In the forecast case of a tail wind and warm day, use less or none at all. Should the birds be down on racing weight then, confine them to the loft and feed well. It is quite amazing how much difference a day makes, to either increase or decrease in body weight, or even how much difference morning exercise or withholding of exercise, when attempting to store energy required for racing. The secret with human athletic coaching for big events is knowing when to train or when to rest, in order that the athlete can be sprung into peak condition for the record attempt. I have covered this subject in several articles to date.
Proteins are a certain requirement for the longer, harder, colder races.
Although many might disagree, I found the continental mixtures to be quite worthless for the longer race point feeding, and also over expensive. Three days before basketing, small amounts of peanuts, safflower, hemp and linseed should be given after the main feed, to provide the fat fuel for lift off until the point where the pigeon begins to burn muscle. If everything is balanced correctly then the pigeon will not burn muscle until the last leg of its journey and will make a rapid recovery from the effort once home. The maize provides energy and glycogen, the peas provide easily digested protein and the beans which take a little longer to pass through the birds system provide the fuel in flight, thus delaying the hunger effects for a longer duration of time. Given sound training over short distances, careful preparation and sensibly planned limited inland racing, then well rested before the big event, Channel candidates will negotiate the journey, arriving home in good condition, with quick recovery and be amongst the leaders, barring any intangible or disaster along the way.