Luc Vermeerbergen & Robby Wilms
‘In the quiet Campine’… it sounds like a song from ancient times. The ‘purple moor’ can still be admired from some places… but it is certainly not quiet when you pay a visit to Luc Vermeerbergen (56) and Robby Wilms (35)… 2 talkng waterfalls where the pigeon sport is concerned. Luc Vermeerbergen is a name familiar to many a pigeon fanatic… Luc has after all name and fame in the pigeon sport through remarkable performances and titles up to national level. He used to mainly be active in the sprint and middle distance… during that period there were titles so as 2° National Champion Middle Distance Youngsters 1999, and 10° Nat. Champion Middle Distance Youngsters in 2000.Luc is a man who doesn’t shy away from new challenges, who is always searching for ‘more’ and in particular ‘better’… the aforementioned titles formed the challenge of trying with the youngsters in the nationals. For this he joined forces with Staf and Ronny van Reet… the combination Vermeerbergen-Van Reet was christened… the performances weren’t long in coming. They achieved spectacular results, resulting in titles so as2° National Champion Long Distance Youngsters KBDB 2007, and 10° Nat. Champion Long Distance Youngsters KBDB in 2009! These results were the reason why ‘beginners’ or ‘young fanciers’ visited Luc for advice! Luc started coaching a few young fanciers in their ‘maidenj years’ in the pigeon sport… mostly with success! One of the things which Luc always considered important by his young fanciers… was the fact that in the pigeon sport they had to find a balance between work-family-and pigeons! Feel free to summarise it as… tackle what you can, keep the least number of pigeons possible, if necessary specialise in 1 distance and try to shine in it! Wise words from a man who personally experienced how difficult it is to combine these things… working in Genk, his family in Bree and racding the pigeons in Mol! It was one of the reasons why in 2011 he in all friendship ended the tandem with Staf & Ronny Van Reet!
One of the young fanciers from Luc, who he supported with word and deed for 5 years was Robby Wilms… so much so that Robby was more or less the only person to keep Luc from victory now and again, managed to floor him in the comepetitions! That resulted in Robby winning around 73 x 1° prizes… with the icing on the cake being the winning of the 1° National Ace bird Middle Distance KBDB Youngsters in 2009 with his ‘Fenomeentje’!
Vermeerbergen-Wilms
In 2011 Luc asked Robby if he wanted to join forces… with the ‘focus’ on the ‘national races’ for youngsters! Robby (35) took up the challenge… the cornerstone had been laid for new successes! The old basis from Luc Vermeerbergen was to serve as the foundation of the new loft… a basis which was mainly based on the ‘3° Nat. Ace bird Sprint KBDB 2001’, namely the ‘Blauwe Witpen’ BE00-6340067, supplemented with proven breeding pigeons from the very best from Henri Menten… including children from Olympiad pigeon ‘Guylian’, ‘Mister 100, ‘Yasmine’, ‘Berre’ etc… They also immediatedly invested in new top class so as a son of ’t Fenomeentje’ (the Ace bird from Robby), something was obtained from Roger Engelen out the line of the ‘Blauwe Mustang’ (olympiad bird Dortmund 2009), from brand new national winner Johan Bleyen, from Ronny Menten, Etienne Stassen… and not forgetting of course close friend John Meurysse and his ‘pigeon godfather’ Charles Van Lancker!
It clicked straight away with John Meurysse… resulting in a marvelous exchange of pigeons which lifted both lofts to a higher level… Luc explains further.
I got to know John via an auction from Luc Crucke, our contact grew into a true friendship. We agreed to exchange a good pigeon each year. John was given my ‘Lucky Luc’, which developed into a phenomenal breeder in Oeselgem! What they managed to breed in such a short time exceeded both our ‘widest dreams’, it almost borders on the unbelieveable… even more, I now even dare say that I have never had a better breeder! Up until now we both able to obtain 2 youngsters per year from him… and almost every pigeon bred from‘Lucky Luc’ performed superbly in the races… he bred ‘good’ (read ‘front racers’) from 100 Km to say Tarbes… so from sprint to ‘grand distance’… and this with several hens! As you see, that you can have success with real ‘friendship’… says Luc!
In the meantime ‘Lucky Luc’ has once again returned to Luc, where he will now be coupled in a separate breeding box with the best hens from both John Meurysse and Luc Vermeerbergen! The eggs will be put under 4 feeding couples and the youngsters will be divided up. Seeing as how John Meurysse will be concentrating more and more on the game with the old birds (towards long distance), and that by Vermeerbergen-Wilms the accent will come to lie on the game with the youngsters… the ‘early youngsters’ will be housed in Mol, whilst the 3rd round and/or summer youngsters will move to the West-Flanders!
Gregory Beckaert will also be able to enjoy this. Luc met Gregory via the KBDB… and in the meantime he now has pigeons from the breeding lofts of Luc Vermeerbergen. The 2nd round are now under the banner Wilms-Vermeerbergen-Beckaert from Brasschaat being tested to the full in the lofts of Gregory… according to Luc ideal for discovering the ‘breeding worth’ of the breeding pigeons sooner!
De 'Lucky Luc'
Phenomenon ‘Lucky Luc’
A ‘central role’ in all of this seems to be reserved for ‘Lucky Luc’ BE07-6356192… or so as Luc Vermeerbergen himself describes it… a real ‘breeding wonder’! This ‘whopper’ is self inbred to the 3° National Ace bird Sprint KBDBand 11-times 1° Prize winner … the ‘Blauwe Witpen’ BE00-6340067. He comes namely out a coupling of a ‘son’ x ‘daughter’ of this 3° Nat Ace bird Sprint KBDB! On father’s side coupled with the ‘Flitske 606/03’ Heremans-Ceusters (1° from 3.003 p., 6° from 3.549 p.)… on mother’s side coupled with ‘Rosita 797/02’ Heremans-Ceusters (which is also mother of ‘Rossi’ Eijerkamp).
‘Lucky Luc’ is father of an entire series of top racers, with the most prominent:
-‘Robby’ BE11-6173337
Out ‘Lucky Luc’ x ‘Mindy’ BE09-3011895 a super hen from John Meurysse which was self 8° Prov. Ace bird Long Distance KBDB 2009 (as daughter of ‘Bleek Spierke’ x ‘Bo’… or a crossing Meurysse x Scharlaekens). ‘Robby’ performed as follows:
2° Best hen of Belgium 2011 over 2 national races(youngsters)
La Souterraine 197 p. 1 Prov 2.498 p. 6 Nat 16.676 p. 12 Argenton 297 p. 4 Prov 3.104 p. 9 Nat 20.383 p. 62 Pithiviers 513 p. 11
-‘Lucky Girl’ BE11-6173363
Full sister of ‘Robby’! She won a.o.
Dourdan 790 p. 1 Dourdan 393 p. 3 Noyon 444 p. 7 Quiévrain 269 p. 14 Dourdan 1.037 p. 32
-‘Perte totale’
Quiévrain 206 p. 1 Quiévrain 269 p. 5 Quiévrain 383 p. 6 Quiévrain 407 p. 22 Dourdan 874 p. 56
Coupled with the ‘Zwart Bondje’ (daughter of the 6° Nat Ace bird Long Distance KBDB by John & Willy Meurysse, the ‘James Bond 007/01’) the ‘Lucky Luc’ is then again father of:
-Libourne’ BE08-4112124
Libourne 56 p. 1 Prov 1.797 p. 5 Nat 8.713 p. 39 Bourges 192 p. 2 Prov 1.631 p. 38 Tarbes-Agen Nat 4.818 p. 287
-BE08-4112152
Melun 1.264 p. 1 Pithiviers 806 p. 16 Gueret n.Zone 5.692 p. 92 Nat 14.784 p. 165
-BE09-3012000
Bourges Prov 2.054 p. 19
-BE09-6086405
Argenton Nat 23.921 p. 279 Gueret n.Zone 5.034 p. 477
-BE09-6086408
Pithiviers 613 p. 5 Pithiviers 1.159 p. 9 La Souterraine 17.814 p. 705
Coupled with the ‘Blauw Bondje’ (also daughter 6° Nat Ace bird Long Distance KBDB J.Meurysse) he is then again father of the
-BE10-3077024
Limoges n.Zone 6.706 p. 26 Nat 14.679 p. 35 Chateauroux N. 25.263 p. 400 Chateauroux Pro 4.072 p. 92
In short we can say that ‘Lucky Luc’ in the period 2008-2011 was already father of toppers in the middle distance and long distance so as:
1° Melun 1.264 p. 1° Dourdan 790 p. 12° Nat La Souterraine 16.665 p. 35° Nat Limoges 14.679 p. 39° Nat Libourne 8.713 p. 62° Nat Argenton 20.383 p. 165° Nat Gueret 14.784 p. etc…
‘Super Therese’
Another breeding phenomeon by Luc Vermeerbergen is without doubt the ‘Super Therese’, which is a daughter of ‘Den Blauwe 744/01’ Staf Van Reet… brother of the ‘Favorie’ (8 x 1° Prize, 3 x 2°, 4 x 3°), ‘Den Don’ (10 x 1° prize, 5 x 2°), ‘Den Tom’ (5 x 1° prijze), ‘Don Tom’ (3 x 1°)… coupled with ‘De 003 duivin’ 003/00, a full sister of the ‘Blauwe Witpen’ 3° Nat Ace bird Sprint KBDB! This ‘Super Therese’ BE06-6329251 is amongst other things mother of
-De ‘Super Theo’ BE11-6173385
Blois 169 p. 1 Prov 5.000 p. 16 La Souterraine 62 p. 1 Nat 16.665 p. 141 Melun 987 p. 1 Dourdan 786 p. 23 Dourdan 393 p. 25 Noyon 582 p. 48
-‘De 155/08’, winner of:
4° Nat Ace bird ‘PIPA-ranking’ in the ‘national races 2008’
393° Nat Argenton 25.583 p. 499° Nat Gueret 14.784 p. 696° Nat La Souterraine 21.258 p. 1786° Nat Bourges 41.783 p.
-‘De 450’ BE09-6086450
56° Nat Ace bird PIPA-ranking in the ‘national races 2009’ 19° Nat Argenton 23.921 p.
Luc Vermeerbergen is clearly a man not afraid of hard work, and who is well informed... a man for which top performances have never held a secret. Both in John Meuryse as Robby Wilms and Gregory Beckaert he has now found (in pigeon terms) 3 youthful fanciers with ambition… with which he, via an intense collaboration, can talk at the top of the national pigeon sport! With John via a joint breeding strategy and exchange making the game and coaching possible from a distance (a.o. joint breeding)… with Robby and Gregory via racing in duo/trio with the youngsters, with the accent in Mol on the nationals for the youngsters! All men with ‘hunger’… who are ready to give ‘power’ to their ambitions, with the ‘will’ to ‘win’! It immediately gives an indication as to the direction the eyes will be looking towards next season!
For the most predominant performances from 2011 in both lofts: click here
Gregory Bekaert-Robby Wilms-Luc Vermeerbergen