The 2024 season was once again a great one for SG Roland & Denis Faber! Top places in the association with the 2nd AS female at federal level, 3rd place in the Aktion-Mensch annual ranking and 16th place in the German championship crowned a consistently stable season full of highlights.

Let's first let the young Hamburg native speak for himself and draw his conclusions about the season:

“We are particularly proud of the association's 2nd AS female, our 0901-22-2561 called “Hilde”. It is always something very special to have such a good pigeon in your own loft.

The star of the 2024 season, 'Hilde': What makes her so special?

'The 2561 'Hilde' is a quiet female who, after her daily free flight, likes to take a few prancing steps on the outing and then lets us invite her in. She was bred by our friend Sören Pahl. If you look at her pedigree, you will see that her achievements are no coincidence.' On her father's side, 'Hilde' comes from an inbreeding pairing, on the legendary 'Nationen AS' 0901-09-655. In the blood of her father, 0901-15-1255, you can find, not surprisingly, the legacy of Tyson. 'Hilde's' mother also comes from an inbreeding pairing. In this case, it is an original by Günther Prange, which has the ring number 2098-20-153. Its blood is closely linked to that of the 'Ringless No. 12'.

'As you can see, these achievements are not a coincidence. For us, and especially for Sören Pahl (breeder of 'Hilde'), it is important to get as close as possible to the performance pigeons when breeding,' Denis adds to the statements about the lineage of 'Hilde'. Breeding is not a coincidence!

Something about supply - 'Never change a running system'

Denis, who has trusted the supply concept of the company Röhnfried for decades and always thinks about what additives he gives to the feed or drink and when, has found his special recipe for the time immediately before a prize flight and the first time after: 'The combination of the products Rotosal, Mumm and Carni-Speed is still essential!'

Successes in 2024:

• 14 x 1st place
• 40 pigeons fly double-digit
• 2nd AS female of the association with the 0901-22-2561 “Hilde”
• 3rd place Aktion Mensch annual evaluation
• 10th AS pigeon of the month June with the 0901-22-2561 “Hilde”
• 16th German Association Champion

Best Flight 2024

• May 18, 2024, Strasburg, 240 km, TG, 2,881 pigeons
  8th, 9th, 19th, 21st, 21st, 23rd, 24th, 24th, 37th, 37th, etc. (74/70)

How did the year go from your perspective?

“All preliminary flights and the first six prize flights went smoothly. The long phase with easterly winds led to easy flight courses with high flight speeds, short bankruptcy times and hardly any losses. However, the number of sets decreased sharply after the difficult 7th prize flight. In our opinion, this is due to the season starting too easily and the prevailing weather conditions during the flight in question. Unfortunately, our decision-makers did not react flexibly enough at the start of the season so that scoring flights could have been carried out early. This would have also enabled breeders from our two regional groups to place well within the regional association. In addition, there were several restrictions on the part of the FSK, which often caused people to shake their heads here in the far north. However, caution should always prevail over indulgence. However, our team almost reached the maximum, so that we were able to achieve 1st place internally in the RegV for the old pigeons and 2nd place for the yearlings. The young 'wild ones' from 2023 were able to meet the association conditions and reward themselves with 2nd place in the RegV.'

Which pigeon lines were your top performers this year?

'The 0901-22-2300, which became the best yearling female of the RV, comes from our breeding pearl 0901-16-349 'Hope', which became 1st, 1st and 2nd AS pigeon of the RV between 2016 and 2018 and achieved the following top prices during her short racing career: 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 12th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 14th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 20th, 22nd, 29th, etc.

She was paired with 01100-15-621, an original by Hans Lekscha, who himself became Best Yearling of the DBA with 14 prizes. Our best young pigeon, who was also RV Best Young Pigeon and 1st AS Young Pigeon, was able to place 1st, 7th, 15th, 16th, 40th and 64th in her year of birth, in addition to a 50th place in a free race. Her performance is no coincidence if you take a look at her pedigree. Her father, 0901-20-822, comes from our stock bird, the Nations AS 655. On her mother's side we see 0901-19-819, also an outstanding racing hen, who herself became Best Yearling of the RV, and her father, the Austrian 5392, was also RV Best. Further proof that the 3139 is no coincidence with its performance.”

Which products were particularly important to you this year and how did you use them?

“As you know, we have complete confidence in Röhnfried’s extensive product range, so our pigeons were supplied with our favorites Rotosal, Carni-Speed ​​and Blitzform throughout the 2023 racing season. On the recommendation of Frederik Wolf, we have increasingly used Bt-Amin Forte in rearing and are more than satisfied with the growth of the young birds. The performance and results achieved by the young birds further confirm this impression.”

What do you want to change for next year?

“For the coming year, we plan to tackle the resolutions we made in 2023 again. In addition, we want to react more flexibly to the weather and wind conditions in terms of supply and preparation. This year we have found that it is not absolutely necessary to go full throttle from the start, as the pigeons need less if the flight load is too low. However, this assessment is linked to this year's extreme wind conditions.'

Which flights have you remembered particularly well this year and why?

'The fourth prize flight of the old pigeons from Tantow (283 km) with a prize yield of 78/72 prizes and the 3rd, 4th, 4th, 6th, 7th, 16th, 17th, 18th, etc. against 3,195 pigeons within the FG must not go unmentioned. We were even more pleased with the young pigeons, who were able to impress as a team on the first prize flight from Spornitz (108 km) with 141/114 prizes and places 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, etc. against 2,241 pigeons in the regional group.”

What advice do you have for sports friends who have just started the hobby?

“Grab a successful breeder with whom you feel there is mutual sympathy, who is willing to listen to you, visit him and bombard him with questions. Who else should you learn from and gain new perspectives from than an expert who proves it year after year?'

What are your goals for 2024?

'Similar to last year, we have high hopes for the 2023 vintage, as it performed excellently during the youth tour.'