23-Jun-1996 - Day 6 - Redbrook to Clunton

• Day's Distance:  61.36 Miles
• Total Distance:  317.98 Miles
• Time:  5 Hrs 46 Mins
• Average Speed:  10.6 Miles/Hr
• Max Speed:  40.0 Miles/Hr
• Punctures:  0

After a very hearty breakfast of cereal, fruit juice, egg, bacon, mushrooms and toast I set off.  I quickly reached Monmouth after leaving the beauty of the Wye Valley.  After cycling through the centre of Monmouth I saw a crowd of cyclists all gathered at the side of the road and I guessed by the look of them there must be a club event taking place that day.
Leaving the town I realised I was on the wrong road and so turned round and headed back through the cyclists and through the centre, finally picking up the right road.  Passing through some beautiful countryside of gently rolling hills and lush farmland I was making slow progress up one hill when a couple of cyclists passed me as they came down.  As they did they said I should be heading for Abergevanny where the national championships were taking place.  I then realised that the gathering at Monmouth must have been the enthusiasts coming to watch the competitors and the officials were there to monitor the stage point.  I did not turn round and head back.

After yesterdays marathon run I decided to stop early and so headed for the next camp-site shown on the map, fortunately on the road I was on.  I reached the crossroads where the map showed the camp-site to be and there, on the opposite side of the road was a large overgrown field and a weather worn sign with the word "Campsite" barely legible.  There was no sign of life, no sign of facilities and so I checked the map and headed for the next one indicated.

 A little off the beaten track, but not too far out of my way, I arrived at Clunton and quickly found the camp-site.  There, a man dressed all in white, with white, close cropped hair showed me where I could stay.  After talking with him and some of the guests, they soon knew I was on a charity bike ride.  Ed, the all in white owner of the camp-site declared that I could stay there for free as he used to swim for the British Heart Foundation in his younger days.

As I was putting the tent up a young boy came up and gave me five pounds.  A donation from the other campers I had been talking to.

That evening I walked to the local pub and had a wonderful steak chasseur.  While there I started talking to another of the campers who was a control desk manager for the police force at Paisley near Glasgow.  As well as recounting the horrific events that regularly took place as part of his job, he told me he was an archer and had been in the British Team, but family commitments prevented him from putting in the required training now.  This was the reason he came to this quiet corner of the country.  It seems that Ed and his wife are serious archery judges, his wife in fact being so senior will spend most of her August in Atlanta for the Olympics.  The camp-site was just a sideline for what was, in fact, a special archery centre with fields for various types of archery events.

As well as a good evenings conversation, he also refused to allow me to buy a drink, either for him or for myself, because of me cycling for charity.  Such spontaneous generosity is truly touching.  Then to top everything, the pub landlord gave me five pounds to donate to the BHF.

Route Map (Aproximate)
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