Herbots | Périgueux: Yearlings

After a third National victory (following Bergerac and Libourne, and now Périgueux), achieved under almost identical weather conditions, there can no longer be any doubt. Youri Deblanc's pigeons truly excel over distances of 650 to 700 kilometres, especially with a headwind under a clear blue sky. Although their owner always aims to win first prize regardless of the distance, it is obvious that his racing team has a particular preference for the long middle-distance races.

"Super Jeroen"

Let's immediately turn our attention to the National winner from Périgueux.

We were fortunate enough to admire him in the hand and, to be perfectly honest, it is rare to come across such an outstanding athlete as "Super Jeroen." Not only is his physical build exceptional, but his racing record is one that many fanciers can only dream of.

"Super Jeroen" (BE25-4087194) – bred from "Grandson of foundation breeder Julien" x "Daughter of Montauban II" (original Pollin) – achieved the following results within just four weeks:

1st National Périgueux against 4,423 pigeons – Fastest of 7,858 pigeons
22nd National Châteauroux against 8,597 pigeons
24th National Tulle against 6,780 pigeons
81st National Limoges against 9,091 pigeons

Thanks to Jeroen

Busy, busy, busy… that perfectly sums up the life of this East Flemish fancier.

He was recently promoted to CEO of the company where he works (EOC Group, chemical industry), which speaks for itself in terms of responsibility. His wife is a specialist physician at the local hospital, while their four daughters keep life at home equally lively. Keeping all these plates spinning is almost like performing magic, especially when you are also highly ambitious in your favourite hobby—pigeon racing.

Youri explains:

"Since my promotion, I hardly have any time left for the pigeons. Fortunately, I can count on Jeroen Denis. Trained as a chef, Jeroen serves up the performances here. A big thank you to him!"

Youri is known for being down-to-earth and straightforward. He discovered "Julien" as his foundation breeder (a pigeon originating from Eric Vermander of Oekene). By a fortunate coincidence, he later met Marc Valepijn from Ronse. The Valepijn pigeons blended perfectly with the breeding line of "Julien", producing outstanding breeding results.

The racing team consists of 35 old birds (25 cocks and 10 hens, raced with their partners remaining at home) and 80 yearlings, raced on the total widowhood system.

During the racing season, the pigeons are trained every Wednesday over a distance of 20 kilometres. Upon returning home, the cocks and hens are allowed to stay together for one hour. Afterwards they are separated again, with their partners shown once more shortly before basketing.

The cocks are fed Beyers mixtures, while the hens receive Van Robaeys mixtures.

After returning from a race, the pigeons are not given electrolytes but are provided with proteins instead. Following particularly demanding races, some even receive a protein capsule.

Veterinary care is entrusted to Dr Schroeder.

Finally, there is the aviary story. A few years ago, Youri installed aviaries in front of his lofts. This significantly improved the loft climate while allowing the pigeons to spend the entire day outdoors. Initially, however, the setup was not ideal. The addition of a green windbreak mesh made all the difference. Since then, treatments against ornithosis have become far less necessary.