357 pigeons ’09

9^th Nat. Gueret 12,586 pigeons ’07

9^th  Nat. Argenton 14.534 pigeons ’06

9^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 7.942 pigeons ’10

12^th  Nat. Bourges 17.138 pigeons ’10

14^th  Nat. Gueret  2.745 pigeons ‘11

14^th  Nat. Zone Issoudun 1.182 pigeons ‘13

15^th  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 6.382 pigeons ’10

17^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 4.016 pigeons ’13.

17^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 2.290 pigeons ‘13

18^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 4.016 pigeons ‘13

19^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 8.624 pigeons ‘12

20^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 9.112 pigeons ‘11

21^st  Nat. Bourges 9.021 pigeons ’07

21^st  Nat. Zone Nevers 2.453 pigeons ‘13

22^nd  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 6.382 pigeons ’10

23^rd  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3.340 pigeons ‘13

24^th  Nat. La Souterraine 17.017 pigeons ’10

24^th  Nat. La Souterraine 3.562 ‘11

27^th  Nat. Argenton 21.092 pigeons ’09

27^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 5.726 pigeons ‘12

28^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1.725 pigeons ‘13

29^th  Nat. Zone Issoudun 5.670 pigeons ‘13

30^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 8.624 pigeons ‘12

32^nd  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 1.856 pigeons ‘13

34^th  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 6,618 pigeons ‘12

34^th  Nat. Zone Montluçon 8,766 pigeons ‘12

34^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1,725 pigeons ‘13

35^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 8,624 pigeons ‘12

37^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 8,440 pigeons ’10

37^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 1,725 pigeons ‘13

38^th  Nat. La Souterraine 17,017 pigeons ’10

39^th  Nat. La Souterraine 16,665 pigeons ‘11

41^st  Nat. Gueret 16,988 pigeons ‘12

41^st  Nat. Nevers 11,579 pigeons ‘13

41^st  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3,340 pigeons ‘13

41^st  Nat. Zone  Chateauroux 1,725 pigeons ‘13

42^nd  Nat. Zone Argenton 8,624 pigeons ‘12

42^nd  Nat. Zone Argenton 8,440 pigeons ’10

42^nd  Nat. Gueret 13,885 pigeons ’10

45^th  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3,340 pigeons ‘13

46^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 2,290 pigeons ‘13

48^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 3,809 pigeons ‘13

48^th  Nat. Souillac 3,641 pigeons ‘13

50^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 12,532 pigeons ‘12

51^st  Nat. Zone Argenton 8,440 pigeons ’10

51^st  Nat. La Souterraine 18,973 pigeons ‘ 07

51^st  Nat. Zone Nevers 2,453 pigeons ‘13

51^st  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 2,315 pigeons ‘13

52^nd  Nat. Zone Gueret 5,726 pigeons ‘12

52^nd  Nat. Zone Nevers 2,453 pigeons ‘13

53^rd  Nat.La Souterraine 16,665 pigeons ‘11

55^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 5,726 pigeons ‘12

55^th  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 2,315 pigeons ‘13

56^th  Nat. Chateauroux 12,071 pigeons ‘13

57^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1,725 pigeons ‘13

57^th  Nat. zone Nevers 2,453 pigeons ‘13

57^th  Nat. Gueret  2.745 pigeons ‘11

58^th  Nat. Montluçon 22.875 pigeons ‘12

59^th  Nat. Issoudun 16.615 pigeons ‘13

60^th  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 2.315 pigeons ‘13

60^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 8.624 pigeons ‘12

61^st  Nat. Zone Argenton 3.809 pigeons ‘13

64^th  Nat. Chateauroux 25.263 pigeons ‘11

64^th  Nat. Limoges 14.679 pigeons ‘11

69^th  Nat. Gueret 11.894 pigeons ‘13

70^th  Nat. Perpignan 5.673 pigeons ‘13

72^nd  Nat. La Souterraine 16.665 pigeons ‘11

73^rd  Nat. Zone Gueret 5.726 pigeons ‘12

73^rd  Nat. Zone Argenton 3.809 pigeons ‘13

75^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 12.532 pigeons ‘12

77^th  Nat. Chateauroux 12.071 pigeons ‘13

80^th  Nat. Bourges 18.478 pigeons ‘13

80^th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1.725 pigeons ‘13

81^st  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1.725 pigeons ‘13

82^nd  Nat. Bourges 18.478 pigeons ‘13

84^th  Nat. La Souterraine 17.017 pigeons ‘10

84^th  Nat. Zone Argenton 7.809 pigeons ‘12

85^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 2.290 pigeons ‘13

88^th  Nat. Gueret 16.988 pigeons ‘12

88^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 5.726 pigeons ‘12

88^th  Nat. Zone Nevers 2.453 pigeons ‘13

88^th  Nat. La Souterraine 13.089 pigeons ‘13

92^nd  Nat. Bourges 33.524 pigeons ‘12

93^rd  Nat. Bourges 31.824 pigeons ‘ 07

94^th  Nat. Gueret 16.988 pigeons ‘12

95^th  Nat. zone Gueret 2.290 pigeons ‘13

96^th  Nat. Bourges 31.719 pigeons ‘11

96^th  Nat. Zone Bourges 4.016 pigeons ‘13

98^th  Nat. Zone Gueret 5.726 pigeons ‘12

1^st  Semi Nat. Issoudun 5.815 pigeons ’08 (5 minutes ahead)

1^st  Prov. Issoudun 2.300 pigeons ’08 (7 minutes ahead)

1^st  Prov. Gueret 1.899 pigeons ‘13

1^st  Prov. Vierzon 2.564 pigeons ‘11

1^st  Prov. Bourges 4.290 pigeons ‘07

1^st  Prov. Souillac 381 pigeons ‘13

1^st  Inter Prov. Blois 2.755 pigeons ‘11 (1^st Fastest of 6,355 pigeons.)

1^st  Fastest Marne la Vallée 13,016 pigeons ’10

1^st  Fastest Pommeroeul NL 1,321 pigeons ’09

2^nd  Semi Nat. Bourges 8,360 pigeons ‘07

2^nd  Semi Nat. La Souterraine 5,581 pigeons ‘07

2^nd  Semi Nat. Gueret 3,656 pigeons ‘07

2^nd Fastest Angerville 15,570 pigeons ‘11

2^nd  Inter. Prov. Blois 2,755 pigeons ’11 ( 2^nd Fastest of 6,355 pigeons after  loft-mate)

2^nd  Fastest Angerville 4,203 pigeons ’11 ( 5^th Fastest of 11.033 pigeons)

2^nd  Fastest Angerville 5,441 pigeons ‘13

2^nd  Prov. Issoudun 2.635 pigeons ‘13

3^rd  Inter.Prov. Blois 2.755 p.’11 (after 2 loftmates) ( 7^th Fastest of 3.655 p. )

3^rd  Inter. Prov.Vierzon 6.638 pigeons ’11 ( 5^th Fastest of 17.706 p.)

3^rd  Prov. Chateauroux 1.468 pigeons ‘13

3^rd  Prov. Orléans 4.262 pigeons ‘13

5^th  Inter. Prov. Blois 3.946 p.  ’11 ( 11^th Fastest of 6.159 p. )

7^th  Inter. Prov. Blois 3.946 p. ’11 ( 12^th Fastest of 6.159 p. )

1^st  Price Final Quaoyou One loft Race Beijing ’08

1^st  Ace pigeon Napsugàr Teszttelep Körmend Hungary ‘11

1^st  Best YB on 7 National races on National level 2013

1^st  Best YB on 7 National races on Provincial level 2013

1^st  Best YB on 7 National races Pipa ranking 2013

1^st Ace pigeon Provincial Antwerp Flying Club LD 2012

1^st  Ace pigeon Provincial Antwerp Flying Club LD 2013

1^st  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2013

1^st  Best YB National Championship Vanrobays-Duivenkrant-LVC 2013

2^nd  Best YB on 7 National races on National level 2013

2^nd  Best YB on 7 National races on Provincial level 2013

2^nd  Ace pigeon One loft race ‘Belgian Master’ 2010

2^nd  Ace pigeon Beijing Qiaoyou One Loft Race 2008

2^nd  Ace pigeon YBs Cureghem Centre

3^rd  Best YB on 7 National races PIPA ranking 2013

3^rd  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2012

3^rd  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2013

4^th  Best YB on 7 National races on Provincial level 2013

4^th  Ace pigeon Provincial Antwerp Flying Club LD 2013

4^th  Best YB National Championship Vanrobays-Duivenkrant-LVC 2013

4^th  Best YB with 6 best results on 7 National races PIPA Ranking 2013

5^th  Best YB with 5 best results on 7 National races PIPA Ranking 2013

6^th  Ace pigeon Provincial Antwerp Flying Club LD 2013

7^th  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2012

7^th  Best YB with 6 best results on 7 National races PIPA Ranking 2013

8^th  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2013

8^th  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2012

9^th  Ace pigeon Union Antwerp Long Distance 2012

9^th  Best YB National Championship Vanrobays-Duivenkrant-LVC 2013

9^th  Best YB with 5 best results on 7 National races PIPA Ranking 2013

10^th  Best YB on 7 National races Pipa ranking 2013

More descendants Queen L

1^st   National. young Acebird Vanrobaeys-Duivenkrant 2013

1^st   Best youngster Belgium on 7 National races (Nat. level) 2013

1^st   Prov. Issoudun 2,300 birds 2008 7 minutes ahead

1^st   Prov. Vierzon 2,564 birds 2011

1^st   Prov. Bourges 4,290 birds 2007

1^st   Prov. Gueret 1,899 birds 2013

1^st   Prov. Souillac 381 birds 2013

1^st   I. Prov. Blois 2,755 birds 2011 (1. fastest 6,355 birds)

1^st   Fastest Marne la Vallée 13,016 birds 2010

1^st   Fastest Pommeroeul NL 1,321 birds 2009

1^st   Prize final Quaoyou One loft Race Beijing 2008

1^st   Prov. Acebird Antwerp Flying Club LD 2012

1^st   Prov. young Acebird Antwerp LD club 2014

1^st -4^th   young Acebird Antwerp Flying Club 2013

1^st  Acebird Union Antwerp long distance 2013

   Descendants ‘Queen L’ 2006 – 2017

1^st   Nat. Bourges – 59,243 birds – ‘Gust’

1^st   Nat. Orleans Derby Juniors NL – 56,613 birds

1^st   Nat. Zone Bourges – 13,049 birds

1^st   Nat. Zone Bourges – 12,400 birds

1^st   Nat. Zone Chateauroux – 4,949 birds

1^st   Nat. Zone Gueret – 2,290 birds

1^st   s-Nat. Issoudun – 5,815 birds

1^st   fastest Marne la Vallée – 13,016 birds

1^st   fastest Blois – 6,355 birds

2^nd   National. Bourges – 28,078 birds ‘Illinois’

2^nd   National. Bourges – 31,824 birds “Perfect Light”
National Ace birds/ Descendants ‘Queen L’ 2012-2017

1^st   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2017 – ‘New Queen L’

2^nd   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2016 – ‘Seven Junior’

4^th   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2014 – ‘Oklahoma Junior’

7^th   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2016 – ‘Tampa’

8^th   National. Acebird PIPA Ranking 2012 – 3 Nat. Races – ‘Alena’

10^th   National. Acebird PIPA Ranking 2012 – 3 Nat. Races – ‘Ace Fons’

11^th   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2017 – ‘Helen’

13^th   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2016 – ‘Evita’

14^th   National. Acebird KBDB great MD 2013 – ‘Oklahoma’

Young Bird Results 2012 – 2017

31 national races with an average of 20,000 birds per race.

All races are between 479 km (300 miles) and 593 km (370 miles).

61% in top 25%

41,2% in top 10%

26,21% in top 5%

229 times in the top 100 national or National. Zone

26 times in the top 10 national or National. Zone

1st  Nat. Bourges 38.456 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

1st  Nat. Z. Bourges 12.400 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

1st  Nat. Z. Chateauroux 4.949 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

1st  Nat. Z. Gueret 2.290 b. (590 km – 368 miles)

2nd  Nat. Bourges 28.078 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

2nd  Nat. Zone Bourges 8.989 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

2nd  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 4.949 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

2nd  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3.340 b. (504 km – 315 miles)

3rd  Nat. Zone Bourges 4.016 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

4th  Nat. Gueret 11.894 b. (590 km – 368 miles)

4th  Nat. Zone Nevers 2.453 b. (475 km – 296 miles)

4th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 1.725 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

6th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 4.592 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

7th   Nat. Issoudun 16.615 b. (504 km – 315 miles)

7th  Nat. Chateauroux 12.071 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

7th  Nat. Zone Bourges 12.400 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

8th  Nat. Chateauroux 14.762 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

8th  Nat. Zone Issoudun 3.340 b. (504 km – 315 miles)

9th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 4.949 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

10th  Nat. Zone La Souterraine 6.618 b. (593 km – 370 miles)

10th  Nat. Zone Chateauroux 4.949 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

10th  Nat. Zone Châteauroux 4,935 b. (527 km – 330 miles)

10th  Nat. Nevers 11,579 b. (475 km – 296 miles)

1st   Provincial Gien 6,446 b. (410 km – 256 miles)

1^st   Provincial Gueret 1,899 b. (590 km – 368 miles)

1^st Provincial Bourges 5,756 b. (479 km – 300 miles)

THE KBDB National Ace bird ranking in those 6 seasons.

Highest number of pigeons in the top 100 KBDB National ace birds ybs heavy middle distance against an average of 20,000 birds per race in 6 seasons.

34 pigeons in the top 100:

1-2-4-7-8-10-10-11-14-17-19-24-29-35-37-39-43-45-47-55-57-61-66-68-74-76-77-81-83-84-87-91-97-98

1-1-1-2-3-3-4-6-7-8-9-10 Ace pigeon YBs Antwerp Flying Club.

1-1-2-3-3-3-3-5-6-6-7-7-7-8-8-9-9-9-9-10 Ace pigeon Young Birds Union Antwerp heavy middle distance.

1-2-4-9 Nat. Ace Championship Vanrobays-Duivenkrant-LVC.

1-1-3-4-4-6-6-6-10-10 Prov. Ace pigeon Fondclub Antwerp ybs.

2-4 Nat. Ace pigeon Young Birds Cureghem Centre.

1-3-4-5-6-7-8-9 Provincial ace pigeon ybs Province Antwerp heavy middle distance.

Historical ace bird competition on the 7 national races ybs in 2013.

The only year with 7 national races for ybs ever.

1-2-9 Best Young Bird on 7 national races on National level. 2013

1-2-4-5 Best Young Bird on 7 national races on Provincial level. 2013

1-3-10-13 Best Young Bird on 7 national races PIPA Ranking. 2013

Only loft with more than 2 birds in the 7/7 ranking on national level.

29 birds only with 7/7, started with 18,000+ birds on the first race Bourges national.

The “CLEAN UP” race from Provincial Gien in 2014

70,19% per 1/3

40,38% in top 10%

32,69% in top 5%

21 pigeons in top 100 Provincial against 6,446 ybs

Union Antwerpen 1,356 birds.

1-3-4-6-8-11-12-13-14-16-17-18-19-21-24-25-26-31-32-33-36-37-41-42-48-49-50-54-57-67-75-76-79-81-86-86-111-121-127-133-… 73/104

Provinciaal 6,446 birds

1-4-5-12-17-22-24-25-26-33-34-38-41-52-58-63-68-84-85-88-97-112-139-140-66-172-175-188-202-240-288-290-304-308-332-332-413-473-505-544-599-636-… 73/104

Jelle and David Clausing

Jelle Roziers in the Fall of 2017 spent an afternoon with David and Anna Clausing at David’s new home near Spring Hill,Florida.Though seperated by almost a generation in time it is so interesting to note that the Houben Family played a significant role in the lives of both of these gentlemen.Additionally the Houben racing pigeon genetics also played and continues to play  an enormous role in both of their colonies.I am sure that these two great fanciers will have many stories to exchange about their personal experiences with Jeff, Luc and Nadian Houben. David Clausing made his first trip to see Jeff Houben and family in 1993 and his final visit was in 2001.Jelle made his first call to Jeff Houben in 1997 at the age of 14.Their paths certtainly passed at the Houben household. So this photo of Jelle,David and Anna takes place 20 years after Jelle’s first phone call to Jeff Houben.David built one of the most successful One Loft Racing lines in the world based on Houben genetics and.Interesting to note the Clausing’s “Never Say Die” won the Sun City Million Dollar Race in 2003 and Jelle’s “Queen L” was born in 2004 and by 2005 was being mated to Houben’s exceptional “Pinocchio”, “Rivaldo” and others.It was,I believe ,inevitable that these two exceptional fanciers should meet and exchange information that only they would have access to!

Isaac Carillio on a recent visit to Jelle Roziers home. Isaac knows that Quality is the only choice in both the birds you choose to keep and the people you choose to associate with.

The more I researched and communicated with fanciers worldwide the more I was fascinated to discover that without exception all of the people I contacted loved the  “Queen L” line but they all were, to a man taken,  with Jelle’s pursuit of excellence, his uncompromising integrity, his dedication , his openness to learning new ways, new methods, new approaches, his humility, and finally his total dedication to family, Jelle, they all had concluded was the “real deal” just an wonderfully honest and engaging young family man who when it came to his pigeons was without a doubt an “old soul”. No pompousness, no chest beating, no braggadocio just a wholesome young man at the very top of his game in the world’s most competitive racing pigeon venue.

Tony Melucci Jan 25 2018

I took the opportunity to call Tony in Florida and was delighted to speak to him as I had not seen Tony personally since the fall of 1995. In 1993 Tony drove to Toronto to deliver several gift birds to the “Toronto Sick Kids Charity Auction “that I undertook founded and hosted at the five star, Toronto Hilton Hotel. Through his generosity and those of other great American fanciers ( Horst Hackemer, Bob Kinney, and others) we donated all of the proceeds to the hospital. Tony is rightly called in many circles “The Chairman of The Board”. He is a gentleman, now in his 90^th year and the reality is that he was and  respected across Europe by the very “Best of the Best” and still is. I have enormous respect for Mr. Tony Melucci and in that regard I called to seek insight into a young Belgian fancier “Jelle Roziers”. Tony knows pigeons and he knows people, so what he says herein is important to take note of:

“Without question Jelle is a star,…a young family man with an incredible future ahead of him… he will be a star, and his star will keep rising for a very, very long time. His future, I predict will be a great one and Jelle will one day be rated amongst the greats of our sport. I am so pleased to know him and to consider him a friend…Jelle is kind hearted person and an outstanding young man. Though,  a young man his expertise with  his birds is certainly that of an “old soul”. Jelle has incredible technical expertise in the preparation of his  racing pigeons  to successfully compete in top national races, but beyond this he has true insight into what constitutes a superior racing pigeon and how then to propagate that superiority through the generations. There is no doubt that Jelle’s “Queen L” is the matriarch of a truly pre-potent maternal line that is set to affect the future of every fancier that has been fortunate enough to acquire descendants of this unique foundation hen. The crossing of this unique genetic package with the Houben genetics was an inspired move that, I believe, will impact our sport for generations” ~ Tony Melucci personal communication

Tony Melucci and Jelle Roziers in a 2013 visit to Belgium. Jelle has learned a great deal from Tony and continues to do so to this day.Jelle Roziers is a lifetime learner that listens so very carefully always interested in learning new methods or new approaches that he can successfully implement in Belgium.

Bill Weima, Guelph, Ontario Canada

“Anyone who follows the success of Jelle Roziers in Belgium and Geert Kolvenbag here in North America can see the value of the Queen L family. 

In April I spent a week in Belgium with Jelle Roziers. It was a real treat to visit Jelle and handle his superb family of pigeons. I was very impressed to say the least. This year Jelle had an amazing season winning the first national race against 38,000 young birds in a release that included yearling and old birds totaling 52,000 birds. Jelle’s bird “GUST” was the fastest of them all! Could it get any better than this? Yes it can and did with Jelle also winning the NATIONAL ACE YOUNG BIRD OF ALL BELGIUM and this was with a different bird he has since named “NEW QUEEN L”.

Canadian Bill weima on his 2017 visit to Jelle Roziers an eye opening experience and Bill will be returning in 2018 to watch some of the national races in person.

As luck would have it I have a brother to NEW QUEEN L and he was in fact a gift from Jelle that came with the BROTHER JOLIE L that I purchased in the PIPA season finale.

What luck! A full brother to the national ace young bird of Belgium.

Now we talk about our super 770. She was the best record racing hen that we have ever flown here at Silvercreek. She is a fantastic specimen as well. Her father is a seriously inbred Hercules cock (6 times) and her mother is our GIGI.

GIGI was also a gift from our good friend Geert Kolvenbag and is one of what have become the famous 3 sisters. They are daughters of the super breeding hen Jolie L and are inbred to Queen L herself.  Geert has also had an amazing year in the one loft races and Jolie L and her children are the source of it all.

….  Gigi also is the mother of our 884 who in turn bred the 4th place bird in the recent AU convention race”. and it has given me great pleasure .” ~ Bill Weima personal communication

“GIGI” bred by Geert Kolvenbag owned by Bill Weima.

Bill weima “770” bred and flown and she was the best record racing hen ever flown at Silvercreek Loft.

Sam Younan, Chicago, USA

Sam Younan  may have been one of the very first fanciers in the USA to purchase Jelle Roziers pigeons and he is no stranger to winning but the Roziers pigeons are in a class all of their own.

Sam crossed them successfully with HVR and he said that Geert also crossed them with HVR.

Sam Younan  “ it’s really very incredible as very few Roziers pigeons were sold in the USA yet they have all done very well”    Gutierrez in New Mexico purchased a bird First year I got them I bred a bird that scored three times in the Windy City.”

“I bought 3 birds from Jelle Rosier in 2010. In 2011 breeding I flew the young bird special race called Windy City 357 miles to me. Had 3 birds from Jelle on team, 2 birds were on my first drop, which I was 1^st-9^th place. AU 2011 WCC 565 was 6^th place, AU 2011 WCC 653 was 8^th place. The following week ship the third one to open race 367 miles won 1^st place. Young Bird 2012 won 4^th place in special race 300 miles only entered one bird from Rozier AU 2012 CICIO 57.

Old Bird 2013 AU 2012 CICIO 57 went to win AU Hall of Fame 6^th place in the whole country. Flew 9 races.

Old Bird 2014 AU 2012 CICIO 57 flew 5 races, he became 5^th place in the Hall of Fame.

Also the other birds from Rozier 2012 that were on the team contributed to winning 3rd champion lofts in Chicago combine.

2016 Old Bird AU 2015 YOUNAN 51 was 3^rd equal 1^st on very tough 150 mile race

2017 Young Bird won Big Andy’s one loft race. Final race:

10^th place AU 2016 MARIO 397

Nest Mate AU 2016 MARIO 398 won 31^st place in South Africa.

2017 12 different states competing from Topeka, KS: Old Bird AU 2015 YOUNAN 51 on 400 miles. 9^th  place 315 miles. Also clocked on top 10 few times he was AU Hall of Fame 6^th place all distance. AU 2016 CHI 1199 placed top in the combine, went on to win 31^st place all distance Hall of Fame. Also winning 3^rd place in the 400 miles in the combine. In 30^th place in Midwest Classic 465 miles against 2,929 birds.

AU 2016 CHI 1170 won 1^st place in combine special race 300 miles.” ~Sam Younan Personal communication

Juan Gomez, Los Angeles, USA

“…I’m glad to see that you’re writing an article about Jelle, he is deserving of everything he has accomplished in a short amount of time.

He is on top of his game as a Young Bird champion!

I first met Jelle at the 2012 U convention here in Los Angeles. We immediately struck up a friendship, at that time we decided to partner up in one loft races.

At the convention there were some representatives from the global international OLR in Mexico. 

Jelle agreed to send to some Young Birds to the race. Jelle proceeded to send me a cock bird, Belg 12-6301275 ” Sunny Wall ” A grandson of Queen L and a son of Sonny Queen. Sunny Queen is the mother to Seven, Best young bird in seven national races 2013 for Jelle

Sunny Wall proceeded to breed the first place final winner global international 350 miles also first place semi- final winner 300 miles

Sunny Wall is grand -father to 14 Skyline 140 that won for me the Coast to Coast $30,000 first place 112 lofts and 2,058 birds

Jelle birds Excel at 300 to 400 miles as young birds, as proven by the birds that I have and others as well.

Jelle is as a dedicated a pigeon flyer as you will find. His attention to every detail is unsurpassed, he has a relentless pursuit to be the best. Tremendous character and integrity, always can count on him for advice, he’s always willing to share his knowledge on the birds”~ Juan Gomez personal communication

 Roland Gutierrez of Ledet & Gutierrez, USA

“…We (Ledet-Gutierrez) purchased our first pair of birds from Jelle the year we visited him and his dad on our trip to Europe, July 2012.

We have purchased mostly direct but have picked up a couple of birds off of PIPA (like “Alabama” nest mate to “Oklahoma”) .I fly club, combine, federation, and futurities . 13 GTO 472 1st club 1st combine 334 b 150m, 4th club, 6 comb. v b, 300m

   13 GTO 489 88 comb. v 719 b 171 v 1,364 birds

   15426 5th club 9th fed v 805 b, 47 L, 36 comb, v 330 b @ 200m

   15338 1st club, 1st comb v 84 b, 19 L @ 300m, 14 club, 21 fed v 1,063 b @ 150 miles

   15469 8h club 12 fed v 805 b, 47 L, @ 150m, 9th club, 12 fed v 1,063 b, @ 150m, 1st club 1st fed v 464 b @ 300m, 2nd club 4th comb v 184 b at 500m. 3 club, 32 fed v 547 b @ 200m

   16643 (AU Qualified Ace) 2nd club 15 fed v 152 b @ 200m, 9 club 23 comb v 330 b @ 300m, 4th club 29 fed v 722 b @ 250 miles

   16695 3 club 8 fed v 128 b @ 250 m, 18 club 43 comb v 422 b 200m, and 225 v 1,154 b @ 150 miles

   17416 6th prize Texas Center Convention race

   17441 8th prize Texas Center High Roller race

   17417 3 club 3 comb v 176 b @ 200m, 26 club 66 fed v 1,86 b @ 100m

   17469 5th club 6 comb v 323 birds

   17470 1st club 6th fed v 109 b, @ 150m, 15 club 36 fed v 1,086 birds

   17495 60th prize California Classic

   17512 1st club 1st comb v 215 b @ 300m, 24 club 64 fed v 1,086 b, 16 club 41 fed v 696 b @ 200m, 10th club 19 fed v 545 b @ 150 miles

   17521 43rd prize at California Classic 300 miles

 Above my expectations in fact just super. Yes we have the Queen L lines. In fact we have mostly his old original lines (Queen L, Eleanor, 005, Jessica & Houben crosses) Of course we have a son of “Oklahoma” as well as “Oklahoma’s (only sibling in “Alabama”). (Jelle  is )Honest, truthful, hard worker and yet eager to learn more,…” ~ Roland Gutierrez personal communication

Jelle Roziers with team of Roland Gutierrez and Dean Ledet.

Dean Ledet, of Ledet & Gutierrez, USA

“…We purchased 99% of our Roziers Direct from Jelle.  We race in club, combine , and One loft races.. The Roziers have been real good to us since we purchased them ,  we have won or placed with them at all levels.   they are Superb pigeons an seem to cross well with our other birds. …we have mainly the Queen L lines . A son Of “Oklahoma”, and the only sibling to “Oklahoma” his sister” Alabama”.. A Son” Wall Street “. An many more Quality Birds….The Roziers are performing well as breeders an the offspring of the Originals are performing Superb as breeders  for us also. Jelle is a Good friend an Honest an fort right person. …Super Guy !” ~ Dean Ledet personal communication

“Cajun Connection” AU 17 Lede 17133 BBH winner of $22,050.00.

Kolvenbag & Son USA

Geert Kolvenbag and Son Thomas. One of the premier one loft racers in the USA cultivating the Queen L from Jelle Roziers.

“I bought my first 3 Roziers pigeons in 2011 on line via an auction in Florida. I still have one of these three:  The King of Kennett (Brother to the King of Belgium) both grandsons from Shinji San and Queen L.  Some of the history of getting Roziers birds is described in the article that was published in the RPD with the title “The Story of the Three Sisters. These famous Three Sisters were bred from Blauwe Jelle and Jolie L and therefore have 4X Queen L in their pedigrees. Each sister bred one or more winner in their first year of breeding at three different lofts (Bill Weima, John Guttierez and Kolvenbag & Son.

I have 5 direct birds from Jelle; King of Kennett was bought in a Florida auction on line, Jolie L and Blauwe Jelle were bought directly at Jelle, Tulsa was bought in an auction at the AU Convention and Jupiler is a yearling that arrived just this winter came directly from Jelle. I only race in OLRs, I am not able to race from my home due to neighborhood restrictions I can list you many results.  I attach the 2017 OLR results to this document as an appendix.  One of the results I am very proud of is the 41st in the final 336 mile MDPR  race, with only 43 day birds from 2161 birds shipped by the King of Blues, he came home in semi dark when there was thunder and lightning.  This bird is a real smart bird with a lot of character.  In his first year of breeding he already bred me an equal 1st 350mile winner.

Great, honest and straightforward person, always learning, during his visit he was checking out what supplements I was giving, but also shared what he gives to his breeders. He is Very easy to communicate with.  Great fancier !” ~ Geert Kolvenbag personal communication

APPENDIX:  OLR results

2017 OLR results by Kolvenbag & Son

“Of the 49 Top 10% positions won, 48 have Queen L blood in them.  Of these 46 have Jolie L in them.

With the arrival of Jolie L a revolution has taken place in my small breeding loft.   The Three Sisters, all three, produced winning young birds in their first year of breeding. AND the King of Blues showed in the MDPR, I knew I had a good one.

So decided to adjust my plan to build a loft around Jolie L. I put all the children and grand-children   I had in the breeding loft.  Then adhere to my principle of:

• Breed a lot
• Race them all
• Race them all the way
• Select hard

I have no room to keep extras, breed for stock or for sales.  I am pure focused in breeding for OLR races.  The decision to focus on Jolie L was a good one.  In 2018 I have 6 children and 9 grandchildren in the breeding loft with 18 pair.

While I pay close attention to the mtDNA while choosing matings, I have also come to believe that there must be a success factor on the X chromosome that plays a role in breeding good one loft racing pigeons.

In other words, Jolie L is super and beyond expectation !  I think that the Queen L birds are very smart and are able to maintain a superb health easier than the average other bird.  Two key factors to be successful on OLRs I think.” ~ Geert Kolvenbag personal communication

Kolvenbag “King of Blues” 2015 MDPR 4st overall, only 43 day birds, 13th Grand Averages,, 2nd US Country Challenge, 4th US Grand Averages.

Norman Pottinger, Arctic Loft, Yellowknife NWT, Canada

“In 2012 I bought my first hen that was bred by P&J Roziers band  Belg 2010 6024129 from Fred Goodchild. this hen was bred to a Janssen cock and entered into the Edmonton Classic One Loft Race in 2013, the Young hen cu 2013 1301 who scored 1^st at the final. The nest-mate to  the 2013 winner  was the grandfather to the 2016 Edmonton Classic One Loft Race winner 1^st overall at the final,” ~ Norm Pottinger personal communication

David Hunter, Australia

“Here are 3 photos of birds with some of his bloodlines in them

The 1^st hen was 1^st fed, The 2^nd hen BCH was 6^th fed cobar 700km only 17 birds home on the day. The third BBH was a double fed hen 10^th fed 400miles and =9^th fed 350 miles”~ David Hunter personal communication

1st Federation winner 2016 against 2413 birds. These birds are crossed to the Houben’s.

John Shore, Australia

“…I sent a picture of the pigeon we call Penny Lane which won a very good money race here in Australia in 2016 ($30,000) which is bred directly off of one of Jelle’s pigeons we imported in 2014.

We mated Jelle’s cock bird to one of our best performing one loft race lines we call The Fine Blend pigeons, they are a Houben/Gabby lines, the pair had 6 youngsters that year and one cock was in the top ten twice with 2,000 birds and another 15th federation plus another hen was 10th federation from 300 miles. “Penny Lanes” effort is the stand out not just for the money but as we were one of the longest flyers she actually had to fly the final 60 kms on her own to win by just 37 seconds and must have flown over water to make that time or she was way out in front and followed the coast line.

I first heard of the Roziers when I imported a couple of birds from Luc Houben in 2012 one lovely cock bird was off of Luc’s Comos a son of Young Artiest who was paired to a Daughter of Queen L, this was pure luck as I we were just trying to get as close to the Young Artiest blood as we could.

This pigeon we called Di Vinci and he was an instant success with his first youngsters winning good races against very good opposition. His children have also bred on so we quickly worked out that the Rozier birds put something extra into the Houben’s and once we researched their results it was obvious that we had to bring that blood into Australia…” ~John Shore personal communication

Jelle has been a pleasure to deal with and it was fantastic to have him at our home recently.

Ed Minvielle, USA

“I have come to know Jelle Roziers over some years now.  I have visited with him in Belgium and been to his home and seen both his racing and breeding operation.  I also spend time with him when he comes to the States.  Jelle is a very down to earth individual.  His success does not seem to have gone to his head.  He is a very even keeled guy with a great sense of humor and I like him a lot, like spending time with him, and am glad to call him “friend.”  I can tell that he is a “thinker” and obviously a hard worker with the birds.  In 2017 while visiting him in Belgium I did purchase a pair of youngsters from a good young pair in his breeding loft.  I just got the two birds about two weeks ago and they are very nice.  I am very pleased with them.  I was extremely impressed with Jelle’s birds when I visited him in February of 2017 and he showed me a good number of his breeders.  My impression at the time was that he had one of the most impressive groups of birds I have seen in Belgium in some years.  It is no wonder to me that he is having such great success in the races…” ~ Ed Minvielle, Personal correspondence  

David Baetens with Jelle Roziers at David’s home in Belgium. Drew is the owner of “the Loft Report” and an avid racer and journalist and together with Joe Nemelka the originators of the Loft Report Charts tracking One Loft Race stats!

Jelle Roziers has been visiting the United States regularly since I believe 2011. He attends the American Conventions and tours lofts across the USA both big and small operations. He is always searching to improve, and wisdom can be found everywhere, you just need to look and more important listen. Jelle loves America and Americans and has given the American flag a place of honor in his home. The above displayed American Flag was actually flown over the United States Capitol at the request of The Honorable Lisa Murkowski United States Senator and this flag was flown to commemorate the friendship of Jelle Roziers and Drew Lesofski.

The American Flag displayed in a place of Honor in Jelle’s home in Belgium. This flag actually was flow over the United States Capitol and was a gift to Jelle Roziers from American pigeon journalist and friend Drew Lesofski.

There are so very many  successful fanciers that have Jelle Roziers pigeons that could have been included in this article, but it would have required a book to do so, a few that quickly come to mind are Michael Steele of the UK, Marek Trazaska of Poland, Gero & Evelin Dijk of Holland, Peter Rembregts of Holland, Peter Alisher of Germany, Peral Javier of Spain, Eric Alvarez of the USA, Richard Pearrino of the USA, Andy Laranzakis of the USA, John Marles of the USA and so many more. All of the above referenced fanciers are fierce competitors always seeking to improve their odds of winning and they have sourced “Queen L” genetics to assist them in their efforts to top the race sheets weekly.

The photo above Jelle Roziers with his son, to Jelles left his partner Mr. Xiang ( Roziers-Xiang) and to his right family member Luc Houben enjoying the incredible victory in 2017 1^st National Bourges against 38,455 birds and their winner “Gust” was actually the fastest of 59,243 birds that day!

Finally I end this article with the most important photo of all. Jelle Roziers the man who developed a family of world class racing pigeons, but more a man who takes the time to work hard to cultivate a very happy family with a “world class Mother and Father and three lovely children!”  Jelle in my eyes you are a true Champion!

Our famous Van Reet breeder for McKnight & Mellinger.

By: Greg McKnight
Anaheim California USA
Email: gregmcknight92804@msn.com

I thought to share with you all some first training tips for a reminder and new fanciers alike.  Assuming your young birds are flying well and routing for a few weeks it’s time to train and the window of opportunity is now.  The birds are feeling well and have lots of muscle and energy so what I’ve found that if you fly the birds in the morning as usual then just give them enough seed to trap and you’ve accomplished the daily exercise needed and the birds sense the air for that unknown we humans can feel like the electrical interference and K factor along with who knows what else, so by doing this the birds are familiar with the days issues so then I crate them up and take them to the first toss which is usually short and they return quickly, by doing this the birds remain fit for they’ve flown already their regular 45 minutes plus and they get that excited burst of energy out of their system.

Planetary K-Index 

Note; Before this I’ve created at some time or another and let them set for some time up to a few hours to get used to being crated and that crowded feeling and after time they settle down in the baskets.

I do this method of fly and train for about a week and after that I’m tired of doing it and they just go directly to the basket then trained. This over the years has helped with early losses and smash trainers in my mind at least.

If you have time you may try this method for yourself.

Thank you for all your kind comments on past articles.

Sincerely,

Greg McKnight

American Racing Pigeon Union (AU) election ballots for the Southwest Zone Director position have been included in all Spring AU Membership Updates to save on printing and mailing costs. Only those ballots returned in the self-addressed envelope included in the Spring Update will be counted. All others will be considered void.

The Southwest zone encompasses Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico (Mexico & Central America).

According AU e-Alert from May 22nd notice ballots must be returned postmarked no later than July 15, 2018.  The deadline listed in the May newsletter incorrectly indicated a postmark of no later than July 1.  Please note this is a correction.  Again, ballots are to be returned postmarked no later than July 15, 2018.

The Southwest Zone Directorship is the only contested election this year and is being held to replace current director John Sweeney. The two candidates running are John Somerville and Bud Williams.

Please check your mailbox for your Spring Update.

The Loft Report recently caught the eye of Pigeon Paradise (PIPA) website regarding the One Loft Race (OLR) stats project that Joe Nemelka and yours truly compiled and published weekly here on tLR.

Both Joe and I had several communications with owners of PIPA, brothers Nikolaas and Thomas Gyselbrecht about the project and the need for reliable stats from OLRs in the United States.

They agreed that the growth of OLR is growing not only in the USA but they are also growing with leaps and bounds worldwide as well.

With that, please take a look at our article on PIPA………

 Impressive growth of one loft racing in the United States leads to a need for available statistical information

On behalf of both Joe and I, we’d like to personal thank Nikolaas and Thomas for their professionalism and for believing in the OLR stats project. ~ Drew