The hard work starts tomorrow...
Being here myself last year, I can vouch for the players when they express how tough the pre-season schedule was in Obertraun 12 months ago. That hard work will begin on Sunday morning - 6.30am to be precise (5.30am UK time) and will involve as many as four sessions per day over a 12 hour spell.
The journey to get here...
Both sets of journeys endured delays and that was the key word used throughout Saturday.
Nathan Stanton and myself set off from Glanford Park on Friday, later picking up Kev Hornsby and negotiating a trip to Dover, a ferry to Calais and then a ride to Metz where day one ended. Day two began at 7am and ended just over 12 hours later, arriving in Obertraun around three hours after the anticipated schedule.
For us, it was once again a Mercedes Sprinter van, over 1,000 miles to travel and around 18 hours on the road (without delays!). For the players it was a plane from Manchester airport to Munich, before a bus journey to the complex. Both experienced delays.
With just enough time to unload before the players and coaching staff arrived, everyone soon refamiliarised themselves with their surroundings following the visit a year ago.
No rest for the wicked...
Minutes after arrival, everyone changed from casual to training kit. After a quick bite to eat, it was out on the bikes for around 30 minutes to loosen the muscles after a day of travelling. Around 6km was covered in that time.
That's just a taste of what is to come though, with the players up at the crack of dawn to do it all again, before getting down to the training sessions within the complex.
The coverage...
I'll be following them every step of the way during the tour. Keep an eye on the official website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, iFollow Iron and more for up to date coverage of how the squad are getting on as preparations heat up for the 2017-18 campaign.