What x did you find good.

[Devo1956]

Can i ask members, when it comes to crossing birds, what family of birds did you x, I myself did like the cross of Gaby Vandenabeele x Hoymann Rudy and Harry.

[NeilA]

I really don’t have a clue I just put birds together from performance that are from similar distance and try to think what the ybs will turn out like
I do have a good line wildermeersh x zwol line that I would think 10-12 fed winners have come through

[MIL]

When Mark Evans went to Koen Minderhoud in 2000 I was meant to go with him.

As it happened the MNFC held over and I was needed at home to do the result on the following day

I spoke to Mark on the boat back and ordered a team of YB to race in 2001 from these direct imports

When I asked about racing some in 2001 he said "These aren't proven yet!"

I said I wasn't bothered about that "I'l help you prove em"

Those Minderhouds were a fine pigeon. A base of Gaby, Janssen and Flor Vervoort they crossed in wonderful to the other Gaby's

[MIL]

At the end of the day though, I think it's just about good pigeons

Those Wijnants cross into anything and make them a better pigeon - 'cos they're fundamentally just a good honest pigeon Neil

Bit like the Wildie.

[MIL]

Just thinking about this question Neil and "pairings"

They say never pair 2 eyes of the same colour together

Problem with that is 80% of my garden were violet-eyed so there was no option but to run with pairings where both eyes were the same

Pigeons carrying the same eyes paired together produced winners to 1st National level.

When I was pairing pigeons I never gave a toss about eyes. Never featured into the equation at all




What I was very big on though was "characters"

For example

My "Gareth Gates" cock was a bit aggy. He didn't like being caught, never liked to sit in the hand, nor have his wing opened. Didn't like anyone messing with him if he was eating or drinking and he'd happily start a war often for no good reason at all. When pairing him I always went with a hen the total opposite of him. A hen that was mellow, calm, tame, charismatic, playful

If I'd have paired "like for like" I shudder to think what would've come out!

[Andy]

The good old Busschearts crossed in well with almost anything. Got very diluted over the years though and were nothing like the originals that our dad brought off of George Busscheart back in the late 1950s. Back then they were just blues or pencil blues with the odd light chequer.
But like Neil not bothered with pedigrees or strains, just good pigeons.

[NeilA]

At the end of the day though, I think it's just about good pigeons

Those Wijnants cross into anything and make them a better pigeon - 'cos they're fundamentally just a good honest pigeon Neil

Bit like the Wildie.

Hopefully help me to continue to improve

[NeilA]

Just thinking about this question Neil and "pairings"

They say never pair 2 eyes of the same colour together

Problem with that is 80% of my garden were violet-eyed so there was no option but to run with pairings where both eyes were the same

Pigeons carrying the same eyes paired together produced winners to 1st National level.

When I was pairing pigeons I never gave a toss about eyes. Never featured into the equation at all




What I was very big on though was "characters"

For example

My "Gareth Gates" cock was a bit aggy. He didn't like being caught, never liked to sit in the hand, nor have his wing opened. Didn't like anyone messing with him if he was eating or drinking and he'd happily start a war often for no good reason at all. When pairing him I always went with a hen the total opposite of him. A hen that was mellow, calm, tame, charismatic, playful

If I'd have paired "like for like" I shudder to think what would've come out!

I find at times I pair birds thinking I will get part of the hen and part of the cock the best bits but it can go either way
I had a cock with a deep keel paired to a nice hen but with a shallow rump thinking the babies would take the best from both
The yb was poor in the hand really deep and no back on him like really odd
but he won the fed as a baby . I thought that’s just luck then next year and the year after he did the same ending at 3 with 3 fed wins and a 2nd unfortunately he was lost on a very easy 150 mile race where the cocks were all home one after the other in no time
So the pairing worked but he was terrible in the hand as he took the worse of both
So much so of my 17 cocks at marking I made sure I gave him to a poor fancier or novice as I new the good ones would be thinking what a load of shit

[NeilA]

At the end of the day though, I think it's just about good pigeons

Those Wijnants cross into anything and make them a better pigeon - 'cos they're fundamentally just a good honest pigeon Neil

Bit like the Wildie.

What king of distance would they go to the Wijnants

[MIL]

Let's assume that the race is a "genuine" race and not a race like last weekend

I've seen the Wijnants in operation for over a decade now and those who've had them know them well

They are a versatile pigeon that can and have won pretty short races (less than 2 hours on the wing) when the speed has been pretty nippy (above 1600ypm). That's not what the Wijnant's are best at though. These birds coming out of "Golden Eggs" are a different pigeon when it comes to "racing" at 1350 ypm and below. They rarely shun a workout and love to get their sleeves rolled up

They're certainly comfortable up to 8 and 9 hours on the wing on a 1200-1300 ypm day

The flipside is you'll also get them on a lot faster and shorter day too

Here's one G.Daughter of "Golden Eggs" that I raced - alongside a couple of her sisters

You'll see the difference in mileages etc

“NOSEY” 18H28545
winner of..
1st Club, 2nd Federation Hullavington 1,369 birds.
1st Club 2nd Federation Yeovil 2,578 birds
1st Club 2nd Federation Blandford 2,253 birds
2nd Club, 4th Federation Yeovil 1,395 birds
(The furthest of those was 129 miles)




A sister is 18V73181
3rd Section 5th Open North Mids Continental Carentan 1,326 birds
3rd Club, 6th Federation Kingsdown 2,045 birds
15th Federation Kingsdown 1,341 birds
17th Federation Tewkesbury 2,183 birds (beaten by 4 loftmates)
32nd Section 57th Open North Mids Fougeres
38th Section 48th Open North Mids Portland
(Furthest of those is over 300 miles)



Another G.Daughter of "Golden Eggs"
17H16945
2nd Club Cheltenham
2nd Club 3rd Federation Blandford (beaten by half-sister) 2,253 birds
3rd Club 5th Federation Yeovil (beaten by half-sister) 1,395 birds
3rd Club Hullavington
6th Club, 6th Federation Yeovil 1,404 birds
(Furthest distance 129 miles)



Another sister of "Nosey"
19H26162
14th Section 18th Open North Midlands Continental Fougeres 1,126 birds
(Over 300 miles)

Another sister of "Nosey"
18V73182
36th Section 72nd Open north Midlands Carentan 1,326 birds


But as you know, 4 G.Children of "Golden Eggs" were 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 6th Fed 10 days ago - from just 59 miles with the vels in the 1400's

So, they're versatile enough

To see them at their "best" I would say around 200 miles on a below 1400 ypm day