My Story

My Story

My name is Stefan STEENBERGEN, I was born on August 29, 1964 in Herk-de-Stad.

At an early stage I started playing football my whole youth, until the age of 18 I transfered to football club Wellen VV. After Wellen I have played in 12 different clubs.

After Wellen knew I had 12 different clubs. In 1996 I suffered a broken shin and I was placed on inactive for some time. Then I was a player-coach and a trainer for some years, until I was discharged by the last club, this while I was in first place in both the first team and the second team… That was the straw that broke the camel’s back and so I said goodbye to football.

I wanted to do something totally different, something I could do my own without depending on other persons. I had been fascinated by pigeons for a long time, but lack of time due to football was the reason it never happened. So, now I would do it. Together with my grandfather, a very good player on the Vitesse was, I watched the pigeons arrive every Sunday. All those stories from pigeon fanciers… !

My grandfather was a top player. I remember when I did my first communion, I received a bike as a gift from my grandfather, that he had won in a pigeon race. I was really spoiled, every year I got a new bike from my grandfather, really crazy !
I started with pigeons in 2001. Together with my father Albert, who has playing with pigeons for 25 years -with limited success-, we formed the tandem duo Steenbergen S & A. In all those years my father won only one palm. I cleaned his loft, only 1 pigeon out of 85 birds could stay. That was quite a commotion, but for me this was the only option. I consulted Andre Roodhooft Pulderbos, who I knew from my grandfather’s time in the magazine ‘Duifke lacht (pigeon laughs)’. I also bought the book from him, I’ve read that book for a dozen times and I’ve been using a lot of tips. That being said, I needed to find new pigeons … No ordinary pigeons, because I am a winner and to win, you must have the best pigeons. I started with birds of the late Albert Marcelis, in 2001, and pigeons of Govan Vancamp-Waver from St.Katelijne. With the pigeons of Marcelis I failed, not withstanding I had the best in my possession, as children of the famous Sprint, de Smalle, Donkere 12, etc. I sold those pigeons immediately and I started to look for new pigeons. So I buyed pigeons from M & Y Vandersmissen, I have a super one, namely Lang Son, a great athlete. Then at Franz-Werner Reverman, Irmer and son, Flor Vervoort, Maurice Voets, Jos & Jules Engels, Maurice Vandevelde, J. Maris, VDS M.and Y and then I crossed half the world to the old Vancamp pigeons. These birds, coupled with VDS pigeons, yet still run like a thread through my colony for at least 80%. A friend says every year ”when you’ve get better, let me know”- after all these years these are still wise words!!

Every year I add 2 pigeons to my colony. In 2009, I have purchased the 3rd Nat. as-pigeon Sprint, a wonderful athlete and a beautiful hen of the late Pros Roosen breeder FREDDY, that immediately had two youngsters that show extreme good results, namely the young pigeon flying 7/7 and the other flying 6/6, really promising ! Recently I also purchased a very good pigeon from the tandem-Arien Verreckt named SABRINA, real class, with a superb record.

We will see what the future brings. I also still own the parents of three National winners, no bad ?! Also not to forget u>”SUPER WALTER”, descended from Walter Tournet from Sint-Truiden (distance racer). And as mother a VDS, a historic pigeon that is the father of no less than three NATIONAL KBDB winners, with three different mothers. If you have such an athlete in your loft, you can let me know, but I do not think our country here in Belgium owns another athlete like this one ?

One thing you should remember, you cannot buy results ! Never turn your back to someone who plays well because you get such a result only by time, energy, financial costs and the right strategy. Finally, don’t look too far, namely bottles-of-this and bottles-of-that, you know … Use your common sense, do your own thing and go for it with 100% ! One day you will accomplish something, if only in your own club, you can still be proud of it, because as the saying goes: if you don’t love small things, you don’t deserve big things. Stay who you are!