There is just one day to go before Gloucestershire takes centre stage in this year’s Tour of Britain and big cycling enthusiast Gerry McGarr is counting down the hours.

The penultimate stage of this year’s high-profile event gets under way in Tewkesbury at 11am tomorrow and 71-year-old McGarr, who has been a member of Gloucester City Cycling Club for 50 years, said: “It will be fantastic, the speed they go is mind-boggling.”

The race, which attracts elite level riders, began in Altrincham on Sunday and will finish in Caerphilly on Sunday afternoon.

“I’m awe-inspired by the top boys,” continued McGarr. “I absolutely love it, I’m mega excited.”

The Gloucestershire stage – the seventh – will finish in Southgate Street in Gloucester soon after 3pm.

“It will be very tactical,” said McGarr. “The best place to watch the race is on a climb or a descent.”

And McGarr has urged cycling fans to look out for one rider in particular.

“Wout van Aert is the one to see, he’s sensational,” said McGarr. “He’s won it before, he’s something else. He’s just awesome, he’s the man.”

The 28-year-old Belgian, who won the race a couple of years ago, rides for Team Jumbo-Visma.

The Gloucestershire stage is just over 170 kilometres long and after leaving Tewkesbury, the riders will head to Bishop’s Cleeve and then up Cleeve Hill before heading across to Winchcombe Hill.

Then they will go out into the Cotswolds, taking in Guiting Power, Andoversford, Cirencester and Tetbury before moving into South Gloucestershire where they will ride through Yate and Wotton-under-Edge.

The ride back towards the finish line will see them head to Dursley and then up Crawley Hill before they go through Stroud and Tuffley, before reaching the finish line in Gloucester.