Well, it's the morning of stage one of the 2024 tour of Britain men.

I'm standing in a lovely autumnal.

What other time is it too early to say autumnal?

Late summer, let's still call it late summer. Late summer sunshine in the cobbled main town square in Kelso looking at the old town hall.

There are diagonal lines of bunting, fluttering in the light breeze.

It's a lovely morning here.

Standing outside the Cross Keys Hotel where I and David and a lot of the other crew stayed last night which is the grand big hotel that overlooks this square and I have to say it was a lovely hotel very nice staff.

I had I was very lucky I had a room with a four-post of bed and it overlooked

the square. The only thing I would say, and I literally have stepped out straight into the finish line of the tour of Britain.

The only thing I would say is that the crew who builds the podium and the barriers and all the finish line and start line because it starts and finishes here

gubbins they have a heck of a job and they do start working

at two o'clock in the morning, something like that.

So the clattering and the good-natured shouting began very early,

so I have had, like a lot of other people in Kelso,

who are fortunate enough to live in the middle of the town.

I've had limited sleep.

Put it that way.

So it's lovely to be as close to the tour of Britain as I have spent the night, but

it would have also been quite nice to have a bit of distance as

well if you see what I mean but it's amazing so as I'm sure we will reflect on over

the weeks of come Kelso is the hometown of Oscar Only, he made his debut

at the Tour of France just a few short weeks ago and every shop pretty much in the town centre has got some sort of reference or homage to their

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