Commuting - Got too excited :(

I've been trying to get my wife into bicycle commuting. She works less than three miles from where we live and the roads between are lightly traveled. She didn't really grow up riding bikes so she has apprehension sharing roads. I've tried being firm, begging, incentives and everything. What worked was letting it be, because today she decided to ride. But, she wanted me to ride with her, for support. :love: :D

I got so excited to leave that I forgot that I had put my seat-pack on her bike (cause I ride it for groceries.) So, about 500 yards after I headed back for home, I got a flat! Of course.:twitchy: So, in an effort to not make biking look like a hassle to my wife, I walked the almost three miles home, in the heat. I stopped at a cemetery on the way to get some water and shade. But, I made it. And if I can help it, she'll never know.

She's riding! :D

Buy more flat supplies. She'll quit the day she gets a flat she can't change. Leave a little sheet with her explaining how to change a flat, just tell her it's easy and pack it in there. If she sounds worried remind her how to change a flat on a car.

Oh, I plan on showing her how to change a flat once she gets home. I just don't want her to know that I had to walk that far.

It turns out that my tire is fubar. It has a nasty tear in the rubber that makes it impossible to hold the tube. So, new tires for me. :D Got some blue tires to match my blue bike. I'm almost a complete poser. So close!

We tend to either fit a bike with its own repair stuff, or have a saddle bag with key things that goes with us.

The Bell pump with gauge at WalMart I got has a mount with irons & patches. It works fine. That's an easy solution for a commuter.

My wife learned flat repair no problem. She's done it for many people on group rides. Some of the other stuff proves a little baffling for her!

Unfortunately, flats are one of those things that seems to get worse each time it happens, so no matter how good you get at repairing them, the next one will pose a new hassle.

In the midwest, we're experiencing quite the heat wave. The recent flooding has also contributed to a huge mosquito population. A few nights ago, I got a flat. I hadn't anticipated that once motionless I would be a feast for the little buggers. I patched the tube in record time, all the while slapping mosquitos. Unfortunately, in my haste, I created a pinch flat, requiring me to replace the tube. By the end, I was covered in welts.

Normally, I slather on sunblock before I ride. Now I guess I'll have to do bug spray too. And I hate the smell of both.

I suppose that experience wasn't as bad as when I got a nighttime flat in freezing rain.

I still have a pump bottle of 100% DEET on my bike. There's a good reason that I haven't taken it off!

Get some gatorskins and slime filled tubes
punctures will be rare and far between

Tell her! She'll love you for being honest and vulnerable.