Shropshire - the county with a Grand tradition

The great race – billed as the world's greatest steeplechase – is beamed to 40 countries and the 40 runners will be carrying more than £150 million in wagers.

Aintree will again be packed to the rafters and this year's race is buoyed by a feel-good factor. New sponsors, Crabbie's, have boosted the prize fund to £1 million and the gloom of the 2012 fatalities was lifted last April when the newly-modified fences produced an incident-free running.

It is a race that captures the public imagination like no other. Jump racing purists might prefer the Cheltenham Gold Cup, but the National is the people's race.

Its fascination is always felt in Shropshire, a county with a rich racing heritage.

Trainer Steve Brookshaw, who lives near Market Drayton, sent out Lord Gyllene to win in 1997 – the year it was run on a Monday after an IRA bomb threat had forced Aintree to be evacuated.

In 2012 Cosford owner and well known Telford businessman John Hales celebrated his biggest success when his gallant grey Neptune Collonges battled his way to the closest finish in the history of the race.

In fourth place that day – and second last year – was Cappa Bleu, now trained in Wales by Evan Williams but whose chasing skills were honed by the expert hands of Sheila Crow from Hadnall, near Shrewsbury.

Cappa Bleu is missing this time through injury, and Shropshire must look to the county borders for a 2014 representative. That horse is Mountainous, trained at Byton, near Presteigne, by Richard Lee, and part-owned by James and Jean Potter, from Leighton, near Welshpool.

"It is a race I have always wanted to win," said Mr Lee, who has had two previous runners. One of them, Samuel Wilderspin, didn't get very far before falling.

But the other, Travel Over, had a key role in another piece of Aintree history, the 1993 'Race That Never Was'.

Travel Over was the horse caught up in the tapes when a false start was called. Most of the field failed to realise what was going on, continued and the race was declared void.

The National's magic was felt by Mr Hales, the founder of toy firm Golden Bear, at an early age and it has never lost its fascination for him.

When Neptune won, his overwhelming feeling was one of relief that his beloved horse was back safely and heading into a well-earned retirement.

But since then he has watched the film of the race again and again – including several times this week.

"I suppose for me it is ever since my mother took me to see Elizabeth Taylor in the film National Velvet," he explained.

"It is a fantastic sporting event, not just for British people. It captures the imagination of the whole world. After Neptune won in 2012 I was told that 600 million watched the race.

"In terms of media exposure not even the Derby, the Gold Cup or Royal Ascot come close to the National. It is the biggest spectacle in horse racing.

"Forty horses charging down to the first fence – the atmosphere at Aintree is electric and the place will be packed to the rafters," he said. "There is nothing else like it."

The Hales family were divided over Neptune's participation, with wife Pat and daughter Lisa worried about the horse's safety.

"The family was split over it and on the day I was a bag of nerves," said Mr Hales. "When he jumped the last I just thought 'thank God, now we can take him home'.

"Jumping the last he was fourth, he landed in third place and then he took it on the line. That is the magic of the National – over the last quarter of a mile he went down in history."

Ludlow racecourse general manager Bob Davies is a former champion jockey who won the big race himself aboard Lucius in 1978, a horse he was riding for the first time.

"I think it has always been a people's race," he said. "The Grand National is still the race that people most want to win and it is the most valuable on the jumps race calendar.

"It is not necessarily the best horse that wins, there is a bit of luck involved and that adds to its fascination."

Mr Davies won his National when the fences were dauntingly huge. They have now been extensively altered, something he believes was essential.

"It isn't as severe a test as it used to be, but that is understandable in today's world," he said. "It has changed and adapted but it is still good spectacle.

"It is a fine balance and I just hope it is a good day tomorrow with no problems."