Combination Ebben...back more than impressive in 2023

16 Oct 2023

It may be just me but as we ended our conversation with Dutch champion Falco Ebben I spontaneously had to think of that other Belgian champion the late Marcel Aelbrecht. Marcel, whom we knew very well, had a loft of as many as 16 widowers and managed to win national KBDB ace pigeons and KBDB championship titles. Despite having enough space to add another loft, Marcel refused to do so, opting exclusively for quality over quantity.
For those who have already visited Falco, they know where we get the link because despite Falco having room to add another loft, he too refused to think of expanding. Precisely measured 6.5-metre flight loft housing 16 racing couples and 50 youngsters and in the corner of the garden a small loft with 6 living boxes and 6 breeding couples. Falco is living proof that when the selection bar is high enough, you can achieve top rankings in the various national championships with a limited but strong quality racing team.

Racing season 2023

8th Best fancier of The Netherlands (NPO) nominated ‘23
10th National champion middle distance unnominated ‘23
12th Best fancier of The Netherlands (NPO) unnominated ’23
13th National champion youngbirds nominated ‘23
5th National ace youngbirds ‘23
14th National ace one-day-fond old birds ‘23

Racing season 2022

National
9th Best fancier of The Netherlands NPO unnominated
1. Ace Pipa-Ranking NL20-1302163
3. AceShort distance De Allerbeste 2021/2022 NL20-1302164
4. Best Middle distance/Fondduif Pipa-Ranking NL20-1302163

Provincial Afdeling 8/GOU (plm. 1500 fanciers)
2. One-day-Fond Unnominated
2. One-day-Fond Nominated
3. General Short distance Unnominated
3. General Short distance Nominated
4. Champion youngbirds unnominted
5. Short distance nominated
5. Middle distance unnominated
1. Ace one-day-fond NL20-1302163
9. Ace bird “ Natour” NL20-1302170

Highlights last 5 racing seasons (only at loft Comb. Ebben, since 2020)
2e National champion vitesse unnominated NPO 2021
2e National champion YB unnominated NPO 2016
5e National champion YB nominated 2016
6e National champion YB middle distance unnominated 2019
7e National champion YB unnominated 2017
7e National champion YB sprint unnominated 2019

It started with "Suuske" and her daughter "Roosje".
She was bred by Will and Falco themselves from Janssen/ Verbart pigeons from the area. (Piet Verbart used to play in the same club and that strain became widespread in the region as a result). 'Suuske' flew moderately but she became the mother of no less than six first prize winners including 'Roosje', the very first crack hen they owned. The father of this hen came from Arie van Beek, the man with a loft full of great performing Klak pigeons. Falco was able to get them out of the very best including a cock out of 'Blue Jos 69' (1st Ace pigeon Dagfond afd. 8) x 'Blue 600'. He was paired with 'Suuske', father of 'Roosje', and that was the hen that made Will and Falco fancier, gave them the confidence that they really could do it themselves, that it could be done where they live and that it should be done with the best. 'Roosje' won no less than 6x 1sts and is still in today's pigeons (she is, among others, great-grandmother of 'Linus', a great racer and now top breeder).

Perfectly seasoned with Schaerlaeckens pigeons
Falco went to Ad Schaerlaeckens in 1998 and got ten eggs. Those youngsters went to uncle Will and with these pigeons it became possible to achieve teletext (in the first 10 in the division or provincial). Falco soon realised that quality is more important than quantity. In 2013, we travelled to Baarle-Nassau again and this time a round of eggs from the racers went back to Boven-Leeuwen. They were all played, and how. There were two really good pigeons among them: 'Indy' and 'Icarus' and that gave the colony another huge boost. As it turned out, those toppers also bred fantastically namely.
Another original Schaerlaeckens topper is "Mad Max".
"Mad Max" NL17-1343606 bred in 2 generations:
"Paulina": 20 prizes on 25 races - 14 x 1/10 - 7 x 1/100
19th Nat. ace yearbirds ranking
23rd Nat. ace short/middle distance Ranking
1st Prov. Morlincourt 6,385b.
4th Prov. Dizy 14,634b.
8th Bierges 4,090b.
But also winners of: 1st Prov. Morlincourt 6,385b. - 1st Niergnies 3,808b. (fastest 6,589b.) - 1st Niergnies 2,594b.- 1st Bierges 2,063b. - 1st Lennik 1,271b. - 1st Lennik 1,180b. - 1st Chalons 1,179b. - 1st Pont 1,104b.
And with Jaap Schut is grandfather to: 5th Nat. ace yearbirds ranking - 10th Nat. ace allround - 12th Nat. ace Allround

Further successful reinforcements followed
A visit to Peter Janssen in 2015 proved to be another golden opportunity. They got there an exceptional breeding hen called 'Katja', who became the mother of an incredible string of headliners. She bred in 2 generations: 1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd National ace birds and winners of 1st Duffel 13,249d. - 1st Dizy 13,138d. - 1st Chimay 9,272d. - 1st Quievrain 8,836d. - 1st Chimay
8.815d. - 1st Quievrain 8,d275d. - 1st Chalons 5,952d. - 1st Quievrain 4,729d.
And she is a full sister to 1st National ace Fondspiegel '13 - '15.

In 2016 and 2017, they got eggs again from Ad Schaerlaeckens. There were tremendously good pigeons among them too, including a 4th and a 7th Nat. ace pigeon.
With Verkerk, Falco was allowed to choose from a group of pigeons in 2019 and he chose a son of 'Laser' x 'Pippa', which became an excellent breeder.
In addition, a dozen pigeons from Fernand Marien have been bought in spring for several years. These are all played. In 2020, two stone pigeons were among them. One of them won in 2022 1st Northern Union Ruffec (760 km) 9,617 d. (also fastest Sector 3+4 together of 9,998 d.) Fernand bred her from descendants of pigeons he got from his friends Dierickx-Visschers. Falco calls her 'Peke' and she was an Ace pigeon of Sector 2 in Division 8 as a youngster.
Maybe Falco has a talent for buying top pigeons?

"Pandamic" and "Pizza".
Would Falco have thought it himself when he paired topper "Linus" on the previously described hen "Katja" that he was immediately going to ring two superior pigeons namely "Pandemic" and "Pizza". Before noting the palmares of these two, we would still like to give the palmares of "Linus": 1st Nat (Z3) Chateauroux 12,511d. (fastest of 44,690d.) - 4th Niergnies 10,624d. (1st /425d.) - 6th Niergnies 10,693d. (1st/348d.) - etc....
"Pandemic" NL20-1302164 won:
5th Nat. ace pigeon Speed "The Very Best" 2021/2022
8th Nat. ace pigeon speed "De Allerbeste" 2022/2023
1st Prov. Chimay 9,272d. - 1st Quievrain 4,729b. - 1st Niergnies 2,664d. - 1st Morlincourt 909d.

"Pizza" NL20-1302163 won
1st National Ace Pigeon Allround Pipa Ranking 2022
1st National Ace Pigeon Allround "The Best" 2022/2023
1st National ace pigeon middle distance "De Allerbeste" 2022/2023
1st Olympiad pigeon NL middle-distance 2024