DIAMOND RIO Antoine Jacops

Jeff & John

Jeff Lamberton and Dr. John Lamberton's  INTERNET BLOG December 2010

1st Ace Young Bird - 2010

12.01.2010 – Wednesday

PEDIGREES ARE ROAD MAPS FOR GENETIC COMPOSITIONS

Accurate four or five generation pedigrees are the only methods of evaluating the genetic make-up of racing pigeons. Evaluating "in the hand" will not reveal the genetic compositions of racing pigeons used for breeding. Probably the most popular theory for selecting breeders in the hand over the years is eye sign theory. Although there are fanciers who subscribe to its value to predict good breeders, eye sign does not reveal genetic make-ups.

Genetic make-ups range from totally diverse compositions to totally identical compositions. Although pigeons with totally diverse genetic compositions will make excellent breeders, there is little information in their pedigrees that will yield accurate measurement of their breeding ability. Even if there are accomplished racing pigeons in their first or second generations, the only way of testing the true breeding ability of these pigeons is by trial and error. However, trial and error alone is a slow and tedious way to test breeders. It usually takes a period of years to thoroughly test the breeding ability of pigeons. However, there is a short cut to fanciers who like to study the genetic road maps that can be found in pedigrees. A faster more efficient method of predicting breeding ability or "prepotency" of racing pigeons can be gained by understanding their genetic composition through pedigrees.

PREPOTENCY can be defined as the genetic ability of pigeons to consistently and frequently breed superior racing pigeons that regularly compete at the top of the race sheet.

In a pedigree, prepotency is often a function of a similar or heterogeneous genetic composition. That is, if there are related pigeons or the same pigeon that appears in a pedigree more than once, chances are that those pigeons will be good breeders because of their genetic prepotency. when I look at pedigrees, I immediately look for several components.

First, I scan the pedigrees for pigeons that I may have heard of or am familiar with. My knowledge base may provide insight into a pigeon’s prepotency if I am somewhat familiar with outstanding pigeons in a pedigree.

Second, I look for and evaluate the outstanding racers or breeders in the pedigree.

• A son or daughter of an ace pigeon is usually much more valuable than a grandson or granddaughter or great grandson or great granddaughter.

• The offspring of two outstanding racers coupled together is usually better than offspring from an ace pigeon coupled with an unraced pigeon - unless it is a sibling of an ace pigeon or a son or daughter of an ace pigeon.

• Offspring of a brother or sister of an ace pigeon is often better than a grandchild of an ace pigeon.

Third, I evaluate the genetic composition by calculating the number of related pigeons in the pedigree. We often use the terms "line-breeding" or in-breeding" to describe the genetic make-up of pedigrees. For instance, line-breeding is usually coupling first cousins, uncle-nieces, and aunt-uncles. In the case of first cousins, at least two of a pigeon’s grandparents are the same pigeon. In the case of uncle-nieces, the father is a brother to one of his mate’s parents. The parents of the father are also one of the two sets of grandparents of the mate.

This related or similar genetic composition can be a fairly accurate measurement of a pigeon’s prepotency. In my experience, prepotent pigeons tend to have a homogenous or similar genetic make-up. However, I have also found that highly in-bred pigeons tend to lose a degree of their hybrid vigor which negatively affects their racing performance. 

EXAMPLE OF A PREPOTENT PEDIGREE

The following pedigree is the pedigree of a young male on Jeff's widowhood team.  Jeff calls him the "Mountain Man."   The Mountain Man's father is ASTEROID, the excellent son of Emile Fourmanoir's best breeding pair that we purchased at the Herbot's dispersal sale of Foumanoir's pigeons.  Filip Herbot's bid for us at the sale.  The first young bird race that I ever flew by myself in 2006 in Belgium was won with a beautiful silver male that is a full brother to ASTEROID.  Another full brother, ASTERIX, was 13th Ace Vitesse (Speed) RW BDS Belgium.  The Mountain Man's mother is a daughter of ASTEROID's nest sister, AVIARY.

Evaluating this pedigree, 3/4s of the pedigree represents the same pair of pigeons.  And although the pedigree doesn't show it, ASTEROID's parents are related also.  This pairing is an uncle-niece couple and often produces offspring that have the hybrid vigor to race well, but also the prepotency to breed very well.  In the pedigree, the Fourmanoir pigeons are out-crossed on a Flor Vervoort male, the YOUNG LICHTE BOURGES, bred down from Gommaire Verbruggen's KLETSKOP.  These pigeons have been an excellent outcross for many other bloodlines including the Fourmanoir bloodline.

12.09.2010 - Thursday

I have received several interesting invoices. 

Email #1 is as follows:

Email #2 is from my pigeon friend that I have known since junior high school, Larry Adams, who lives near Durant, Oklahoma and races with the Ada, Oklahoma Club.  Larry's email is as follows:

Larry has been an excellent pigeon fancier throughout his life and is an avid "student" of the game.  He studies pedigrees and handles his pigeons very well.  Larry has blended pigeons from several fanciers together to breed highly successful racing pigeons that consistently score at the top of the race sheet.  We are very proud of his success over the past years and his latest accomplishment.  Larry races pigeons bred down from out Jacops pigeons.  Larry raced the pigeons bred from his Jacops breeders on his race team in 2010 young birds and did not send them to the 2010 Winners Cup USA Futurity.  One of his best two racers is a two-time 1st Ace Pigeon.  We think that this female is out of one of our full brothers to Antoine Jacops' NUDIST. 

Bill Hatcher's Winner's Cup USA is one of the very best managed one loft futurities in the US.  We unconditionally recommend it to our readers.  Bill's personal website is galaxyloft.com.

Email #3 is as follows:

I have recently found your website and some videos on YouTube. They are very informative and I have enjoyed them a lot.  I have a question regarding your widowhood boxes and cages.  I was wondering if I could get the dimensions of each box and where to purchase the widowhood cages?  Also, I noticed the boxes are made from plywood. Are the shelves just fastened by screws in the edges or how? Thank you for your time.

The size of our nest boxes are a function of the dimensions of the nest fronts.  We purchased our nest fronts locally from a person who is no longer in the pigeon supply business.  We think that Siegel's and Global may offer nest fronts.  Perhaps Jedd's does also.  Perhaps there are other supply houses.  Or, you can build nest fronts yourself out of wood.  Wood nest fronts slide front to back and visa versa rather than open and close like wire or plastic nest fronts.  Our nest fronts are about 30 inches wide.  Our nest boxes are 24 inches deep.  Our loft sections are about 5 feet wide and 6 feet deep.  There are six nest boxes side by side stacked three high in each loft section and the top of the top two nest boxes butts up against the ceiling of each loft section.  Based upon our individual heights, the ceiling in the loft is about 6 feet 4 inches high.  We built our lofts and loft sections based upon the comfort of our pigeons and the comfort of the fanciers who primarily use them, i.e., Jeff, Jeremy and myself.   The plywood in the nest boxes is secured with wood glue and screws.  We suggest that you use durable nest fronts that are easy to use - easy to open and close.  Our nest fronts are made of plastic covered wire.  They are not flimsy and have taken a lot of abuse over the years.

We also suggest that you build your nest boxes to suit the pigeons and the loft sections to suit yourself.  Stand in an open area of your loft and extend your arms straight out from your side.  Rotate 360 degrees.  Build each of your loft sections so that your arms come close to touching each of the four walls wall of the loft section.  (One wall will be the front of the nest boxes.)  Build the ceiling just above your height.    when you stand in the center of each loft section, you do not want the pigeons in the loft section to be able to fly around you or over you.  You want your physical presence in the loft section to dictate the actions of the pigeons in the section.  The pigeons housed in each loft section should not try to leave their nest box when you enter the section.  Nest boxes should ideally be about 24 inches deep so that the pigeons feel safe and secure in their nest boxes.  Although they should be trained to remain still when you enter the loft section, they should be able to move backwards into the recesses of the nest box if they feel like it.  They should never try to escape the nest box and fly around the loft section.  By building deep nest boxes and loft sections that fit your physical dimensions, pigeons should feel safe in the loft section and safe in their nest boxes.  As we have blogged before, we require pigeons on the floor to immediately fly up to their nest boxes when we enter the loft section.  You can tap a stick or a cane or a broom or your foot to give them the behavioral cue to immediately fly to their nest box.

Nest box size and loft section size are two of the most important variables in racing pigeons at the top of the sheet.  We believe that racing pigeons should be calm, quiet, tame and trained.  Deep nest boxes and loft sections that fit your physical size so that you control the space in each loft section are two giant steps towards the goal of consistently racing at the top of the sheet.  We use sliding doors on tracks to walk from loft section to loft section.

12.16.2010 - Thursday

THE BREEDING SEASON

As we have indicated before, the 2011 young bird race series has already begun for many fanciers around the world.  We coupled our breeders for an early first round of youngsters on paper in November.  Based upon that data, we coupled the breeders in the breeding loft on December 1st.  Today, most of our breeding pairs are sitting on eggs.  We have placed the first two eggs from DIAMOND RIO and his father, the WHITE DIAMOND, under foster parents or "pumpers" as many use the term in the US.  In about ten days, these two magnificent breeders and their same mates will have another set of eggs.  We will once again place their eggs under foster pairs and then we will recouple the two males with different females.  By the end of January, we will have three or four sets of eggs from these super breeders with several different females.  This type of genetic planning and execution involving several of the best breeders in our breeding loft will make a great difference in the years to come.  A strong breeding loft should not be an accident or a result of random chance.  A strong breeding should be a result of careful planning and execution rather than luck.

THE YOUNG BIRD RACE SERIES IS AN EMPIRICAL TEST

At our loft, the young bird race season is an empirical test of the planning and execution that occurred on the computer in November and in the breeding loft on December 1st.  Why?  In the world of science, we make hypotheses about something in our area of study and expertise.  then, we carry out experiments to test the validity of our hypotheses. 

BREEDING AND RACING ARE SCIENTIFIC PROCEDURES

Breeding and racing pigeons according to basic scientific research procedures is the exact same procedure.  We couple breeders together in order to produce outstanding pigeons that will race and breed very well in the future.  By coupling pairs of breeders together, we are making certain implicit assumptions about the future success of their unions.  At Lamberton Loft, we make hypotheses about the genotypic and pfemaleotypic compatibility of our breeders when we couple them in November and December. 

We want to couple breeders whose genotype is compatible.  Over the past few blogs, we have discussed the continuum between hybrid vigor and prepotency.  At our loft, we want pigeons that will race at the top of the sheet and when retired, will breed pigeons that also perform at the top of the race sheet.  In general, racing ability is a reflection of hybrid vigor while breeding ability is a function of prepotency.  We prefer to breed pigeons that will race well and breed well.  Consequently, our pigeons must have enough hybrid vigor to race well and enough prepotency to breed well. 

It is not enough to simply couple breeders together based upon their pedigrees alone.  Breeding pairs must also be physically compatible.  As we have stated before, a breeding pair must be compatible "in the hand" as well as on paper.  For instance, a large pigeon should not normally be coupled with another large pigeon.  Two smaller pigeons should not normally be coupled together.  Pfemaleotype or physical structure should be complementary.  We try not to exaggerate the physical imperfections of our breeders by coupling them with mates that have the same imperfections.  The more nearly physically perfect breeders are in the hand, the easier it is to couple them with a wide variety of mates because they do not have glaring weaknesses or inconsistencies that will be augmented by coupling them with mates that have the same weaknesses or imperfections.

Breeding and racing are scientific procedures in which the assumptions that we make during the breeding season are tested in the racing season.

TAKING THE EASY WAY OUT

For many fanciers, genetics and pedigrees are difficult and tedious to consider and study.  It is much easier to randomly couple breeders together and let mother nature take its course.  After all, we have heard it said that super pigeons innately know other super pigeons and will therefore couple with the best mates strictly on their own.  Using this philosophy, all fanciers are required to do is to open the door between the male and female sections and let mother nature decide the fate of the breeding loft.  And, there is a random percentage of the time that this method of mate selection will work.  However, at our loft, we want to significantly raise the percentage of successful couplings beyond the threshold of random chance by coupling our breeders on the computer during the months of November and in the hand on December 1st of every year.

Having said that, we still often couple the best with the best.  But in our loft, we do not simply have one single "best" breeder.  We have many "best" breeders.  Consequently, breeding the best to the best is often not as easy as it sounds.  We study our pigeons on paper and in the hand for hours and hours.  Although we tend to make our final breeding selections in the fall months, we are always thinking about possible breeding pairs and we take copious notes as we are constantly thinking of new, exciting, and different combinations of couples.  For us, breeding is fun.  It tests our mental abilities.  It sharpens our minds.  It tests our breeding skills as fanciers.  It is a significant part of our enjoyment of playing the game.

We seldom take the easy way out.  We prefer to infuse our logic into the breeding process - even if our logic is wrong.  We have years that we breed many excellent pigeons.  then again, we have years that we do not breed so many good pigeons.  Not every year is the same. 

BREEDING AND RACING ARE UNCERTAINTIES

It is the uncertainty of the racing pigeon game that attracts us.  It is the uncertainty of the selection process that makes pigeon breeding so much fun.  For many people, uncertainty is thrilling.  I think that is why God made us that way.  Life is uncertain.  We must constantly accept practically everything by faith in this world.  In the pigeon game, we try to build faith in our breeding selections by using the science of genotype and pfemaleotype to help us make our decisions.  We prefer to face the uncertainty in the breeding loft armed with assumptions of scientific methods rather than luck of random chance.

The 2011 Young Bird Race Season and the 2012 Old Bird Race Season have already begun.  The race seasons began in October when we medicated our breeders.  The race seasons began in November when we coupled our breeders on the computer.  And the race seasons began in earnest when we coupled our breeders on December 1st.  We prefer to use science to try to minimize the uncertainty in the racing pigeon.  We have faith in our decisions and selections.  Some years we race more successfully than others.  Not every year is the same.  But then again, we breed and race our pigeons for our own fun and our own personal enjoyment as we struggle with life's continuous uncertainty manifested in the wonderful game of racing homing pigeons.

12.20.2010 - Monday

THE RACING PIGEON GAME AND FARMING

In agriculture, the spring is a time of planting.　 The soil is tilled, weeded, fertilized and made ready for planting.　 Years ago, crops were planted by hand.　 Today, farmers use tractors that are equipped with many types of advanced technologies including Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and software programs that plant seeds automatically.　 Since the time of industrialization has emerged, technology has contributed huge advancements to the field of agriculture.　 The results of the application of new technologies to agriculture can be found in late summer and fall when crops are harvested.　 Harvests are the final tests of the planting and sowing phases of agriculture.

In the exact same way, the final tests of each year's breeding season occurs during "harvests" or during the impending young bird race seasons and future old bird race seasons.　 During the breeding season, great breeding couples usually produce only a few quality racers and breeders.  Poor breeding couples will seldom, if ever, breed great racers and breeders.　 Average breeding pairs tend to breed more average pigeons.  Good breeding pairs will breed good racers and breeders as well as poor racers and breeders.  The best way to breed quality racers and breeders is by coupling "key" breeders that will breed at least one or possibly two great pigeons out of the youngsters they produce each year.

The breeding season in the sport of racing pigeons is equivalent to the planting season in agriculture.　 The young bird race season in the sport of racing pigeons is equivalent to harvests in agriculture.  Just as science and technology have contributed to more bountiful harvests in agriculture, science and technology can contribute to more bountiful harvests during the young bird race season.  What type of farmer are you?　 Do you still farm by hand?　 Or do you let technology increase your harvest?  What type of pigeon fancier are you.　 Do you still couple your breeders randomly or with little thought or planning?　 Or do you let technology and science-based information systems improve the race results of your pigeons?

PEDIGREE DESCRIPTIONS

We cannot stress enough the amount of study and planning that it takes to continuously breed better racing and breeding pigeons.　 In summary, as we have demonstrated during the past few blogs, breeders can be coupled together that:

1.　 Have no common pigeons in their pedigrees.

2.　 Have one common pigeon in their pedigrees.

3.　 Have two common pigeons in their pedigrees.

4.　 Have multiple common pigeons in their pedigrees.

5.　 Have one-line-bred pigeon in their pedigrees.

6.　 That have two line-bred pigeons in their pedigrees.

7.　 That have a line-bred family of pigeons in the majority of their pedigrees.

8.　 That have two line-bred families - one in the majority and one in the minority - in their pedigrees.

9.　 Have a line-bred but unrelated family of pigeons in their respective pedigrees.

These nine descriptions do not represent all of the breeding combinations of pedigrees.  The are many variations of all of these pedigrees.  The primary result implicit in all of these pedigrees is the goal of breeding quality pigeons.  Excellent racing pigeons should possess vibrant hybrid vigor to race well.  Excellent breeding pigeons should also possess vibrant prepotency to breed well.  How fanciers breed quality pigeons that race well and breed well can be successfully accomplished in many different ways. However, the one common factor in the ultimate success of breeding excellent pigeons is using science and the scientific method to breed excellent pigeons with vibrant hybrid vigor and prepotency at a rate of success greater than the success rate that can be achieved by random chance.

As an example - depending upon the quality of the pigeons in a breeding loft, if random chance will produce excellent young birds at a success rate of 5%, then the goal of using the scientific method to couple breeders is to increase the success rate to a percentage significantly beyond 5% - say 10% to 25%. It is very difficult to breed excellent racing pigeons at a success rate greater than about 25%. Ad Schaerlaeckens discusses this problem when he discusses the problem of heavy losses during training and racing in Europe.  You can read his article by clicking on Articles, then English, then "The Mystery of the Losses."  We have blogged numerous times about what our friends have labeled the "Lamberton 10% Rule."  That is, it has been the experience in our loft as well as the lofts of many other successful fanciers that for every 100 young birds that are raised, 10% or ten of them will become the "pool" of pigeons that will achieve most of the results at the top of the race sheets during the young bird race season.  The percentage of great or excellent young birds racing in the young bird race series will actually be a small percentage of this pool.  For example, while ten of every 100 young birds may constitute the pool of potentially high quality pigeons, only two or three of these ten high quality pigeons may actually become great racing pigeons.  These statistics reflect the performances of the breeding lofts of most pigeon fanciers.  The results of a fancier like Mike Ganus can achieve may be considerably higher than "average" fanciers because of the method Mike uses to stock his breeding loft.  Purchasing a loft full of Ace pigeons most certainly raises the success rate of breeding excellent pigeons significantly beyond random chance and beyond those fanciers who stock their breeding lofts by retiring racers that were bred in their own breeding lofts.  Gerard Koopman has been one of the most popular pigeon fanciers in Holland over the past years.  Koopman has stated that he thinks that he is "lucky" to breed one champion pigeon from every 200 pigeons that he raises.  Koopman's standard is much more stringent than the Lamberton 10% Rule.

NO PEDIGREES

What about fanciers that have poor, incomplete or no pedigrees for their pigeons?  Actually, that is not a long-term problem.  To remedy this situation, couple at least two key breeding pairs together and race their youngsters.  Cross their most successful youngsters together.  then, cross the most successful youngsters of these new unions to successful siblings of the original two pairs.  Because pigeons breed so prolifically, "families" of pigeons can be bred around successful pigeons or key breeding couples very quickly.  Pigeons can become sexually mature every 6 to 8 months.  Start keeping breeding records now.  Document the parentage, or racing or breeding records of your current racers right now and then enter this information into a good (user friendly) loft management software program.  then, build upon the information on your original breeding pairs one new generation at a time.  In a few years, you will have third and fourth generation pedigrees for your breeders and racers that can be used to increase future breeding success rates beyond random chance.

12.21.2010 - Tuesday

THE BETTER THE PLANTINGS - THE BETTER THE HARVESTS

The better the breeding season - the better the results in the young bird race series.  The better that fanciers couple their breeders, the higher the results will be at the top of the race sheet.  If you are only one or two pairs of breeders that produce excellent young birds; then polybreed these pairs by fostering their eggs under the breeders that do not raise the same quality of pigeons.  In other words, primarily raise your young birds from the best breeding pairs in the loft.  Use other pairs as foster parents.

If you like to experiment with several new couples each year, then breed from these new couples when they are not needed as foster parents.  Many fanciers keep untested late-hatches or untested brothers and sisters to key pigeons from which to breed.  That's okay.  Part of the fun of breeding each year is discovering new breeders that produce great youngsters.  Keep the fun in the breeding season by testing new breeding couples.  However, if breeding pairs have not produced good young birds after they have raised three or four sets of youngsters, then those breeders should probably be recoupled with different mates.  If a breeders does not breed great youngsters after three different mates, then they should most probably assume more permanent roles as foster parents.  Quite often, it takes several different attempts to find the best mate for new couples. 

We have a friend who was given a beautiful daughter of the POSTMAN.  It took three attempts for him to find a successful mate for her.  After two matings, he considered giving up.  With the first two mates, she produced very average youngsters.  But finally with the third mate, she produced a race winner.  Breeding quality pigeons is an inexact science that is full of question marks, misinformation, and failed results.  But when a breeding couple hits, the sadness and frustration of all of the failures is replaced with the thrill of racing a great pigeon.  Breeding great youngsters is like trying to find a "needle in a haystack."  It is extremely difficult.  It is very frustrating.  It can be very expensive and time-consuming.  That is why it is best to raise as many pigeons as possible from your best breeding pairs.  Oftentimes, these youngsters will heal the frustration that comes from the failures of new breeding couples.  Hedge your bets.  Polybreed your best breeders by using foster parents.

THE YOUNG BIRD RACE SEASON HAS ALREADY BEGUN

The type of harvest or results that you will enjoy during the young bird race season has already been influenced by the decisions that you have made in your breeding loft since about October 1st.  If you did not fully medicate your breeders and bring them through a healthy moult, your race results have been influenced.  If you have not coupled your breeders and are not raising winter youngsters, your young bird results have been influenced.  Whether the young bird season begins in earnest in late July as it does in Belgium with the National races or if it begins in September as it does in Northeast Oklahoma USA, the best motivation that we have experienced is based upon sexual maturity.  Both the natural system of racing young birds to eggs or to youngsters and the widowhood system of racing to mates are grounded in the sexual maturity of the young birds.  One of the best benefits of winter youngsters in Northeast Oklahoma USA is the sexual maturity of the young birds in early September of each year.  (A second important result is of breeding winter youngsters is having the youngsters completely through the moult by early September using the "light" system.)

IF WINTER YOUNGSTERS ARE NOT BRED IN YOUR LOFT - ALL IS NOT LOST

If fanciers do not breed winter youngsters - is all lost?  The answer if definitely not.  Great youngsters can put on great performances racing to a perch and to the feed tray.  However, we prefer to race a few high quality winter youngsters on widowhood.  We enjoy it.  There are many others who prefer to race many spring youngsters to the perch using the loft and the feed tray as motivation.  And they are very successful.  Where we find a key advantage is during the yearling year of our racers.  While the fanciers who raced their youngsters to the perch in young birds are now teaching these same young birds a different motivational system as yearlings, our racers are racing the widowhood system for the second race season in a row.  And we have found that our yearlings perform very well compared to the yearlings raced by other fanciers.

WE RACE OUR PIGEONS FOR FUN AND ENJOYMENT

Remember, we race our pigeons for fun.  We enjoy the uncertainty and the complexity of the breeding season. We enjoy studying pedigrees and creating new youngsters on the computer.  We enjoy coupling our breeders.  We enjoy training and evaluating our young birds prior to the beginning of the young bird race season.    We enjoy competing with a small team of our best young birds.  We enjoy teaching young birds the widowhood system.  We enjoy our relationships with our pigeons.  And we play the racing pigeon game for our own enjoyment.

12.22.2010 - Wednesday

TESTING COMPUTERIZED PAIRINGS

During the past few weeks, we have been discussing the importance of planning the new breeding season in October and November of each year based on the intense and thorough study of pedigrees; and the relevance of this study to the performance success of the next young bird race series.   As important as this discussion has been - it is only part of the story.  In addition to complementary pedigrees that create hybrid vigor and prepotency, exceptional breeding couples should complement each other physically.  In order to couple breeding couples that complement each other physically, fanciers should understand and have a thorough knowledge base of the physical structures of each of their breeders.  Consequently, breeders should be handled enough so that your hands have created an accurate mental picture of each breeder.  A breeder that is slightly deep in the keel should probably not be coupled with a mate with the same keel structure.  A breeder that is somewhat long-casted should probably not be coupled with a mate that possesses the same body style.   The goal of the breeding season is to produce offspring from breeding couples that are as physically perfect as possible.   Breeding couples should complement their mates rather than accentuate or exaggerate any physical anomalies of either mate. It is much easier to couple breeders that are as perfectly built as possible.  The range of compatible mates for near physically perfect breeders is much greater than the range of mates for breeders with some type of physical defect or anomaly.

In the racing pigeon game, speed, power, consistency and endurance are greatly improved if the physical structures of the racing pigeons are as perfect as possible. 

• Exceptional racing pigeons are balanced.  They are not too short and not too long. 

• Exceptional racing pigeons should be strong.  Their backs and wings should be very strong and their vents should be very tight.

• Exceptional racing pigeons should be buoyant.  They should have plenty of feathers and their weight should be light and not heavy.

• Exceptional racing pigeons should be fast.  Their arm bones should be short and their flights should be long and thin.

• Exceptional racing pigeons should be powerful.  Their chests should be wide and not too thin.

• Exceptional racing pigeons should be consistent.  All of the attributes just mentioned in addition to health should contribute to a pigeon's ability to race well week after week.           

Exceptional racing pigeons should also be highly intelligent; however, intelligence is not a physical attribute similar to the attributes previously mentioned.  We evaluate intelligence based upon a pigeon's behavior around the loft as well as racing performance.

While breeding couples should be coupled on paper, they should also pass the physically complementary criteria that occurs when fanciers actually couple their breeders.  If a breeding couple "fits" each other perfectly on paper; but when they are coupled in the hand they are not determined to be complementary couples, they should not be paired together.  Pairing complementary couples on the computer only create hypothetical guesses.  They are hypotheses.  Their actual viability should be determined  and verified "in the hand."  All hypothetical pairings should be physically tested "in the hand."  when breeding couples are not complementary in the hand, they should seldom, if ever, be coupled together.  Remember, the ultimate goal for each and every breeding couple are offspring that are as physically perfect as possible.  Breeding youngsters that are physical flawed are an absolute waste of time, energy, space and money.  We believe that raising, training and racing three physically near-perfect youngsters is far better and far more rewarding than raising, training and training fifty somewhat physically flawed youngsters.  We quickly and continually remove youngsters from the young bird racing loft that are physically questionable or that are born with or ultimately develop physical flaws that may significantly negate their ability to perform at the top of the race sheet in our assessment. Exceptional young birds that race incredibly well during the young bird race series each year are (1) near-physically perfect, (2) mentally and physically mature, (3) highly intelligent, (4) moulted well, and (5) robustly healthy to name a few important attributes.  There are many youngsters that are hatched each year that do not meet these thresholds as quickly as others.  We believe that these pigeons should be removed from the racing loft to a general "bull pen aviary" rather than kept with the exceptional youngsters who meet the minimum physical characteristics to qualify for the young bird race team.  After the young bird race season has concluded and you are looking for additional pigeons to add to the old bird race team, take a week or two in November to reexamine the pigeons in the "bull pen."  You may be pleasantly surprised.  There may be youngsters that did not mature fast enough to race during the young bird race season but seem to be gaining the maturity to race as yearlings. 

The immediate goal of the current breeding season is to breed exceptional pigeons that will race very well during the 2011 young bird race series. then, these same youngsters are expected to race well as yearlings and as old birds.  then, these youngsters are expected to retire and enter the breeding loft as champion performance pigeons that will breed exceptional pigeons of their own.  We have found that only a few exceptional pigeons will successfully make it through the rigorous gauntlet that we call the racing pigeon game.  These pigeons will most probably have near-perfect physiques.  If that is the case, then why waste time in the young bird race season with youngsters that do not immediately and quickly develop these physical criteria during the year of their birth?  In addition, we have talked to fanciers that seem to waste an inordinate amount of time waiting for pigeons to mature physically and/or mentally when in actuality, they will never perform at the top of the race sheet regardless of how much time they are given to change or mature. The number of physically flawed pigeons that are bred each year can be significantly reduced by pairing breeders that physically complement each other.  So it is not enough to only couple breeders on paper or on the computer. It is imperative that paper pairings should be verified and confirmed "in the hand."

Finally, breeders do not always "breed true."  That is, breeders do not always breed true to their body type.  Breeders do not always pass their physical structures to the children.  Sometimes, near-perfect physically built pigeons may tend to breed youngsters with various physical flaws.  Sometimes pigeons with various physical flaws will not pass these flaws on to a majority of their children and their children are physically better than either one or both of their parents.  These genetic uncertainties usually require that breeding couples are tested in the breeding loft.  Further, breeders breed differently with different mates.  Pigeons will often produce different types of flaws or characteristics in their youngsters with different mates and different numbers of flawed youngsters with different mates.  Consequently, after coupling breeders "on the computer" and confirming these couplings "in the hand," breeding exceptional youngsters is still an inexact science and full of uncertainty.  These realities begin to shed light on why it is extremely difficult to consistently breed a large number of exceptional youngsters that will race well throughout their lifetime and then breed well after retirement to the breeding loft.  Breeding exceptional youngsters is full of uncertainty.  It is an inexact science.  It is mentally and physically taxing.  Because of that fact, it is very easy simply to leave the entire process to random chance.  However, we enjoy trying to breed exceptional racing pigeons.  We enjoy applying the scientific method to the breeding process.  We enjoy the uncertainty.  We enjoy the drama.  We enjoy the unknown.  We enjoy the tediousness of probing the mystery of genetics.  We enjoy the game.  We race pigeons for fun! 

TODAY

Today, practically all of the breeders are sitting on eggs.  We should receive our bands or rings at any time or during the next week.  The eggs under the breeders should hatch during the first several weeks of January.  Twenty-five to twenty-eight days after the eggs hatch, the youngsters will be ready to wean to the young bird loft.  It is almost time to make sure that the young bird loft is clean and ready to accept the first round of winter youngsters.  Today, we are in the transition phase between coupling and hatching.  As the youngsters begin to pip out of their eggs in the next few days and weeks, the 2011 young bird race season gets closer and closer.  A significant part of performing at the top of the race sheet in the young bird race series depends upon the management of the breeding couples and their youngsters over the next few weeks.  They should have plenty of fresh clean water, access to fresh grit and pickstone, and plenty of good grain and other feed supplements and additives.  They should most probably be exposed to either a "light" or a "dark" management system.

If you are breeding winter youngsters now and your breeders are sitting on eggs, when it is most warm during the day, carefully examine the amount of nesting material in each nest.  We use long soft pine needles resting on nest pads that we purchased from a supply house.  Both eggs and new youngsters require a soft supportive bed in which to lay.  Make sure that both eggs and new youngsters have a sufficient bed of nest material on which to sit until the eggs hatch and for the first twenty-five days of the youngsters lives.  A thin layer of nest material can easily lead to broken eggs and crooked keels and physical damage to youngsters.  Conversely, too much nest material often allows eggs and youngsters to be nudged out of the nest by parents trading places or youngsters that wiggle out of the nest on their own and quickly die from the cold before they can be rescued.  Continually check and recheck the nest material in each nest over the next few weeks.  Take a little nest material out if there is too much and put a little more nest material back in the nest if there is not enough material in the nest.  Perform this task every day.  Checking nest material daily usually provides an important safety net for incubating eggs and new youngsters.

12.28.2010 - Tuesday

WINTER BREEDING REQUIRES PATIENCE

After warning everyone last week to watch the nests of the breeders in case eggs or youngsters accidentally fall out of the nest and chill, yesterday we found an egg from DIAMOND RIO and a great breeding female, ARMANI, from Armand Schoolmeesters that we had placed under a pair of foster pigeons had trickled out of the nest and was chilled.  when we broke it, however, it was not fertile.  After candling the other egg still warm in the nest, I do not believe that it is fertile either.  That is a great disappointment because this is a new pairing and we were really looking forward to getting several early rounds from this couple.  I mention this story because it has been our experience that winter breeding can be very frustrating and often requires great patience.  Infertile eggs - especially during winter breeding are sometimes a problem - particularly with new breeding couples.  The good news is that DIAMOND RIO and ARMANI are back on a new set of eggs that will hopefully be fertile.

A TIME OF HOPE

I have friends who tell me that their breeding lofts are already full of new youngsters.  However, the majority of our eggs should hatch next week.  The new breeding season is a great time of hope for us.  At this time each year, the performances of the past year - whether good, bad or mediocre - are erased and the annual game clock restarts as new piping youngsters bring the hope of new vistas, new joys and great performances in 2011.  For us, winter breeding always brings the excitement of new hope and new joy.  The joys of the 2011 young bird race season will be scored on the wings of a very few of these small new bundles of hope.  We wonder which ones will be our future champions?  During the next young bird race season and other future race seasons, which ones will enter the loft first, second, third..............  The fact is that we do not know.  We do not know if our coupling decisions made in the past few months will translate into blistering speeds as our young racers wing their way home from far away places far in front of the other pigeons in the race.  But that is our hope.  For us, the new year brings new hope.  We hope that our decisions are good ones.  We hope that our breeding loft will generate a handful of exceptional pigeons in 2011.  We hope that a few of our new youngsters will become our future champions.

At Lamberton Loft and in the lofts of many of our mentors in Belgium, Holland and Germany, our hopes are grounded in the performances of our pigeons.  I have had debates with fanciers in the past about the primary purpose of the racing pigeon game.  There are many fanciers who insist that the primary purpose of the game is beating other fanciers.  For these fanciers, their focus is on other fanciers.  For these fanciers, their focus is on other people.  For us, however, our focus is not on other people.  Our focus is on our pigeons.  Our focus is on the annual hope that new piping youngsters give us as they wing their way home in 2011 and beyond.  Our focus is on our pigeons - not our competitors.  For us, the racing pigeon game is simply a process through which our pigeons - our primary focus in the game - achieve the status of champion.  The racing pigeon game is not an end in itself.  It is a process.  For fanciers who focus on people, the racing pigeon game is the end.  Either you win or you lose.  For fanciers who focus on their pigeons, the racing pigeon game is a process through which our pigeons earn points toward championships.

Consequently, the youngsters that pip out in the next few days represent the very essence of our hope as citizens of the world.  In a world in which everything in our reality must be accepted on faith, hope is the flip side of faith.  Hope renews faith.  Hope sustains faith.  Hope generates faith.  Remember, we race our pigeons for our pleasure - for our fun - for our hope.  We have fun racing our pigeons.  We have fun preparing our pigeons to compete in future races.  Our new youngsters represent hope - they represent fun - they represent enjoyment.  We are very excited each day by the discovery of a new set of youngsters - because each set of new youngsters represents the hope of our future.

YOUTUBE AND DRJOHNLAMBERTON.COM

We originally thought that our website would be a portal to our YouTube videos.  However, we have recently discovered that the process goes both ways.  We have discovered that a number of fanciers have discovered our website after first discovering our videos on YouTube.  One such fancier is Khalid Kemariyo in Karachi Sindh Pakistan.  I have been corresponding via email with Khalid and have asked him to respond to several questions.  Here is one of his emails:

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Racing pigeons have been kept and raced here in Pakistan from late 80's and early 90's. They are imported from Netherland, Canada, Germany, Belgium and UAE. The sports is new to Pakistan comparatively however, there is much potential if more clubs are formed and pigeons are raced every year.  
 
I will be pleased if you blog about racing sports here in Pakistan and in Sindh.  I hope your blog will bring in more energy in fanciers here.  Let me know if you want to know more about racing sports here in Pakistan.

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Interacting with new fanciers all over the world is an exciting function of the Internet.  We have been contacted by fanciers representing the Sport in almost every part of the English-speaking world.  Communicating with Khalid is extremely interesting in order to to learn how the game is played in different regions of the globe including a country like Pakistan that makes the news almost every day in the US.

Here are several pictures of the city of Karachi that we found on the Internet.

It is our goal to use our website, our videos on YouTube and our future DVDs as major informational superhighways in order for fanciers all over the world - in regions where the sport has been played for hundreds of years or where the sport is relatively new - like Pakistan - to learn about the tremendous joys inherent in a global Sport that has blessed our family's lives so very much.

12.29.2010 - Wednesday

OUR PHILOSOPHY: BREED A LARGE POOL OF YOUNGSTERS IN JANUARY - SELECT AN ELITE TEAM OF YOUNG BIRDS IN SEPTEMBER

We try to breed as many winter-bred youngsters in the first and second rounds as possible.  In our system, the first two rounds of youngsters are the pool of from which we select our young bird race teams.  We believe in raising as many high quality winter-bred youngsters as possible and then selecting a very small elite team to actually race during the young bird race season.   Just because we raise a large pool of winter-bred youngsters during the first two rounds doesn't mean that we have to race all of them.  There may be a number of youngsters that are not ready to race in September and October due to the moult.  There may be a number of youngsters that do not physically mature enough to the point that they can perform at a very high level each and every week for an entire eight week race series.  There are youngsters that may be able to race fairly well every two or three weeks; but not every week of the race series.  There may be youngsters in the pool that can fly home each week during the entire race series; but there maybe only a handful of youngsters that can play near the top of the race sheet for an entire eight week race series.  The physical strength that it takes to consistently perform near the top of the race sheet every week for an entire eight week race series is very significant.  If our race series in Northeast Oklahoma was more like the Belgian system, our youngsters would have a much longer race series and could race every two weeks in order to race eight times.  However, our young bird race series consists of only eight consecutive weeks.  We are not criticizing the young bird system in Northeast Oklahoma in any way.  We are simply comparing our young bird race series to a typical young bird race series each year in Belgium.  Young bird racing in Belgium informally begins in May.  However, the races in May and early June are typically short; often less than 100 kilometers.   Races gradually lengthen in distance during June and July until the first National race in late July or very early August.  The Belgian Federation schedules four National races two weeks apart that begin at the end of July after young birds have had an many opportunities to train and race in shorter races during the previous two months. Our local young bird racing system is very different than the Belgian model.  Our young birds need to be very strong and very mature in order to race near the top of the sheet for eight short - but rigorous - weeks of racing.  Our young birds do not have the luxury of recuperating for two weeks before they are required to race again.  Our young birds race each and every week.

Many of the youngsters that we will raise in the first two early rounds of breeding may not be ready to race a short intense series of races.  That does not mean that the youngsters that are not selected to race during our young bird race series are not as good as the youngsters that we select to race in September.  Many of the youngsters that are not selected are trained to 100 miles or 160 kilometers and then raced as yearlings in the next old bird race series.  Often, youngsters are not selected to race in the young bird race series strictly as a result of timing rather than as a result of poor quality.  The moult, physical maturation, health and sexual maturation are inexact variables in the lives of our young birds.  The number of youngsters that are totally and completely ready to play on September 10th or 11th maybe only a small percentage of the overall number of young birds in the pool of youngsters bred during the first two rounds of winter breeding.  Quite often, those young birds that are not ready to train and to race during the second week of September can be unintentionally lost in training in August or during the race series in September. Consequently, by selecting only the most robust and mature youngsters to race in the young bird race series in September, we seldom lose youngsters during training or after the race series begins.

We prefer to raise a lot of young birds in our first two rounds of winter breeding in order to have a very large pool of robust and mature candidates for the young bird race season.  then, we race a small percentage of the large pool of winter-bred youngsters during the young bird race series.  If only 10% of the young birds raised each year are superior pigeons, then the number of superior pigeons that are raised each year is a function of the total number of young birds that are raised each year.  For example, if ten young birds are bred each year, the Lamberton 10% Rule estimates that there may be one superior pigeon in the pool of young birds that were bred.  One pigeon is 10% of ten pigeons.  If fifty youngsters are bred each year, there maybe only five (10%) superior youngsters in the pool.  If two hundred youngsters are bred each year, there may be 20 (10%) superior youngsters in the pool.  We also believe that there maybe frequent years of breeding during which the Lamberton 10% Rule creates an estimate that is too conservative.  There maybe years during which the actual number of superior pigeons bred during the first two rounds of winter breeding may reflect a percentage greater than 10%.  In these years, the actual percentage of superior pigeons may be upwards of 20 to 25%.  Regardless of the actual percentage of superior youngsters bred each year, it is a general rule of thumb that in order to breed more superior pigeons, it is necessary to breed more pigeons.  Consequently, we like to couple enough high quality breeders and foster couples in order to breed 150 to 200 youngsters each year to generate a pool of candidates for the young bird race season.  We also breed youngsters through May to create a pool of candidates that are available to race as late hatches in the next old bird race series. 

In summary, although we race only a very small team of select youngsters in the young bird race series, we prefer to breed 150 or 200 youngsters during the first two rounds of winter breeding each year.  In general, we select about 10% of this pool to race in the young bird race series.  Although each year is somewhat different, as a general rule, we retain less than 50% of the youngsters on the young bird race team to to race as old birds or to retire to the breeding loft.  We also select a variable percentage of the youngsters that were not selected for the young bird race team to race as yearlings in old birds.   

12.30.2010 - Thursday

THE ONSET OF THE BREEDING SEASON EACH YEAR MARKS A NEW FRESH BEGINNING

Each new breeding season marks the beginning of a new year - a fresh start.   The book of 2011 has not been written for any of us yet except for the Introduction which began when we medicated our breeders and paired our breeders on paper and then in the loft.  May this year bring each of us more joy and success.  May this new year bring each of us less grief and regret.  To our loved ones and to the other important people in our lives............may we take the time to let them know how much they mean to us - whether family members, members of the Sport, or other friends.  Let each one of us endeavor to encourage more and criticize less.  Let each one of us endeavor to give more and need less.  Let each one of us endeavor to create harmony and peace. To new beginnings - to this new year - let each one of us start fresh, right now, to make this the very best year ever - both inside and outside of the Sport.

In my life's journey over the past 63 years, one of the greatest times of my life involved a coyote pup that I called Pecos after the Walt Disney story about Pecos Bill that I saw on television as a kid.

PECOS THE COYOTE

Pecos the Coyote

Pecos the Coyote with John Lamberton

Pecos was found abandoned on the Dillingham Ranch near Okmulgee, Oklahoma as a five-week old puppy with five other siblings after their mother was found dead near their den by cowboys called "fence riders."  These cowboys rode the fences around the Dillingham Ranch on a daily basis.  They checked for fence breaks and other general maintenance problems on the Ranch.  The fence riders found the puppies on a small hill that served as the top of their coyote den dug in the ground by their parents.  Without their mother's milk and care, the puppies were mildly distressed and would have died if they had not been discovered in time.  Lamberton oil well pumper and family friend Mutt Wadley quickly inherited the puppies because he was the local farmer who always took in every type of abandoned creature brought to him by people from all over Okmulgee County.  Pecos and his brothers and sisters were no different.  After letting the puppies drink and settle (as much as scared coyote pups can settle), Mutt called me and offered me a puppy if I came down to his farm quickly enough.  There were others who also wanted a puppy and all of the puppies required immediate attention and care.  I quickly drove the  30 miles/48 kilometers from Tulsa to Mutt's farm where I spent several hours carefully  handling and interacting with each of the puppies.  I selected Pecos to take home because he was the puppy that most positively responded to me in the limited time I had available.  In fact, you might say that Pecos was actually attracted to me and me to him from the beginning.  On that day, I fell in love with a coyote pup.  After leaving Mutt's farm, Pecos and I were inseparable over the next few months - even sleeping together.  I would keep Pecos under my shirt next to my skin so that Pecos would feel the warmth of my body as well as internalize my scent.  At night, Pecos would curl up under my shirt and sleep most of the night before he needed to answer nature's call.  Pecos would put my ear lobe or my hand in his mouth and rapidly tremble his mouth while he made a whining sound.  I learned that this type of social behavior is how coyotes communicate with us other.  I had to put a lot of trust in a wild coyote puppy when he nuzzled my neck and talked to me with my ear lobe trembling in his teeth.  Quickly, however, Pecos and I bonded very intensely and lived together on Lookout Mountain Ranch for several years until Pecos was accidentally killed at night crossing a local highway.  The Ranch has never been as magical and joyous as when Pecos roamed the hills - sometimes howling at the sky - with my sons, with me, or on his own.  when he was apart from me on the Ranch, we communicated by howling at each other.  If I wanted him, I simply threw back my head and howled and yipped.  Pecos would always answer me and come a runnin.  You see, Pecos loved to roam and loved to be free.  He was never caged and did not even like to enter buildings - unless the buildings were open-ended on one or both ends like the barn.  He preferred the sanctity and wildness of the hills and valleys around the Ranch to the confines and closeness of human habitations.  Although we formed a very deep bond and relationship, Pecos was never "tamed."  Instead, we sort of had an agreement between us based upon our mutual love, respect and trust in each other.  While Pecos gave me his love and attention; I never tried to take it.  He was never domesticated.  We simply preferred being together to being apart. One night I awoke from my bunk on the Ranch.  I don't know what awakened me other then to say that I sensed something wrong involving Pecos.  I walked out on the second story deck of the barn to look out into the darkness and stillness of the forest.  It had snowed that night while I was sleeping.  The ground and trees were covered in solid white.  The snow clouds had disappeared and the moon had come out amidst the starry sky creating a brightness that brilliantly shone on the snow on the valley in front of the barn where I had been sleeping in an upstairs bunk.  As I quietly stood on the upstairs deck looking down into the darkness of the forest trees, Pecos suddenly ran out of the darkness and into the bright light of the moon directly in front of me.  Pecos whirled and crouched down in the snow with his head cradled intently between his tensed but outstretched legs as he watched the darkness behind him.  In a flash, several "wild" coyotes ran out of the darkness and straight into Pecos twisting and turning their bodies as they wrestled in the snow.  At first I was alarmed.  But in a moment I understood that the other coyotes were simply playing with Pecos.  Relieved, I watched Pecos and his friends frolic and play in the snow for almost an hour before they finally disappeared into the darkness of the forest.  Enriched and inspired by the special moments that I had just witnessed during the past hour, I slowly turned and reluctantly went back to bed.  I guess I was just a little jealous.  I wanted to be out there too.  But my presence would have melted the spontaneous joy of the moment as the wild coyotes would have quickly disappeared into the sanctity of the forest.  The next morning, Pecos was waiting patiently for me when I woke up.  After playing with his wild "brothers and sisters" for much of the night  in the forest, Pecos chose to return home to be with me.  I will always be indebted to Pecos for teaching me in a strange and unique way about the true meanings of the fabric of the world in which we live - values necessary to human existence and happiness like trust, love, and friendship.  Even with the temptations of the night as Pecos frolicked with his kinfolk, Pecos still preferred to return to the sanctity and pleasure of me and his home.  Although he loved to roam the night, Pecos would always return home in the morning.  That is, until the morning when he didn't come home.  We found him about a mile away by the side of the local highway.  Pecos is buried on Lookout Mountain Ranch.  His grave is marked with a sandstone headstone that the rain and water had naturally shaped in a "P."  He was one of a kind and gave me many mountain top moments during the several years that we spent together on the Ranch.  His faithfulness taught me the value of a trusting and peaceful relationship. For this gift, I have always considered Pecos one of God's Angels. So too do Jeff and I consider our Champion pigeons.  Like the relationship I developed with Pecos, we have relationships with each of our champion pigeons built upon love, trust and friendship.  We consider each of our Champion pigeons as one of God's Angels sent to lead us and help us traverse the long and winding road of life.  That is why, ultimately, we play the game.  Jeff and I play the game in order to build relationships with "special" pigeons.  The game is our hobby.  We play it for fun.  Our goals for each year, and now for 2011, are to build relationships with a few of the many youngsters that are currently pipping out of their eggs.  At this moment, we do not know which of these strange and curious yellow fluffs of flesh and bone will become our future champions.  That is part of the great mystery of the Sport.  However, the game is designed to reveal which youngsters are champions.  We will learn which of these tufts of yellow are champions in September and October as our race team wings their way home from far away places.  We will learn about our future champions as we wait on race day - and as we spot a pigeon on the distant horizon - as we try to recognize which one is tucking its wings close to its body - diving out of the sky towards a small portal in the racing loft - moments before our competitors clock their pigeons. What are your goals for 2011?  What are your goals for your family?  What are your goals for your pigeons?  What are your goals for yourself?  We suggest that you start anew in 2011.  Start fresh.  Start right now.  Concerning the Sport, begin trying to accomplish your goals with one pigeon.  then as you feel comfortable and competent, add a few others.  You do not need to race a mob of pigeons to be successful or to reach your goals in the Sport. Enjoy your pigeons.  Begin by learning to enjoy one pigeon.  when the number of pigeons you keep involves too much time, requires too much work and becomes too expensive for your pocketbook, the stressors will negatively impact your family, your hobby and your friendships.  Start fresh.  Start anew.  Start 2011 by endeavoring to manage a single pigeon to its championship.  Build a special relationship with each and every champion pigeon with which you play the game.  If you can discipline yourself to this goal, it will miraculously change the way you play the game forever.

12.31.2010 - Friday - the final day of 2010

MOUNTAIN TOP MOMENTS

We love music.  All of us.  All types of music.  Classical, Gospel, Jazz, Blues, Blue Grass, Acapella, Orchestral, Country - especially country (what would you expect coming from Oklahoma?).  For generations, music has been a very important piece of our individual and collective family sanity - or lack of it for that matter.  Over the past few weeks, the country radio stations have been playing a song from George Strait's new album, Twang.  George has been singing about the "moments that take your breath away."  I bought the song on ITunes (Jeff taught me how) and we play it on my computer as we blog and work.  Strangely, George's song captures the essence of what we have been trying to communicate in the past few blogs.  In particular, it captures the answer to an important life question as we turn the page on yet another year.  In 2011, should we only be concerned with the breaths of life - the breathing in or out - the trials and tribulations of each and every day?  Or should we also be concerned about appreciating mountain top moments - the moments in life that take our breath away?  Briefly stated - at Lamberton Loft - we race pigeons - we play the game - because of the moments that take our breath away.  Scraping floors and nest boxes bear no special momentary meaning for us other that the information it yields about the health of our pigeons or the cleanliness of the pigeon's home and our workplace.  We work through the tediousness of the loft chores in order to experience unexpected moments that take our breath away. 

Last week we blogged about our disappointment - that despite our warning to others about the dangers of winter breeding - one of DIAMOND RIO's first set of eggs had fallen out of the nest and chilled.  After candling the remaining egg still warm in the nest, we feared it was infertile.  Even so, we left the egg under the foster parents "just in case."  After gently nudging the foster parent yesterday to examine the egg - to our great surprise - a tiny youngster appeared in the nest.  For Jeff and me, this unexpected discovery was definitely a moment that took our breaths away.  We don't know what you think about our characterization of this moment.  Perhaps you think we are over-dramatizing.  But for us, finding DIAMOND RIO's first baby of 2011 - especially coupled for the first time with ARMANI - and especially after one of the eggs was chilled - was a mountain top moment - a moment that took out breaths away.

EXPECTED AND UNEXPECTED MOMENTS

The special moments described in the last blog - expected and unexpected - that we enjoyed with Pecos the Coyote - these moments take our breath away.  On race days, when we spot our racers on the horizon winging their way home - these moments take our breath away.  when we total our racer's points and find that they have finally earned 125 or 150 AU Champion points and are now eligible for the Championship Award - these moments take our breath away.  when we learn that someone is thrilled to have scored well in a race with youngsters bred from our pigeons - these moments take our breath away.  when we are training our pigeons around the loft and a hawk appears and quickly chases one of the pigeons - the moment the pigeon is taken to the ground or is fatally hit in the air or escapes after losing only a couple of feathers - are moments that take our breath away.  when we inventory our race team after a training flight or an arduous race and we find a nest box empty - these moments take our breath away. when Jeff comes over to my loft and tells me funny stories about his pigeons - these moments take my breath away.  when Jeremy makes an insightful or funny suggestion when we are filming one of his unique videos posted on YouTube - these moments take my breath away.  when Josh and my grandson Jackson want to take Jackson's pigeon "New Soggy" up to their house in a small crate to spend the night in Jackson's room - these moments take my breath away.  when the face of God shines through our daughters' smiles - these moments take our breath away.  when our grandchildren hit a run, score a goal, can a basket or spike a point - these moments take our breath away.  Each time that I wake up in the night from a bad dream and look over to see Morgan quietly sleeping beside me - these moments take my breath away.  Each year when we collectively celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ during the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at Church - these moments take our breath away.  when we receive emails from fanciers all over the world who are moved or changed by something we have blogged or vlogged - these moments take our breath away.

What are the moments in life that take your breath away?  Do you look for them?  Do you appreciate them?  Do you let yourself recognize them and enjoy them?  Are you moved by your hobby?  Are you changed by the magic of the racing pigeon sport?  Are you moved by the beauty and majesty of our racing pigeons as they fiercely wing their way home?  Do these moments impact you?  Change you?  Move you?  Do these moments make you work harder - expect more - love greater - trust deeper - dream higher?

In 2011, our pray for you - as well as for ourselves - is that each week is brimming full of mountain top moments - expected or unexpected - moments that take your breath away.  For the Lamberton's, these moments are why we play the game.  We need them.  We can't breathe without them.  Good Luck and Happy New Year. 

To be continued.........................................................................Thank you.................................................................Jeff and John