Some foreigners (23-09-24)
Some foreigners
It's normal that foreigners have questions and ask them to fanciers from here. There, the sport is (much) 'younger', especially in the Middle East.
The cradle is here.
Does that mean that 'we' know everything better? 'Everything' certainly not. I have often seen pigeons abroad in a better condition than with many fanciers here.
'Who is the best in Belgium?' seems to be such a silly question from quite a few foreigners. Why 'silly'? Because you have to know what is meant.
The best with young birds? On sprint? Middle Distance? Long distance perhaps? And then small long distance or great distance?
The best of recent years? Or last year? After all, many people don't know about the specialization here. If you say that some never race further than 50 km (living in the Brussels region and playing from Quievrain) and others focus on 1000 km races, they look at you as if they see snow burning. In addition, one year is not the same as the other.
PROBLEM
The problem is that many there are brainwashed/indoctrinated by media that want to make money with the sale of pigeons. Nothing wrong with that, but they don't write about 'who plays the best' but about fanciers from whom they can earn. The tricky point now is that many foreigners believe that these sales sites also bring the news. And because it is the only source of information for many there, you understand their ignorance. Or for many, 'silliness'. That is why those are wise who try and get information from ‘multiple sources'. Also because many foreigners, even dealers, do not know how to interprete results. They don't realize that some race with barely a handful of pigeons and others with 300, 400 or even more. Those ‘others’ realize that and benefit from that ignorance!
STILL:
Sometimes you also get useful questions. Like that foreigner who wanted to know what the difference was between an Ace pigeon and what we call a 'Super Pigeon'. I tried to explain it and the next question was what a pigeon has to perform to become Ace Pigeon. Now I had a problem. I seemed like the silly person because that can be so different from one interplay and another.
It reminds me of a question I once received from Arab friend Omar. He had bought pigeons from champion Luc van Mechelen and it goes without saying that he continued to follow him a bit. When Luc once had a National Ace Pigeon, the man from the Emirates was surprised to find that this NATIONAL Ace Pigeon was NOT listed among the Ace pigeons in the club. Sabrina Brugmans, or rather her husband, who races so well with Dutch and German pigeons, had a National Ace pigeon that was second best provincially. Bart Geerinckx once made a better result nationally (z) than in the club.
And then Barcelona 2024. The International winner was not a National winner. You don't get things like that explained, do you?
REASON:
These things have everything to do with different calculations in the different clubs or combines or other doubles. And that, in turn, has everything to do with amateurism. I have often argued for the same calculations of Championships and results everywhere and for everyone. As far as I'm concerned, also across national borders. There is hardly any pooling in the Netherlands, but still a little in Belgium. What that pool looks like differs from club to club.
Indeed; The same pools have different names in different clubs. From the northernmost tip of the Netherlands to the southernmost tip of Belgium, calculating pools and championships everywhere in the same way would already be a good step towards something that would resemble a real sport. So as far as I'm concerned, uniformity both horizontally and vertically. The same everywhere, but also in the different levels.
From club level to national.
Now you can become national champion in Belgium with 6 points while 10,000 points cannot be enough to become club champion. Pigeon sport idiocy in all its glory, if you ask me.
BUYERS
Quite a few foreign buyers have no idea about pigeons, but they do have a lot of money. Some think it's beautiful. For example, former Belgian pigeon trader D says in a film 'that he doesn't know a single top loft that doesn't have a Janssen strain'. And where else could you find those Janssen pigeons? Surprise, surprise; With him. ‘How lucky buyers are. He still has the Janssens.’
It may be true that he doesn't know one Champion who doesn't play with Janssen, but then he knows no champions. In the Netherlands, a certain V A distributes numerous promotional films. If you want to have a good laugh, you really have to
see. He repeatedly claims that good ‘Jan Aarden pigeons’ have white toes. And the irony of chance is sometimes crushing, because where can you find such a thing? Again: With him, of course.
He says he was once a great champion with Hofken's strain. Coincidentally, Hofkens was a kind of friend. No one from the north bought his birds, let alone pigeons that Hofkens dared to call his 'strain'. Gust got them everywhere because he believed in crossbreeding. It never even occurred to him to form a strain.
NAME
Actually, an e-mail from someone from the Middle East was the reason for this article. He asked fanciers from here 'what kind of name their pigeons had'. I didn't understand him and asked for clarification. 'Janssen or Aarden' he responded. 'Like Jan Theelen. He had also obtained his long distance champions from Aarden.'
I haven't responded.
AMERICA
Twice I was across the ocean and twice I ventured into the china shop of the American strain delusion in my clogs. They showed off pure Berlengee strain, pure Bricoux, Wegge and Huyskens van Riel 'purebred from before the war'.
I'm afraid I didn't make many friends there.
Told them that Wegge sold in 1903 and didn't have a strain at that time and they should forget about those ‘pure Huiskens van Riel from before the war’.
Huiskens van Riel only really started to race well after they had brought in pigeons from Jos v d Bosch Berlaar in 1947. 'Purebred from before the war?'
Maybe they meant another war. The audience laughed. The fancier who asked me pretended to go to the toilet. Haven't seen him since. By the way, Berlaar? Didn't the Janssens and Karel Meulemans get their base pigeons there as well?
MIDDLE EAST
In Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq, pigeon racing is still pretty young. Nevertheless, they have already races of 1.100 km. Understandably long distance birds appeal to them. Especially Aarden birds. But the ones with white toe nails? Come on.