“ON THE ROAD” WITH KEITH MOTT.
LOFT VISITS IN EUROPE (PART 5.)
Ludo Van Tuyn of Ranst in Belgium.
I first heard of the brilliant performances of the Ludo Van Tuyn pigeons through my good friend, Richard Maybey of Virginia Water, who had won a long list of premier prizes in the Three Borders and Berkshire Federations with the pigeons he has imported from the Ranst loft.
Ludo was born in Lier, but I lived his whole life in Ranst and his father was an outstanding pigeon fancier. He was eleven years of age when he started up with the pigeons and was in partnership with his father, racing under the name Van Tuyn & son. The young Ludo sat many times all day with the young pigeons to make them, what he describes as ‘domestic’ and every year the performances got better and better. Ludo married in 1980 and in 1982 he started up on his own with the pigeons and at the start took one pigeon from his father’s loft, and one from his uncle’s loft too mate to it. These two pigeons were a very good breeding pair, the first youngster from them was ‘Deugnietje’, which means Scamp in Belgium and all her sisters and brothers were very good racers and breeders for the Van Tuyn loft. When Ludo was young he played football, ping-pong and tennis, together with the pigeon racing, but the pigeons always took the first place. He has now been in the sport over 50 years and has raced all that time in the Ranst club, mostly specializing in short distance racing. I asked Ludo if he could recall any early mistakes he had made and any other interesting facts regarding your novice days in the sport and he said, ‘In 1988 I made a great mistake, I had two very good widowhood pigeons, that where two yearlings, they raced very well and I fancied them to win the championship. The two cocks were not 100% in condition but I played them every week on 210 km. They won that championship, but the years after they won nothing more. I would say: don't play for a championship when the pigeons are not 100%, its better that they stay a week at home and you not win the championship. I should have not played for that championship when those two cocks were not in perfect condition and saved them for future years. Look very good at your pigeons before race! The same problems can acure when you play with young bird widowhood, when they are not 100% and this can ruin the birds for their racing life’.
I also asked Ludo about his very successful racing system and told me, ‘I race all my pigeons on the widowhood system and for the 2010 season I have 24 cocks and 9 hens for racing. The cocks are mated up around 15th March, the hens early April and after five days together, weather permitting, the racers start their training for the season. In the racing season widowhood racers don’t see their mates before they go the race. The yearlings have two or three races and after that they know their hen is waiting for them at home. When they come home, they get their partners for about one or two hours, depending on how hard a fly they have had. The widowhood hens are paired to the stock cocks in early April and I start them training when they have eggs. When their youngsters are 14 days old the cocks and youngsters go to another loft and are the hens are then on the widowhood system. I haven’t raced with hens many years. Every season I had the problem that the hen racers loved to much their boss and because of that their racing was not good. In 2009 I have made another loft, the hens are sitting in darkness in the corridor and they train for an half hour, and eat and drink in the loft and, after a half hour they go back in to the corridor. I was happy with the hens races in 2009 and because of their good results; I do the same in 2010. The hens see their partner about an hour before they go in the basket for racing. I think that for the long distance it’s better to send sitting on the nest, and perform best flying with little birds in their nest’.
Ludo had 20 pairs of stock birds for the 2010 season and the special line of ‘Superman’ (13 times 1st) and ‘Licht Tours’ (1st Provincial and Interprovincial Tours, 557 km) are the base, together with many good pigeons obtained from his friend Luc Geerinckx, which are the Soontjens and Willyke bloodlines. At that time Ludo had three children from his Olympic-pigeon ‘Gladiator’ in his stock loft, also he had ‘Bolt’ in his loft, who was in the 2008: 1st National Ace-Pigeon Short Distance Young Birds Superduif and his children won more than 95% prizes in 2009, and said it is possible he a super breeder. He pairs up the stock pigeons around 1st December and they are fed premier quality food from Versele. One of Ludo’s very good breeders was ‘Johnny’, from Johnny & Yves Jonckers and his origin was Engels and Aelbrecht, and his children have won many top prizes. He told me, ‘I think that a loft must be dry, that’s important and if it is possible use deep litter. When you have a loft in the garden, I think it’s difficult to use deep litter. I did it one time and after three weeks I had to clean it out and now I believe it’s better to clean the loft out every day’.
Every season he breeds about 120 young birds for himself and the first and second rounds go on the darkness system from the end of March until mid-June, from 17.30 hours to 09.00 hours. The third and fourth round youngsters go into a separate loft and are not put on the darkness. Although Ludo separates the young cocks and hens for racing, he insists he doesn’t specialize in young bird racing, and never pairs them up. When they have flown a couple of races from 100km, several old cocks are run with the young hens and a couple of old hens are put in with the young cocks for about an hour before going to the marking station. If Ludo thinks his young hens are fit and right in the moult he would certainly send them to a 590 km race!
Ludo has been retired from work for the last several years and raced his pigeons with his father up to 2007, but now races in partnership with his wife. His wife goes to the local pigeon clubs with him and sits with him when waiting for the pigeons from the 500 – 700 km races. Ludo likes the sprint racing, but with the old pigeons he races the races from 300 to 700 km and with the young birds he raced a few pigeons every week on 100 and 210 km. The pigeons from the bloodline of ‘Superman’, winner of 13 times 1st are the best sprint pigeons; they win easy and have won many first prizes. For the flights from 450 to 700 km the ‘Lichte Tours’ bloodline are the best, but when he crossed them with the ‘Geerinckx’ pigeons are they good for all the distances. Ludo says he thinks that you breed the best pigeons from young parents. Ludo’s most thrilling pigeon experience was in 1998 when two pigeons came home together for the first nomination for the old birds and the first nomination for the yearlings from Montluçon (556 km). They won the first prize for the old pigeons provincial and semi-national and the first prize for the yearlings provincial and semi-national. That was a very great moment. Also a thrilling moment was when ‘Bolt’ in 2008 flew his last race, being sent in top condition and he won the first prize by two minutes from 210 km.
Ludo says, the eyesign theory is of great interest to him and he uses the method when pairing up his breeding and racing pigeons. He has won many major prizes when showing his birds, but doesn’t enjoy having them lock in a pen for several hours. He is secretary of his local club and tells me it is a good working club, with all the members ‘pulling their weight’ with the work. Ludo thinks there is far too many races in the Belgium calendar and says, one short distance race, one little half long distance, one great half distance and one long distance every week is more than enough. When I asked Ludo what advice you would give to a new starter in the sport, he reply was, ‘that’s a nice question. Buy an old loft and go to a fancier who will do anything for a new player. We have in our club a new starter and I give him pigeons. I visit him every month as I’m looking that he has not too much shemozzle and to tell him what I think of the condition of his birds and comment on his system. He received all my pigeons gratis. And when it’s a man or women who will listens to advice, they must have luck and win many prizes’. Ludo told me the best fancier in his area are for sure Geerinckx Luc, Bart and Jurgen and they are always his greatest opponent, but they are also his best friends. They won in the 2009 season 1st Limoges National, 2nd Argenton National etc. They are the best because they have the best pigeons at this moment.
He believes in inbreeding his best pigeons and maintains the off spring are very good for stock, but there are also many pigeons to be culled. But when you inbreeding, but not so close, they can produce many good pigeons for racing and breeding. He doesn’t breed late breds normally, because you must have them a whole year before you know anything about them. Ludo likes tame pigeons and told me, ‘Bolt’ in the 2008 season, was a pigeon who was with me, he did not have a hen, he sat every time before my feet and then he alighted on my shoulder. He raced eleven times, won eleven prizes and eight at the top of the result. Fanciers should never think that they have the best pigeons of the world, search all the time for better pigeons. He said, ‘When you breed and there is a young bird that not so good in development as the other pigeons, cull it, even if it’s from your best pair. They are never going to be successful’.
Well that’s the Ludo Van Tuyn story. What a great fancier! I can be contacted with any pigeon comments on telephone number: 07535 484584 or email me on:
TEXT & PHOTOS BY KEITH MOTT (www.keithmott.com).
