1997 IF Hall of Fame Winner
Mel Melendez
William Melendez of - Mel’s Racing Loft

Tell us a little about yourself.
I started flying with flights when I was a teenager, and shifted to racing homers when I moved to Long Island from Brooklyn in 1983.

Do you think your position is a good one as far as combine races are concerned ? How big is the Combine/Club ?
My position is average in the Suffolk-Nassau Combine. The majority of the flyers are very competitive. There are approximately 105 to 110 lofts in the Suffolk-Nassau Combine.

Do you have a original family of pigeons?
Yes, I have a family of Huskyen van Riels.

What type of birds do you now fly ?
I fly the Huskens, with some Havinith-Stassarts.

Can you give us a little history of your champion bird ?
The pigeon’s pedigree is as follows:

Sire: A Blue Checker with White Flights, without a band, loaned to me by my friend, Ed Kosta.
Dame: Band#: IF95 BQN 1215, a Red Splash McGugan-Stassart
This pair bred four birds, one of which is IF.97 LIN 3830, a Blue Splash hen which topped the combine in the first race of the young bird season, a 100-mile Club. The second race, a 100-mile Special, she took first again, and achieved second out of 120 lofts in the Suffolk-Nassau Combine. In the third race she entered, she came in 15th in the club.

Any story on the parents, brothers or sisters that bred or flew well ?
The father was a gift from my friend, Ed Kosta. I bred two clock birds which raced well. The mother was loaned to me from my good friend, Joe Micel (a.k.a.: "Joe the Jeweler."), and is down from Dr. Stauffer’s family of Stassart-McGugans. The sister of the champion bird, IF97 LIN 3870, a Dark Checker Splash hen, was a winner of Mr. Micel’s, having topped the combine in a 150-mile Special on 10/19/97, in northeast headwinds and foul weather all the way.

Do you race imports ?
No, I do not.

How big is your old bird team ? How big is your young bird team ?
My old bird team is about 34 birds, my young bird team being 46 birds starting out.

Do you use a system ? For young birds/old birds ? Explain your system. Also, how many hours of light per day do your birds get ? From what time to what time is light used? When do you go on natural light? How do your birds molt as old birds if they were on a young bird system ? How do you feel about people using different systems to compete ?
With young birds, I fly to the nest with the Light system. The youngsters get 16 hours of light a day. Old birds get natural light only. I personally have no opinion about what other flyers do with other systems.

Do you cut flights, pull tail feathers, and have your birds finished with body molt when races start ? If so, when do you start to breed?
I do cut, pull tails, and keep the lights on for the young birds so that they can have the body molt before the first race. I usually start breeding in early December.

Do you fly to the perch, fly the widowhood system, separate sexes, fly just hens, or fly natural? Explain your method in old birds and young birds.
Yes, as stated before, I fly the Old Birds to the nest using the Natural Light system, and fly the Young birds to the nest on sixteen hours of light a day.

Please describe your loft.
I feed all my birds in a hopper. Every day, my birds are fed at three p.m. In the beginning of the week, I feed them a light mixture (barley, maple seeds, safflower seeds, etc.), and gradually make it heavier by the end of the week. (King corn, maple seeds, vetch, etc.)

How do you train your birds-in a flock or single toss ? Do you use a training truck, or train them yourself?
When I train, I let them go in teams of seven. I train them myself, on the way to work, and on weekends. My wife (when visiting Grandma in Pennsylvania), takes them to the 100-mile station at least once before racing season.

Is there any kind of health program you follow regularly? If so, explain it to us. How do you medicate and for what reason ?
I basically use the Joe Rotundo program of medication as outlined in his book. I find it to be very good. I also use Red Cell (one tablespoon to one gallon of water.), and herbal tea with electrolytes in the water on return from a race or long toss.

Do you have a regular training schedule to take the birds down the road or do you fly the loft regularly ? Explain.
I fly the birds around the house-one hour to one and one-half hours-two weeks before training. Once they are on the road, they are almost never flown around the loft, except just before shipping for race day.

How often do you race a champion bird ? How about the rest of the team ?
Depending on the condition of the skin color around the keel, I might rest them one to two weeks. This goes for all the birds-champion and the others.

Do you believe in bird entry limits ? Do you believe in bird clocking limits ? How do you select your breeding pairs ? Have you any advice for new flyers ? For advanced flyers ?
There should be no entry or clocking limits. Only birds that win for me, which perform well, can breed. I would say to new flyers to try and get winning birds from your area. For advanced flyers, I would say keep the sport going, and always advise and help the new flyers.

Is there a flyer, breeder, or book that has helped you become a better pigeon flyer ? Do you have any kind of goals in the sport ? Compose a list of awards you have received at the club, combine, and national level.
The aforementioned Joe Rotundo’s book has helped me immensely. My goals are to compete with as many flyers as possible, and to do well.

My diplomas are too numerous to mention. Specifically, I have received the following:

• Second Place Overall Young Bird Average Speed (1985)
• Second Place Special Young Bird Average Speed (1991)
• First Place-300 mile Old Bird Derby race-Eastern Long Island Club (1991)-50 lofts participating
• Second Place-Special Young Bird Average Speed-Huntington Club (1992)

     Plus, many other awards for individual birds over the years, between 1985 and 1997.