This racing bird developed into an invaluable breeder, and he is now sire and grandfather of numerous talented racing birds, including three international winners.
Jos Martens is one of those long distance fanciers that has earned his stripes in pigeon racing. He was able to win as many as three international victories over the years. It began with a 1st Int. Tarbes 2010, followed by a 1st Int. Marseille 2015 and a 1st Int. Perpignan 2018. This highly demanding race from Perpignan was won by Helios, with a velocity of 816 m/min. In addition, Jos has won three titles of Emperor in Club der Azen since 2016. He was also the General Champion morning release in Fondclub Midden Limburg in 2015, and he won the Pyrenees Cup in 2016. He is also proud of his title of Emperor extreme long distance ZLU, which he claimed in the same season. Most of these results were won with the help of a select group of high quality birds. A few of these birds will be discussed in closer detail below.
NL04-1249458, Der Sjef
Many of this team's great achievements over the years came with the help of a fantastic stock breeder, who is still in excellent health: Der Sjef, named after Jos's deceased father. Der Sjef originates from a crossing of the pigeons of the Kuijpers Brothers (Neer, NL) and pigeons from a joint breeding with the Busscher-Albertz combination (Elsloo, NL). The dam of Der Sjef is Kweekmoedertje, and she is a daughter of Nachtvlieger of the Kuijpers Brothers. The line of Kweekmoedertje also appears in the pedigree of Jos's 18th National Barcelona 2018 (Dark Night).
Der Sjef is a beautiful looking blue coloured cock, the type of bird Jos's father Sjef had always been very fond of. Der Sjef already showed his potential as a yearling, winning a 14th Bergerac (3,462 p.) and a 39th Cahors (2,863 p.). Jos eventually decided to transfer Der Sjef to the breeding loft, and this was one of his best decisions ever. He developed into a world class breeder, and he is now the sire and grandfather of several race winners, including three international winners:
1st International Tarbes 2010 (15,034 p.): De Tarbes 1st International Marseille 2015 (10,238 P.): André 1st International Perpignan 2018 (12,349 p.): Helios
We would like to zoom in on these three international winners, as well as on a few other stars in Jos's pigeon collection.
NL16-1795328 Helios, 1st International Perpignan (12,349 p.)
This international first prize from Perpignan was won with Helios, with a velocity of 816 m/min. Helios showed his potential in three different marathon races as a one year old, winning a 418th Prov. Bergerac, a 417th Prov. Cahors and a 2922nd Int. Agen of 13,030 pigeons. 2018 was a great season for him, with 3 national top 40 placings:
1st Nat. Perpignan 3,778 p. 1st Int. Perpignan 12,349 p. 21st Nat. St. Vincent 2,570 p. 38th Nat. Pau 3,551 p. 347th Prov. Limoges 1st PIPA Ranking Best extreme long distance pigeon in The Netherlands 2018 with 3 prizes 1st Nat. Ace Pigeon ZLU 2018
The sire of Helios is Hyperon, winner of a 340th National Barcelona in 2018. He is a son of Der Sjef. The dam is Dolly, and she is a daughter of Irunha (1st Nat. Irun 2007) x Sacha (sister of a 1st Int. Tarbes). Click here for Helios's full pedigree.
NL13-1540537 André, 1st International Marseille (10,238 p.)
The sire of the winner of a 1st International Marseille is a son of the 711 of the Busscher-Albertz combination (Elsloo, NL). This NL96-711 used to be one of the best overnight long distance pigeons in The Netherlands. The dam of André is another daughter of top breeder Der Sjef, paired to Moeder Tarbes. Moeder Tarbes is the dam of a 1st International Tarbes, as well as the grandmother of a 1st International Marseille. For André's full pedigree, click here. André proved to be quite a talented yearling in 2014, and his 2015 season was a major success across the board:
37th Prov. Cahors 2014 301st Nat. Bordeaux 12,152 p. 2014 1st Nat.Marseille 2015 1st Int. Marseille 10,238 p. 2015 31st Nat. Agen 6,638 p. 2015 2nd PIPA Ranking best extreme long distance pigeon in The Netherlands 2015 2 prizes 2nd Nat. Ace Pigeon long distance WHZB/TBOTB
NL08-1913978 De Tarbes, 1st International Tarbes (15,034 p.)
The most recent international winner from the line of Der Sjef is racing bird Tarbes, winner of a 1st International Tarbes of 15,028 pigeons in 2010. Besides this international first prize, he also won a 666th Prov. Perigueux and a 107th Nat. Bordeaux. You can tell from his pedigree that Tarbes is a direct son of Der Sjef x Moeder Tarbes.
NL08-1913977, Brother Tarbes
This nest mate of De Tarbes was quite successful in the long distance. And besides winning several top placings in the long distance, he also developed into an important breeder for Jos. We take a look at some of the best results of this Brother Tarbes:
40th Nat. Perpignan 2010 453rd Nat. Tarbes 2010 639th Prov. Periqueux 2010 206th Prov. Bergerac 2011 439th Nat. Tarbes 2012 198th Nat. Dax 2012
NL13-1540525, Dark Night
Dark Night has become one of Jos's best performing birds in the ZLU competition in recent years. Dark Knight's pedigree shows that he is related to Kweekmoedertje (which is also the dam of Der Sjef), as well as to one of Kweekmoedertje's sisters. The following palmares shows that he has been a strong performer in the ZLU competition indeed:
26th Nat. Bordeaux 12,152 p. 2014 113th Prov. Limoges 2015 29th Prov. Bergerac 2015 354th Prov. Cahors 2015 343rd Nat. Pau 2016 537th Nat. St. Vincent 2016 74th Nat. Perpignan 4,027 p. 2016 75th Nat. Barcelona 4,504 p. 2017 18th Nat. Barcelona 3,912 p. 2018 114th Nat. Perpignan 2018 8th PIPA ranking Best pigeon Barcelona International across 2 seasons 2017-2018
NL12-1936249 Bellissimo
And the last pigeon that we discuss today is Bellissimo. He wins as many as 3 provincial top 10 places, including a 5th National Perpignan 2016. Bellissimo is a full brother of Rhone Lady, which claimed a 7th Nat. and 28th Int. Marseille in 2013. The sire is NL10-209 (1st Nat. Ace Pigeon ZLU 2014-2015).
A top level fancier with top quality birds in his collection
Jos Martens has been one of the top players in the national ZLU competition season after season. And we think a lot has to do with his experience as a fancier. And besides his expertise, Jos can also rely on a team of high quality birds that are well suited for the long distance. You can tell from his three international victories, his numerous championship titles and his national (and international) top results over the years.
