And now it's the turn of the old blokes, to express their words of wisdom before the off. Plus, a natty picture of Ric, to show he has all the kit and is raring to go.

Wave
Four days to go. Can’t believe that in March I was thinking of packing it all in because of a debilitating neck injury. Bike has just been picked up for overland transfer. I was down to just 10 hours’ training last week - doesn’t seem enough. And still eating the same amount - hope I don’t put on weight. Lots of random thoughts about nutrition plan, packing list, race plan, race weekend checklist - need to write it all down to declutter my brain and make sure nothing is overlooked. Current forecast is 29 degrees C and sunny - pretty much as expected but, though it could change. Mild apprehension already - real nerves will kick in when I get off the plane in Munich on Thursday.

Ric
A maelstrom of emotions… thoughts of crossing that finish line and almost certainly tears of joy, relief, and amazing feeling of collective achievement with the team… but then myriad thoughts of what can I do/ should I do during the race, to minimise something going wrong, and to maximise body performance…. and then working hard to banish thoughts of the uncontrollables that could throw a spanner in the works…. But above all, there’s a building excitement and eagerness to get to that start line. Butterflies are ready to spring into action….. probably starting when 5 of us (+Amy) meet at LHR on Thursday afternoon…