My Humble Beginnings:
I was introduced to pigeons at the early age of 8. My mother had recently remarried and our family settled in upstate New York. My step-dad was an Italian, originally from the Bronx. One day as I returned home from school, I noticed some birds in a coop, in our backyard. That was it! I was hooked for life!
During my pre-teen years, we moved to Tampa, FL. My parents divorced and I needed to focus on something positive, so my attention focused on “Pigeons”. Up to that point we only had Fantails and Rollers, which were great to look at and watch fly but I wanted something more. I remember a bicycle shop that we would pass every time we went to the grocery store that must have had 200 common pigeons always around. It was almost impossible to find any books about pigeons at that time in the local libraries and not having the internet my brother and I came up with a plan. We would build a loft and go to that bicycle shop and catch birds but first we had to ask mom if we could. The only thing she said was, “Just don’t mess with my clothes line!” So we built our first loft from scrap wood we found from construction sites and some old poultry wire.
It was nothing spectacular but it served our needs just fine. My brother and I would ride our bicycles down to that bicycle shop on the weekends or an old supermarket which had closed to obtain our “Stock”. We would get there at dusk and what ever we caught, we would put them in a holding cage we had bungie corded to the handlebars of our bikes. We would take the bird’s home and clip the flight feathers so they couldn’t fly to re-settle them. Over time some would fly off but the majority would stay and raise babies. We loved how they would route and return home, never knowing that we just started something that would eventually lead me to where I’m at today.
Currently
Timber Lofts began some years ago (2003), as a rekindled hobby in the small southern town of Sylvester, Georgia. Even though the local pigeon club (ALB) was small, the friend-ships and competitive spirit was very much alive! After several attempts to fly competitively, we had to abandon our efforts. I moved several times over those few years and was even deployed to the Middle East (2005), which made it impossible to start flying again. In August (2006), I remarried and our blended-family finally settled in Ocala, FL. Our first loft was 8 X 20 and divided into three sections. It was based on the design provided from Red Rose Loft’s, “Starter Loft”. You may view our results from our “Results” page.
In Dec (2009), we obtained a new loft from a flier who had passed. Its 8 X 16 and divided into four sections (Pic on Right). After some modifications for racing, we will be using it for this year’s YB Teams. Our White Dove Release business has really began to take root here in Central Florida making it much easier to upgrade and bring in new stock. In February (2010), we completely redesigned our old loft into a Breeder/OB Loft. It's still 8 X 20 but it houses our Stock birds. We intend on flying OB’s out of it next year (Pic on Left).
We are active members of the Marion County RPC (OCALA) and serve as the Race Secretary. We fly with The North Florida Racing Pigeon Combine and also serve as the Race Secretary. We compete in the Florida Federation only during the OB season.
Together, my wife Annelle and I have four children...Sierra (11) Zachary (11) Savannah (9) and Emma (7). Some of my best memories are those Saturday mornings, the whole family sitting out in the yard, watching and waiting for the birds to return. My wife has started her own Breeding Kennel "Journey Home Labradors" specializing in Champion English Labradors. We are expecting our Lab, Journey to come into heat any day now so we can finally breed her. The site may be viewed at www.JourneyHomeLabradors.com for further information.