1997 Young Birds
1998 Old Birds
1998 Young Birds
1999 Old Birds
1999 Young Birds
2000 Old Birds
2000 Young Birds
2001 Old Birds
2001 Young Birds
2002 Young Birds
2003 Young Birds
2004 Young Birds
2004 Champions
2005 Old Birds

In 1996, I began making major changes to my lofts and to my birds. I had lived in West Point for ten years, but had not really been successful with my pigeons during that time. I would have several good races during the season, but always seemed to have one or two really bad races to knock me out of the averages.

I decided that I had to make changes if I wanted to have a chance at winning. I remodeled my lofts to create healthier conditions for both the pigeons and myself. Then I purchased some excellent Staf Van Reet stock from Frank McLaughlin in Hansen, Massachusetts. I bought a bunch of Janssen from Brad Hoggan in River Heights, Utah. I also picked up a few DeSmet Matthias pigeons from Dean Coombs in Ogden, Utah, a fellow flyer in the Ogden Racing Pigeon Club. I began breeding from these new stock birds and got rid of all of my old Birquoix pigeons. Finally, I began using the darkening system with my young birds.

The 1997 Young Bird Season was my first successful season with the new lofts, the new pigeons and the darkening system. I was pleased with how well the birds flew, but I wasn't completely satisfied. I learned a great deal about the darkening system during this year. I implemented many changes during the 1998 and 1999 seasons and what a difference those changes made. Each season, my results improved, and I was able to apply for and win awards from the AU and the Racing Pigeon Digest.

I was really impressed with the way my birds came home in groups during this year. Many weeks I had not just one pigeon, but a whole group of pigeons arrive home together. This was exciting and so refreshing after the many seasons of mediocre race results. It was fun to win again and this really encouraged me to continue with my efforts to make changes for the better.

First Place Champion Loft
in the Ogden Racing Pigeon Club

Total Accumulated Points
3671 for 99 clockings

First Place Average Speed in the Ogden Racing Pigeon Club

Average Speed: 1280.006

Third Place Average Speed
in the Northern Utah
Racing Pigeon Combine

Average Speed: 1280.006