Stefan Steenbergen - Xind (Herk-de-Stad) wins 3rd Nat. Argenton III against 8.343 old birds

Herk-de-Stad - Stefan Steenbergen had an outstanding weekend. On the national flight from Argenton, he won the first provincial prize on Argenton III against 992 old birds. This achievement is made even more impressive by the fact that his pigeon won the third prize nationally against 8,343 old birds (4th fastest of the entire field of 20,120 pigeons). Stefan Steenbergen is therefore no stranger to pigeon racing. He previously won 1st Nat. Argenton, 1st Nat. La Souterraine, 1st Nat. Bourges, 1st Nat. Narbonne and 1st Nat. Chateauroux. Exceptional!

BE22-5037821 "Ghost Mich"

The winning hen, named "Ghost Mich", is a tribute to his top breeder "Ghost". This pigeon is also the sire of the 1st Nat. Chateauroux against 33,833 yearlings and the fastest of the total field of 54,633 Chateauroux racers. "Ghost Mich" has already achieved exceptional performances himself, below a summary:
1st Gien against 399 pigeons
1st Lorris against 2,457 pigeons
7th Lorris against 1,698 pigeons
8th Lorris against 1,110 pigeons
8th Lorris against 2,110 pigeons
10th Lorris against 3,952 pigeons
26th Nat. Sancoins against 9,753 pigeons
68th Nat. Bourges against 9,922 pigeons
85th Nat. Bourges against 12,094 pigeons

2 Olympiad pigeons in 2024

With BE20-5074350 "Olympic Iron Lady" and BE21-5056602 "Olympic Iron Luna", Stefan was honoured at the 38th Olympiad in Maastricht at the end of January 2024. "Olympic Iron Lady" became the 2nd Olympiad Pigeon Cat. B Middle Distance while "Olympic Iron Luna" was honoured as 4th Olympiad Pigeon Cat. D Allround. Clearly no shortage of prizes of honour at the Steenbergen home!

Success Strategy

"I play exclusively with hens and have a racing stock of 27 pigeons," Stefan Steenbergen says with a proud smile. "Some pigeons have already been lost, but that is the case with everyone. My pigeons train daily for an hour and a half at home. Between the national races I weld in a short flight of 210 to 390 kilometres, so they stay in top condition."

"My breeding stock consists of 30 pairs," Stefan continues. "I keep the feeding system simple. I give a mixture of Maxi Steenbergen 1 and Maxi Steenbergen Extra Boost from Natural, depending on the flight duration. Depending on the flight, I give more Maxi Steenbergen 1 or more Maxi Steenbergen Extra Boost."

Stefan stresses the importance of good pigeons: "In the end, it always revolves around the same thing and that is good pigeons, and unfortunately we all have too few of them. Good pigeons make the difference, and that is where the key to success in this sport lies."

With this achievement, Stefan Steenbergen has once again proved that he belongs to the top of pigeon racing. His pigeons and his methodology continue to inspire and impress in the world of pigeon racing.
The entire Herbots team would like to congratulate Stefan and wish him all the best with the rest of the season.

Maarten Herbots