Who would have thought it? After years of garish green and orange, Belfast has embraced Pink. No, Martin and Peter haven’t announced their Civil Partnership. This week sees the first two stages of the Giro D’Italia. There now follows the Undaunted ever so slightly unofficial guide to the Giro.

1. Barriers are there for a reason

When you watch cycling on the telly, you don’t really get the sense of speed. Undaunted learned this the hard way. It was during one of those Tours of Ireland and the peloton was going through the Main St in Swords. Undaunted placed himself right behind the barrier but still wanted to see more so a little lean came to mind. Oh dear. There might have been 10. There might have been 100 but boy did they move fast. Thankfully my brother saw them before I did and dragged me back an inch before possible decapitation.

Don’t let that put you off. To see a group of cyclists pushing both their machines and themselves to the limit is something to behold.

2. C’mon you boys in green

Philip Deignan, Dan Martin and Nicolas Roche are all flying the flag for Ireland. The kissing cousins of Roche and Martin have a real chance of getting into the top five or six in the whole race so we can party for them.

So there you go. Forget the road closures, the diversions and the crowds. It’s a world class FREE event that you will be able to say...

3. Get there early

It’s not just about the race. On one of Undaunted’s infamous sojourns, I bumped into a mid-sized Italian town getting ready for the stage to come through. The race was was six hours away but you could really feel the buzz. There were food stalls. There was street entertainers. There was official merchandising. As it is Italy, the clothing is a bit pricey but you are guaranteed quality as this fetching picture shows.

Undaunted's Steve dons his Giro d'Italia wares from two years ago

Pick your spot. Take a picnic. Enjoy the day.

4. It's free

It’s a world class FREE event. These are athletes at the top of their game. This is like having the World Cup in Ireland but you don’t need to pay admission fees. Just your own little spot on the route.  In the hours before the race there is a cavalcade of sponsors and team cars. They also have goody bags to give away for FREE. What could go wrong?

Add up all four reasons and I can guarantee in years to come, you will be able to say... I was there. Have a great weekend.