They were even more outstanding at zonal level. To illustrate, we take a look at both the zonal and national results for Hok Jos Vercammen:
06/09/2019 Chateauroux (526km) Nat. zone 819 olds: 1-2-3-4-6-7-10-11-12-13-16-19-22-23-24-29-33-38-49-51-52-57-61-76-77-78-… National 2,850 olds: 3-4-5-8-10-11-18-19-24-26-30-39-46-49-50-60-68-76-… (36/49)
It was not for the first time this season that Hok Vercammen delivered a result that took a while to sink in. Jos and Lars are among the race favourites in almost every race they compete in, whether it be a sprint, middle distance, longer middle distance or long distance race. They have been among the top performers in all competitions and throughout the season in recent years, thanks to an extensive team of breeders.
Sunny
The first pigeon to arrive home was Sunny BE18-6020083. She is a daughter of Origi BE13-6026050 (1st Prov. Limoges and 1st Ace Pigeon long distance Union Antwerp) and Elektro Princess BE17-6025201. Origi showed his potential repeatedly in the long distance, and he is now one of the cornerstones in the breeding loft. Elektro Princess is a nest sister of Armani Elektro, making her a daughter of none other than Elektro.
The head ...
... and the wing of Sunny.
It is worth noting that Sunny claimed victory in the first race of 2019 in Noyon, and that she was victorious again in the season's closing race from Chateauroux. "She is the embodiment of our race approach: we do not want our team to peak for just a few weeks, we want our pigeons to perform at a high and consistent level for five months straight", Lars explains. "This is the only way forward if you aim to race at the top for many years."
Click here for the full pedigree of Sunny.
Blauw witpen BE18-6020129
The second pigeon and winner of a 4th Nat. 2850 old birds, was a blue-white hen with ring number BE18-6020129. She is a granddaughter of Green Elektro BE16-6032101.
Geschelpt BE18-6020131
The third pigeon was another hen: geschelpt BE18-6020131, a very talented racing hen. She is a daughter of Olympic Elektro PL0264-13-400 and Bambi BE13-6026002. Olympic Elektro gained a reputation as an Olympiad Pigeon in Brussels in 2017 in the middle distance. Thanks to his excellent breeding references he continued to play an important role in the team of Jos and Lars.
Bambi was an excellent racing hen as well, and she is a full sister of Aladdin BE09-6248081, the fastest pigeon of Belgium in Bourges, racing against 64,621 pigeons!
The ninth pigeon to arrive in Vremde was a youngster of Olympic Elektro. This hen still finished in 24th place at national level of 2850 old birds!
Click here for the pedigree of Geschelpt BE18-6020131.
Debby BE17-6025006
The fourth pigeon back home was Debby BE17-6025006. Debby has won quite a few prizes over the past three seasons, and she is now about to move to the breeding loft. She is a daughter of Casino BE11-6282003 (a son of Elektro); the dam is Helga BE10-6052082.
This is Debby's list of achievements:
8. National Chateauroux (526 km) 2,850 p. 40. National Bourges (479 km) 24,053 p. 66. National Chateauroux (526 km) 4,641 p. 71. National Argenton (555 km) 3,322 p. 49. National zone Chateauroux (526 km) 6,640 p. 35. National zone Chateauroux (526 km) 1,563 p. 2. Chevrainvilliers (354 km) 447 p. 3. Chevrainvilliers (354 km) 640 p. 79. National Chateauroux (526 km) 1,790 p. 5. Noyon (208 km) 274 p. 9. Noyon (208 km) 335 p. 11. Melun (310 km) 351 p.
Click here for Debby's fulll pedigree.
Blauw witpen BE18-6020292
The fifth pigeon to arrive home for Hok Vercammen is another youngster of Green Elektro BE16-6032101, just like Blauw Wit BE18-6020129, the team's second bird and winner of a 4th national. This son of Elektro clearly has clearly inherited the breeding qualities of his sire! Blauw witpen BE18-6020292 wins a 10th Nat. Chateauroux, which makes her almost just as successful as her half sister. On top of that, we spotted stock breeder Elektro three times in her pedigree.
Team of quality breeders leads to top class racing loft
And many other talented racing birds arrived home in the wake of the top finishers. Many of them were descendants of Elektro, who continues to leave his mark: his name features in many pedigrees, and the modern-day Vercammen bird inherited a lot of his characteristics. It is any fancier's dream to be able to rely on such a talented group of breeders. After what proved a terrific 2018 season, Jos and Lars Vercammen decided to continue along the same lines. As a result, they also dominated the competition in 2019. And it seems unlikely that the team from Vremde would be any less successful with their Vercammen birds in 2020. Let's not forget that the Vercammen bloodlines have excelled in numerous other lofts as well.
Mr. Green (Taiwan): victorious in Taiwanese Summer races
The most recent reference for the fanciers from Vremde was the impressive performance of Mr. Green in Taiwan, with the help of two Vercammen birds. " Mr. Green has a fine collection of our birds", Lars explains.
"In fact, he was really committed to getting involved in pigeon racing. He surrounded himself with an impressive collection of pigeons over the years, and this approach has clearly worked out for him."
Mr. Green claimed victory in the 'Summer Races' in his area, a competition that consists of a number of training flight, followed by six races over a progressively increasing distance:
Race 1: 250 km (including 150 km overseas)
Race 2: 280 km (180 km overseas)
Race 3: 310 km (210 km overseas)
Race 4: 340 km (240 km overseas)
Race 5: 370 km (270 km overseas)
Race 6: 400 km (300 km overseas)
The pigeons have to make a specific time cut every day. If a pigeon does not make it back home in time, it gets disqualified immediately. Needless to say, you need a team of pigeons that performs consistently well. And that is exactly what the Vercammen birds stand for.
Mr. Green won the 1st ace pigeon title across these 6 races. Besides, he also had the 1st and 3rd ace pigeon across 5 races. Both these title winners are 100% Vercammen birds. Keep in mind there were more than 2500 pigeons involved!
His 1st ace pigeon across 6 races (and the 3rd ace pigeon across 5 races) was racing cock Shadow A81, the sire of which is a grandchild of Mambo BE08-6144041. The dam on the other hand is a grandchild of Elektro BE08-6174630.
A81
The 1st ace pigeon across 5 races is racing hen Casino A86. Her sire is another grandchild of Elektro BE08-6174630. The dam is a grandchild of Bolo and Polina, the parents of the aforementioned Alladin, the fastest bird in Bourges at national level of 64,621 pigeons.
This is the impressive palmares of the two ace pigeons in the 6 Taiwanese Summer Races:
Race 1: 250km “Casino A86” takes a 5th place Race 2: 280km “Casino A86” takes a 1st place; “Shadow A81” takes a 2nd place Race 3: 310km “Casino A86” takes 20th place; “Shadow A81” takes 40th place Race 4: 340km “Casino A86” takes 2nd place; “Shadow A81” takes 14th place Race 5: 370km “Casino A86” takes 5th place; “Shadow A81” takes 14th place Race 6: 400km “Shadow A81” takes 2nd place
The Vercammen bird knows how to win a top prize in almost every race, whether it be in Belgium, Taiwan or anywhere else for that matter!
And we have a little extra: an overview of their results across the 2019 season.