Commuting - Flat frequency experience

What a bummer. Start out of driveway and second flat in less than 500 miles. Naturally too late to fix flat and get to work on time. Driving was a nuisance. Only upside was having a radio.

How often do you have flats? I was thinking of changing tires anyway. I could go to armidillos if needed. I'm real old school, daily bike riding and maybe one flat every year or two. Not used to this increased frequency of flats.

So, longwinded start. How often do you have flats, on the average. See poll.

thanks

Who even wants to tempt fate by answering?

Over 3600 miles and NO flat!!!!!! :rolleyes:
Maybe tomorrow :(

See response here from last week's poll :).... http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=113489

No flats for the first 700 hundred miles. Then Winter rolled around and I got one in the front, and 250 miles later, another in the rear. After that it was one flat after another. Sometimes I could barely go 10 miles without a flat but they were never exactly in the same place and it was always caused by some kind of road debris. The only consistent factor was the ground was always wet. I finally switched to Armadillos in early May, nearly 700 miles ago, and (knock on wood) haven't had a flat since.

See response here from last week's poll :).... http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=113489

thanks. It's only June and I'm already at 36%. It's going to be a flat year.

Are the performance tubes a bad buy?

thanks. It's only June and I'm already at 36%. It's going to be a flat year.

Are the performance tubes a bad buy?
Performance tubes work well for me.

If I discuss this, I will flat tonite. I voted but I ain't talking.

Does it count as a flat if you wake up in the morning and find your tire soft from a very slow leak and patch it up before heading out for the day? If this doesn't count I haven't had a flat in 4600 miles.

Al

Not if you catch it before heading out. I leaned on bike, looked ok, jumped on and flat. Ugh.

I'm curious to take the tire apart tonight and see what the problem is. Last time it was too much pressure, but pressure was ok yesterday, so....

For a flat frequency experience, I recommend WAMM X1 speakers:

http://www.wilsonaudio.com/products/x1/index.html

thanks. It's only June and I'm already at 36%. It's going to be a flat year.

Are the performance tubes a bad buy?

I've used Performance UltraLite and LunarLite tubes for years. No problems ever that were the fault of the tube.

SS

I refuse to answer. I will not tempt the evil flat fairies.

I chucked a set of 26" Conti Sport Contacts on, they came with a 1 year no-flats guarantee and a set of tubes. They are pretty quick too, I like them a lot. Never had a flat yet on my commuter, loads on my roadie.

I commute on really dirty urban/suburban roads in San Jose, CA and was averaging three flats a week on my 700-23C tires. Put in some Mr. Tuffy tire liners and only one "flat" in ~2000mi since, due to a cut in the sidewall (I noticed the tube bulging through at the end of a commute). When I took that tire off there were more than 20 punchures in the tread, but the Mr. Tuffy had held out!

Interesting, may try mr tuffy. It was a small spring, like a ball point ink spring that pointed out and entered the tube. Naturally I pinched one of my two tubes. So no spare this week. Ugh. I tried patching but patch kits work poorly at best. I don't know which is a better buy kevler or armadillo type tires or tire liners. Only good thing out of this was I was underinflating tires. Only about 55, which is minimum. Now up to normal 70 psi. 87 is max, but thought it would be safer to be below the max. Very strange that one tire took pressure easily and other was a pain. Hope that doesn't mean I will have problems with it.

I KNEW I shouldn't vote in this poll!!! ARGH! Got a flat this morning!!! And the mini-airpump that I ordered still hasn't come in! Had to walk my bike 4 miles to work.

I went just over 3700 miles before my most recent flat 2 weeks ago. I switched to a used roadie I just bought, and have ~150 miles on it from commuting with 700x25 tires. I'm this one lasts as long.

I KNEW I shouldn't vote in this poll!!! ARGH! Got a flat this morning!!! And the mini-airpump that I ordered still hasn't come in! Had to walk my bike 4 miles to work.

I got my first flat in 1 1/2 years this morning. I had all the tools I needed, but I was still late for work. These polls are evil.

The only time I had a flat since I started riding a bike again (which was last fall) was in late November when I broke my valve stem by using a cheap ass schwinn pump of my neighbors.
other than that I have not had a flat
and really only remember having 2 when I was a kid

Took my bike to my LBS to get the flat fixed (still waiting for my mini-pump to show up). Turns out the side wall of my Bontrager Connection 26x1.95 wheels where it meets the rim had worn through and the tube got pinched open. I love my LBS because they hooked my up with a Tioga Extreme XG 26x2.1 tire for free. Don't know how good those tires are, but its cool that they took care of me.

If you live in Jax, make sure that you visit Bicycles, Etc. (http://www.bicyclesetc.net) They always take good care of me.

All this talk of flats, and I've had a single flat in all my life - back when I was 10 (15 years ago). Granted, I just recently started riding seriously again, but I've had no flats in 800 miles.

Does it count as a flat if you wake up in the morning and find your tire soft from a very slow leak and patch it up before heading out for the day? If this doesn't count I haven't had a flat in 4600 miles.

Al
Hah, I've had such a flat for about 2 months :) I just pump it up every day :p Of course I carry a pump and patch kit in case it suddenly worsens. I really should just replace that darn tube (the leak is so slow I can't find it even with the tube completely removed)

The average works out to be once every 1300 miles. So far I've had 2 punctures in about the same mileage. I've just started deflating the tires each week and picking out any bits of glass. Usually find at least one in each tire. They're real tiny but I guess would eventually work their way through

so i guess this had to happen to someone... i voted on here yesterday. i picked the least frequent choice and right after i thought "i shouldn't have done that..." sure enough, my commute home today ended with a nice walk at the end because i got a flat. i vow i will never discuss getting flats ever again.

Ok I posted on this thread and received my first flat in a year and a half. I posted a second time on this cursed thread and my chain broke yesterday. Now that I am posting once again I expect my bottom bracket to explode.

... Now that I am posting once again I expect my bottom bracket to explode.
That pretty much happened to me once!!! The spindle broke in half and the cups were seized up ... the shop had to keep in for days while they figured out how to drill it out.

Cost me so much that I decided to learn how to fix my own darn bike.

I can reply here, cuz I don't think it can get any worse and you don't have an option with a high enough frequency. My experience, a flat about every 20-40 miles. Always on the front and in different places.

I can reply here, cuz I don't think it can get any worse and you don't have an option with a high enough frequency. My experience, a flat about every 20-40 miles. Always on the front and in different places.

:eek: I don't think I'd be able to tolerate that.

Are they punctures or pinch flats? If they're pinches, you could do a lot of good by inflating the tire more. If they're punctures, stop riding over that barbed wire. ;)

:eek: I don't think I'd be able to tolerat that.

Are they punctures or pinch flats? If they're pinches, you could do a lot of good by inflating the tire more. If they're punctures, stop riding over that barbed wire. ;)

Ya, it's really agravating and I have yet to figure out how to stop it. I haven't tried goo yet, may be my only options. Never have had snake bites, I run my tires at max pressure (100 psi). Holes are usually various places rim side of tube, I have relatively new rim tape that is in good condition. No good explanation.

I think I'm just going to use it as an excuse to replace a 30 year old lugged steel Le Tour with a nice new Cannondale.