Van Damme’s legend “De Locco” found a new home!
In fact a great number of highly successful super fanciers in our racing pigeon sport believe this implicitly and rarely do they allow anything to stand in the way of their continued success, especially not money. A “locco” concept you say. Yes ,maybe, for most ,but those truly dedicated to their improvement, those dedicated to the improvement of their lines, their colonies, their future success, legends like Limbourg or Koopman would insist that there is no other way! These professionals are as “Locco” as a “Fox”!
You see the reality is that if you are to remain at the pinnacle then it is necessary to cast your sights beyond the local, regional or provincial levels. You need to constantly be aware, you need to ferret out the very best wherever it might be; you need to recognize it immediately when the exceptional pigeon appears and act forcefully to take possession of it without hesitation. So it was that the weekend of May 29 to 30, 2010, the opener of the national long distance season in Belgium and the moment that it was official that “De Locco” had won “National Brive” the unsolicited offers to purchase this incredible racing machine began in earnest!
First off the mark was Erik Limbourg with a staggering offer of €125,000.00 Euros. Such an offer would make lesser men quiver and become weak in the knees but Van Damme knew only too well what he had and what its value truly was. Offers continued, all were refused, including the Koopman offer of €150,000.00 Euros tendered via PIPA the weekend of June 5/6 /2010.Agents from around the world are knocking at the doors of PIPA but Van Damme has made it very clear that “De Locco” is not for sale at “any price”! Will this deter the offers from China? Somehow I do not think so. Does this mean that Van Damme is “Locco” for refusing these mega amounts .well as the American’s are fond of saying “crazy like a fox”!
This “De Locco” pigeon is special, I mean very special. Indeed look at his age, how many pigeons of this caliber would still be racing at five years old? Especially since the offers to purchase this “super bird” go back to his earliest years. How many (let us say “less courageous fanciers”) fanciers would have had the resolve to keep such a valuable bird racing for five years? I assure you, no other person on the International scene would have even contemplated continuing to race such a valuable bird to such an age.
But I certainly understand Van Damme’s decision from a philosophical point of view, sometimes you just need to “know”! ”Know What”? Well you just need to know if what you think is the very best really is in fact the very best in the world. Van Damme knew that “ De Locco” was the best, he felt it in every fiber of his body but “knowing” and “proving”( to what is a very skeptical world) are two very different things. That is why “De Locco” had to be raced as a five year old because it truly was the only way to prove that he really was the very best performance racing pigeon in the world. So the story of “De Locco “is as much a story of the man “Van Damme” as it is about the bird “De Locco”! “De Locco” had the raw ability, the ability to swiftly orient, the drive to return, the physical perfection to withstand test after test year after year but his breeder, owner and manager conducted a brilliant multiyear campaign. Van Damme got the very best out of “De Locco” and he continued to do so fort five full years and he further demonstrated exceptional managerial skills in knowing when to decline one offer of purchase and sale after another.
But I am not the only person that believes what I have herein expressed. At 6:38 AM Monday May 31st 2010 I received an email from Belgium, from the founder of PIPA, the website that is recognized worldwide as the authority on racing pigeon sales and valuations. The site responsible for selling the real “Jewels of the Sky” stated the following to me in a private communication.
Mon 5/31/2010 6:38 AM
Silvio, this weekend the first national Brive was won by Johan van Damme, by his Locco.
Locco is now with this performance one of the best pigeons ever raced in history !
Erik Limbourg offered 125.000 euro to buy it,...
The pigeon is 50 % De Rauw Sablon. This racing phenomena.
Van Damme was right all along and “Locco” did not let him down. All over the world fanciers are speaking of “De Locco” already ( July 2010) some in America have taken action to acquire children or grandchildren or other close relations of “Locco”. It’s only the beginning!
Like Koopman and Limbourg these other individuals are also appreciative of great talent. It’s only the beginning because it cannot be disputed that “Locco’ is without a doubt the best middle distance pigeon of all of Belgium and “most probably the best middle distance pigeon of all time!” In the hands of a less courageous man, a man of less vision, less resolve, less self assurance this bird “De Locco” would have been just another great bird, one amongst many but in the hands of “Van Damme” who campaigned him strategically “De Locco” became the “best of the best” possibly the best of all time?
“De Locco” head shot shortly after his winning effort from Brive.
In my mind from here on any time I think of “De Locco” I will think also of “Brive”. Brive la Gaillarde, is a city with an amazing architectural, natural and cultural heritage. Its amazing to think that the founding of this area dates back to the 1st Century . Brive is a quite industrial city without pretensions. Houses dating from the 12th Century amid those of the 19th Century and beyond into the 21st Century. The original city started to develop around a church dedicated to Saint-Martin-l'Espagnol. During the 12th century walls were built around the city and during the Hundred Years' War a second wall was built however these walls no longer exist having long since been replaced by boulevards. The community was named "Brive" until 1919, when it was renamed "Brive-la-Gaillarde". (Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brive-la-Gaillarde )
But just how good was the performance of “De Locco” from this ancient location Brive? Well there were 16,813 pigeons that competed in this National Brive race and Johann Van Damme’s “De Locco” arrived and was clocked a full 10 minutes ahead of the 2nd place bird in a National race flying a distance of 682.633 KM (424.1685 Miles).Ten minutes, it may as well have been an eternity. You can see from the map enclosed on this page that the birds flying from Brive were required to fly across most of France for their journey back to Belgium.
So who is Johan Van Damme?
Currently the name of Johan Van Damme is little know in America, Australia and the UK but all of that is about to change dramatically. Johann was born in Dendemonde the son of Maurice Van Damme and Cleontine Vlassenroot on August 14, 1966. Dendermonde is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Dendermonde proper and the towns of Appels, Baasrode, Grembergen, Mespelare, Oudegem, Schoonaarde, and Sint-Gillis-bij-Dendermonde. As its name implies, Dendermonde is located at the mouth of the river Dender, where it flows into the Scheldt. (reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dendermonde,_Belgium ) Today, this 15th Century city is the administrative, commercial, educational, and medical centre for the surrounding region.
Johan studied to be a “mechanic” and is currently involved in the assembly of vehicles at the Volvo new truck plant. Inspired, early on, by both his father and his brother Jozef who were already involved in racing pigeons Johann started with his pigeon career in 1980 and became quite serious about the sport in 1988.
From 2006 to 2009 Johan Van Damme has won 104 1st prizes (no duplications).He was 1st General Champion East Flanders (remember that East Flanders is the Belgian province that calls itself home to over 11,000 active racing pigeon fanciers) in 2009. From 2000 to 2009 he was awarded 46 professional rankings, additionally he had the 7th Ace Pigeon Fond 2009, 3 Provincial wins, two National Victories plus General Provincial Champion oost-Vlaanderen. So it would be a little bit of an understatement to say that the name “Van Damme” stands for “very good performances”!
Van Damme holds his "De Locco" shortly before his sale to China on August 2 2010
I would say that at least 50% of the Van Damme birds are from his Mentor, friend and close advisor “Frans Sablon” ( De Rauw Sablon). The other 50% are pigeons from his brother Jozef Van Damme (St Gillis, Patrick and Guido Claes (Vorselaar), Van Hautte Marc (Smetlede) and Charles and Tom Hufkens (Geel).
One of "De Locco's" last flights in Belgium prior to moving to his new home !
"De Locco" sells on August 2, 2010 to a buyer !
Johan Van Damme had for several years been “”steam rolling” the local competition in the small to middle distance. Locally he was well known but nationally few knew his name (except for real insiders) for he never sought publicity. Three years ago, several of his pigeons were ranked amongst the “provincial middle distance pigeons”. Two years ago Johan shifted his sights and began competing seriously in the one day long distance races. In 2009 Johan won the prestigious title of "General Provincial Champion KBDB East-Flanders” clearly he was number one, as the Americans love to say! '! With “De Locco” he undoubtedly has one of the best middle distance pigeons of all time.
As I already mentioned Johan’s pigeons are 50% of the line of the “De Rauw Sablon” and he has made use of inbreeding, line breeding and out crossing in his breeding program. Johan commented to me in our personal correspondence that the “pigeons of De Rauw Sablon are the best when it's warm weather and headwind.” It was interesting for me to note that Van Damme also supplied the mother of Benny Steveninck great racer “Chipo”; however he did note that it originated with his brother Jozef.
Johan van Damme is indeed fortunate to have as his mentor Frans Sablon
For those Interested please see the detailed pedigree below to view the role played by the De Rauw Sablon hens in the success of “De Locco”.
Johan van Damme wins 1st National Brive with super bird Locco!
As I was completing this article the exciting news came through of the monumental victory of “Locco” of Johan van Damme by an astounding 10 minutes ahead of the 2nd place pigeon at National Brive
Against 16,813. Interestingly enough as if to prove my point we see that both of “Locco” grandmothers are descendants of the fabulous “De Rauw Sablon” foundation pair “Albert X Paola”. Therefore the Mitochondrial DNA ( which you will remember are the energy engines of all of the cells of the entire body of “De Locco”) of “De Locco” is that of his maternal grandmother who traces back to the original “De Rauw Sablon” foundation pair or to be more specific from a Mitochondrial point of view back to “Paola”.
I did some investigating as to the whereabouts of these two grandmothers of “De Locco” and interestingly enough they were purchased not long ago by Marc De Cock.Smart move Mark, a very smart move!
Since preparing this chart it now seems clear that both of the referenced grandmothers of De Locco trace back to the famous De Rauw Sablon pair.
There are a number of other interesting points that Van Damme made during our email correspondence. He advised that he first became aware of the name “Frans Sablon” from an article that appeared in the racing pigeon press locally in 1991.It was about 1993 before he had the occasion to personally meet Frans Sablon. Johan was so impressed with his abilities that he eventually asked Frans Sablon if he would be prepared to become his “advisor” or what we in North America call “A Mentor”. Johan noted that “Frans is an honest man who is there for you when you need him”! Frans in his capacity as mentor has been giving Johan advice for several years. Johan began crossing his base stock with the “Sablon” pigeons in 2002 and finds great success with the lines of “Limonge, “the Dream Couple”, the “Dromer Line” amongst others. The formula that has worked well in breeding superior racing pigeons is “75%-25% back to the Sablons”
I asked some very pointed questions regarding the ability of Frans Sablon as a breeder. I told Johann that I had heard Eric Limbourg state in a video prepared after his famous sale that “Frans Sablon is a Master Breeder” and did Johan Vandame think that Frans was a master breeder? Johan responded as follows, “Yes I do. He gave me advice assembling some couples and they worked out perfect.”
Frans Sablon Friend and Mentor to Johan Van Damme. Frans is to be encouraged to mentor as many young fanciers as possible as the experience and abilities that were developed over a lifetime must never be lost to our sport.
As I was writing this article news arrived via email on evening of Monday August 2nd 2010 to me in Canada that “De Locco” had just been sold. An unnamed buyer from China had arranged to purchase De Locco through the intersession of “PIPA” for a record sum. All in all I would say that, that was one incredible weekend for the Van Damme family!
Once De Locco moves to China it will be impossible for Europeans, Americans, Brits and Australians to obtain any direct children or for that matter anything from the line of De Locco. Those that were fortunate enough to have direct children really do have some very rare and valuable “Jewels of the Sky”. Since Johann Van Damme has 18 direct children of De Locco he will remain the originating source in Europe. Nor have we heard the final story on Van Damme for he is young, aggressive, ambitious, strategically oriented and very close to a veritable goldmine of ability in the person of his mentor and adviser “Frans Sablon”. I have enclosed a series of photos which should be of interest to our readers in gaining a sense of the line of pigeons developed by Johan Van Damme with the guidance of his mentor Frans Sablon.
One final observation that is intended for the, as yet, unnamed Chinese buyer of “De Locco”. Without a doubt you have purchased an incredible racing machine that has also proven his abilities as a key breeder. Once “De Locco” is put to Stud in China there is no doubt whatsoever as to the impact that he will have in terms of raising the quality level of the racing pigeons in China for generations to come.
Photo Gallery
Johan Van Damme with Son Jonas and daughter Sarah Van Damme. Jonas is 18 years old and Sarah is 15 years old.
Johan Van Damme and Sara
Lofts
The Lofts of Johan Van Damme
Grandparents of “Chipo" of Benny Steveninck
I have purposely not gone into cataloging the full race results of the pigeons listed for those interested in full racing results and details Martin Martens of PIPA has written extensively on this aspect and you can find further details at www.pipa.be as well as using the following hot links that I have provided below.
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