Caretaker Mario Bambacht takes a plunge for the second time this season
Team Hooymans
Team Hooymans, which changed members this year, appears to be having another great season. Mario Bambacht became the team’s new caretaker, responsible for the entire racing team. Christian van de Wetering has started taking care of the breeding pigeons this season, and is responsible for the IT department as well. Together with Jan Hooymans, the manager and decision maker in this team, he looks for new top pigeons that could further improve the team’s pigeon breed. Mario promised before the start of the season that he would jump in the water every time the team wins a first prize in the one day long distance in the province. Team Hooymans was happy to see him have to take a plunge for the second time last weekend.
Team Hooymans takes 1st and 2nd in the prestigious NU race from Argenton
NU race from Argenton
There was a lot of confusion about whether or not the NU race from Argenton would take place or not. That is why the racing birds from Kerkdriel were scheduled to compete in the provincial race from Bergerac instead. The race from Argenton eventually did take place, and the fanciers ultimately decided to basket their pigeons for this one day long distance classic of the Northern Union. Provinces 7 to 12 basketed a total of 2916 pigeons, 1730 of which competed in the NU race. The distance between Aargenton and Kerkdriel is 640km, which the pigeons had to cover in severe weather conditions. The release took place at 07:30am, and many fanciers expected the first pigeons to achieve a velocity of about 1100 m/min. Team Hooymans was surprised to see two cocks arrive back home at 16:42, with a velocity of 1160 m/min. They started to believe in a good result, especially when they heard that their pigeons were home sooner than those of (Mr. Teletext) Hans Dekkers from Hedikhuizen, whose one day long distance pigeons were in great form. They had to wait until Sunday morning to celebrate their victory, when it was announced that Team Hooymans had the fastest two pigeons in the entire field of 2916 pigeons.
The cocks’ team
The best results of 2015 have been won by a team of hens that appeared to be in great shape. However, the team of racing cocks seems to have taken over. The hens had been training really well throughout the season but they were past their best in recent weeks. The opposite was true for the team of cocks: the changeable weather conditions prevented them from gaining fitness in the early season but their form gradually started to improve, and several Hooymans cocks managed to finish in the NPO top 10 from Châteauroux. One thing that might have helped the pigeons find their best form could be the administering of Mariën condition powder. A solid diet should usually be enough to get your pigeons in great shape, and it has allowed Team Hooymans to achieve great results in Argenton.
NL14-1209212 Marus, winner of the NU race from Argenton
Marus
The first pigeon to arrive back home was NL14-1209212 Marus. He was Mario’s favourite cock, and he did great as a young bird, winning a 32nd against 6390 pigeons in the national young birds’ race from Troyes. He showed his talent in 2015 as well, winning a 47th prize from Moeskroen against over 15,000 pigeons. Marus has now won a first prize in the race from Argenton. As with most Jan Hooymans racing birds, Marus is related to several prize winning bloodlines. His sire NL12-1784000 is a brother of the iconic Harry, making him a son of the renowned breeding pair BE01-3266512 Jonge Bliksem x NL05-1936558 Dirkje. Jan’s pigeon loft is home to a few top quality pigeons of Arie Dijkstra (Oudwoude, NL) as well: the dam of Maurus is NL10-1029922 Ariëlle, a daughter of his legendary breeding Leonardo x Tinkelbel. Click here for the full pedigree of Marus.
NL13-1395110 Alex, 2nd overall Argenton 2,916 p.
Alex
The NL13-1395110 Alex was beaten by one of his own loft mates. Alex’s pedigree shows that his excellent performance is not much of a surprise. His dam is NL10-1864544 Alexia, a sister of Harry and thus another descendant of Jonge Bliksem and Dirkje. Alexia won a 1st NPO Châteauroux (5620 p.), and she is the dam of NL13-1395249 Alyda, winner of the NPO race from Bourges in Province 7 Central Holland earlier this year. Alyda is a full sister of Alex. Their sire is NL11-1159921 Dolce Beauty, a son of NL02-5255446 Mister Blue (best cock WHZB 2004) paired to the outstanding hen NL08-2020821 Dolce Vita. They are two invaluable Pieter Veenstra pigeons (Drachtstercompagnie, NL). It seems Jan Hooymans knows how to breed top quality racing birds. Click here for the pedigree of Alex.
No teletext prize
Another pigeon worth mentioning is NL14-1209260 Daughter Harry, which only just missed a teletext prize. She is a daughter of NL07-2007621 Harry, which means of the key breeders of Team Hooymans has had a share in yet another top result in Kerkdriel. Click here for the pedigree of Daughter Harry. The fact that she failed to win a teletext prize was partly the result of the performance of Hans Dekkers, who finished in 10th place with a 50% Hooymans pigeon.
Objectives
Jan Hooymans has a well defined objective: to try and excel in the one day long distance competition. It goes without saying that he managed to achieve his goals in 2015. The one day long distance season has now come to an end, so he will be focusing on the young birds from now on. The goal for the remainder of the season will be to try and finish the year with an interesting group of young birds to complement the existing racing team. Team Hooymans will do everything they can to achieve this goal as well.