Joel Verschoot of Ingelmunster, Belgium an up to date Champion
with Les J Parkinson
On my latest trip to Belgium, Guillaume Vanneste took us to see a fancier who is making them all sit up and take notice, his name is Joel Verschoot. I have to say I had not heard of this fancier, why, I have no idea because he is a genuine top fancier who is winning at the highest level. It was a good job we had Guillaume in the driving seat because I would have got lost down all those lanes with a drop on both sides of the road and they were only wide enough for one vehicle at a time. Joël decided to take early retirement in October 2016, which means he has plenty of time to spend in his loft. He used to work night shifts and running a full-size pigeon loft can really take a lot out of you and then you do not focus on the job in hand which, in this case is to win with the pigeons, even so he succeeded. Many years ago, I used to work nights so do know what is required to, work all night then a few hours sleep before looking after the pigeons. As the season progressed I found that this was not sustainable if you are going to win with pigeons, they are a lot of work. However, Joël managed to stick to it and take his pigeons to the top so all credit must go to him in achieving his goal. Although Joel has been winning for many years he did steadily move up the rankings and in 2011 & 2013 he was the 2nd General Champion of Belgium plus he also won three 1st National’s. They were from Brive in 2013 with “Gees” and also in the same year he won Agen with a pigeon that became known as “Agen” and moving on to Pau 2016 where he topped the list with “Suzanne”. Joël also had the Best Yearling in Belgium 2016 with “Jep” which, is over three National long-distance races. Since his retirement Joël started to look forward to racing and 2017/2018 saw him achieve even more success with pigeons like “Armando” & “Contador” top name two of the present-day team that are doing so well. The other pigeon that has done so well is “Barry” making an excellent team of race birds, that have had some really good years. Joël is a hard man with the pigeons and he baskets and races his pigeons in a strong but firm way. All his selections are based on results because that is what they are there for, to achieve against all others and that is what Joel expects of them. On the breeding side the pigeon’s pedigree does mean something in every loft but irrespective of what the breeding is the pigeons must perform on the road otherwise they are not entertained in the race team. This hard approach to selection has allowed Joël to create a sound pigeon line that is up there with the best and strongest long-distance families in Belgium.
When you look at what he has won there is no doubt that he has the tools to do the job and that is exactly what these pigeons are doing, a good job. To give you some idea of how this loft performs just take a look at these results from 2016 and this is only a selection.
1st Nat Pau 1,661 birds with “Suzanne2
1st Best yearling of Belgium over 3 National long-distance races with “Jip”
1st Provincial Ace Pigeon long distance yearlings KBDB West Fl. Again with “Jip”
3rd National Asduif Fond Yearlings KBDB yet another for “Jip”
1st General Champion Inter West Flemish
1st General Champion Rekkem for the fifth time in 6 seasons
1st Provincial Chateauroux III against 2,791 YBs this one was “Eddy”
14th General Champion of Belgium KBDB
As expected from a top loft there were of course main highlights from the year but there were also many more that could have been added.
Racing pigeons can be so hard when you have a full-time job, but Joel stuck it because he is so dedicated to the pigeons and all those hours of little sleep with his night working paid off big style. There is another point that tells you how good a pigeon fancier is and that is when they handle a pigeon. Joel is very confident when the pigeons are in his hands and the pigeons know that and settle accordingly. Some fanciers struggle to handle a racing pigeon and that awkwardness goes through to the pigeon which then feels unsafe. Joel decided to retire so now spends nearly all his time with the pigeons and the surrounding area. Upon your entry to the property you can see how much work is put into this place, everywhere is spotless and that only happens with a place this size if you keep on top of everything. The lofts and gardens are all well looked after and also well planned. It’s this dedication to everything around him that have made Joel such a successful pigeon fancier. You do of course need to have good pigeons and he certainly has them and more importantly he knows how to get them right for the races that matter, the Nationals. It is a fact that every pigeon fancier who has managed to achieve success in the National races has done so with a team of top class pigeons, success does not come by pure chance, it is gained through observation and dedication. Winning pigeons are generally based on important bloodlines that have given several generations of winning racing pigeons and breeders. Also, the fancier himself is someone who knows how to get the best out of his loft of pigeons which is something that Joel knows very well. He always knows how to get his pigeons in top condition and how to keep them that way right through to the end of the season. Good strong pigeons in good health maintain a high standard in the race team for more or less last the full season and that is the key to a successful racing loft.
There is a wide range of lofts, but they are not overcrowded, which means the pigeons have plenty of space that leads to a good environment and results in a winning team of pigeons. They are raced on the widowhood with both cocks and hens used. There are a separate team of hens for the widowhood cocks and they are left out in an aviary all day behind the widowhood loft and only put in at night and when the cocks are being exercised. As you can see from the photo of the lofts there is a wooden loft next to the main brick loft and then a young bird loft added at the far end of the brick loft. Joel was saying that the best form for the pigeons is in the wooden loft because it maintains a better level of warmth for the cocks and keeps them in better condition for a longer period. I have been visiting other fanciers who have said the same or a similar thing when comparing brick and wooden lofts. One thing about the lofts and that is they have a very good airflow which is always a good sign in any racing pigeon loft. As I was looking around the lofts I was looking at the team of widowhood hens put to one side for the cocks and not just in this case I very often wonder if some of them are being wasted. They are potential winners and that was the case while I stood looking at the hens in the aviary, they looked really good. It’s a case of wanting to go in and select a few for the stock loft, in this case it looked as if that was where some of them, should be. We all have our ideas when looking at pigeons but there is only the owner who can tell you why any pigeon is being used for a particular job within the loft, whether in the race team or maybe the stock loft or as in this case used as widowhood hens. Joel starts the season with 48 widowhood cocks and 24 widowhood hens that are exercised around home in both morning and evening and once racing starts they are not trained. For the young bird season Joel starts with 120 and does say that not half of them will make the yearling stages and are trained in much the same way as the old birds. Joel starts with the pigeons and spends as much as 5hrs with them before a break and then another 2hrs later in the day.
Guillaume Vanneste presenting Joel Verschoot with the Champagne after winning 1st National Ace with the help of the De Reiger Elixir.
Joel Verschoot with one of his National winners
Widowhood cocks section
The pigeons are fed on the Vanrobaeys mix, with a lot of purification to make it a bit heavier towards the end of the week with flight and extra maize. The fountain is filled twice a week with Colobine tea and on arrival with electrolytes supplemented with honey. On the medical side the Veterinarian is Piet Blancke (Ruiselede) does the mandatory vaccinations of Paramyxo and all pigeons are treated against smallpox with the brush. Twice a year a Spartrix is put on or a ¼ flagyl. Every week the pigeons are given a bath just in front of the loft. They also have the elixir from De Reiger 2/3 times each week in the water.
As far as the breeding goes the first round are for Joel to race with the later rounds going into an aviary for later in the year, as well as the aviary they can also go into a loft. Three points that were made are that Joel believes in punctuality, the birds are always fed at the same time. The lofts are always clean and if the pigeons are not good enough they are soon gone, Joel is no fool when it comes to the pigeons he keeps in the lofts.
Racing lofts
Aviary where the widowhood hens are house.
Pigeon racing does not have the younger members of pigeon families taking an interest as they used to do, Joel has 4 sons and only Dieter is taking an interest in the pigeons. As with many families where pigeons are concerned, they are there when the presentations and success stories appear, this is the same with many families, they give their support. Younger members of the family taking over the pigeons is becoming a thing of the past and there are very few who do this in the modern age of pigeon racing. There are far too many youngsters’ sitting at home pressing keys on games when they would be far better playing and learning about life as we did when we were at school. In years to come they will be wondering why their finders and thumbs are getting arthritis and not working as well as they should.
Mr & Mrs Joel Verschoot with Les J Parkinson
Mr & Mrs Joel Verschoot with Frans Rigole celebrating as they had just heard he had won 1st National Ace Pigeon.
I was looking at the pedigree and performances of a couple of the pigeons to see where the winnings come from. Let’s start with “Armando” and in 2017/18 he has won 3rd National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB which is the one to win. 1st National Angouleme 4,564 birds (2018), 2nd National Limoges 9,162 birds (2017), 2nd National Limoges 7,274 birds (2018), 10th National Brive 9,132 birds (2017). 30th National Limoges 15,789 birds (2018). These are good performances from a pigeon who still has a lot to offer. He is a well-bred cock being out of “Pycasso” & “Luna”. I have just had an email to tell me that “Armando” is 1st National Ace Pigeon Long Distance KBDB 2018, with a coefficient of 0.2396%. He is also a top candidate for the title of Olympiad Pigeon Long Distance. What a pigeon, I bet there will be big demand for him if as expected he goes up for sale on the continent in the near future. Another good pigeon is “Contador” winner of, 5th National Jarmac 4,167 birds. 8th National Brive 5,952 birds. 15th National Limoges 9,162 birds. 19th National La Souterraine 6,205 birds. 32nd National Brive 9,132 birds. 7th National Libourne & 3rd National Angouleme. He is out of “Deprez” son of super breeder “Kleinen 00” who was paired to “T Crackske” winner of a few prizes. The dam of “Contador is “Cindy” a half sister to “Betsie” winner of many prizes including 8th Z Bourges, 18th Brive, 31st Souillac, 40th Poitiers up to 13,135 birds in National races. “Cindy” is also out of the very good breeder “Sunny Boy 8” and “Mira” who is a granddaughter of 1st National winner “Bliksem”
I have to say I was impressed with what I saw on this loft visit, the pigeons looked and handled well, and their surroundings were spot on. I would like to thank Joel and his family for making us welcome and also to Guillaume Vanneste and Frans Rigole for taking me. I am sure we shall be seeing a lot more of this loft in the coming year’s.