My connection with pandas goes back to my days on a TV show in the mid-1980s, when I was the first Western TV reporter permitted to film a special unit caring for pandas rescued from starvation in the wild.

In the mid-1970s he made a double-escapement watch for Mr Clutton which, over 32 days, lost less than a second.

The circuit is more known for its varied terrain than its difficulty, and while some days can be a challenge, each day can be completed by mid-afternoon.