Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - tire question

I rode saturday in the Tour de Cure in springfield tn and the bike did fine for 29 miles and then the rear tire blew out. i just had the lbs put a new specialized armadillo on the rear 3 weeks ago. i have only rode the bike 150 miles or so since installing the new tire and tube due to me having bronchitis for the last 3-4 weeks. i have had flats before but never one just blow with no warning. i was on flat ground after just going down a little hill i went through a little gravel at the bottom but the tire blew 100 yards past the gravel. i had the tire @ 125psi and i weighed in @ 321 that morning.

any thoughts? i am going to go to the lbs tonight and see if they will warranty the tire.

How did the tire fail?

How did the tire fail?

i am not sure the tube blew out the side from under the tire sort of like when you install one wrong. it made a tear about 6 inch in the tube.

The tire itself did rip apart?

The tire itself did rip apart?

no only the tube ripped but i found a bad spot on the sidewall of the tire but it was 180 degrees from where the tube came out.

It sounds like the tire/tube was installed incorrectly but I'm having a tough time following your explanation.

Either the tube was pinched between the tire and rim, the tire wasn't set in the rim correctly and slipped off (or the tire is too big for the rim from a manufacturer defect,) or the tire had was overloaded and forced itself off the rim.

Tubes only explode when they're no longer confined by the tire in some form, otherwise they make a whooshing sound.

Either the tube was pinched between the tire and rim, the tire wasn't set in the rim correctly and slipped off (or the tire is too big for the rim from a manufacturer defect,) or the tire had was overloaded and forced itself off the rim.


if it was installed incorrectly i would not think i could get 150-200 miles on it before failure.



Tubes only explode when they're no longer confined by the tire in some form, otherwise they make a whooshing sound.

this one did not whoosh it sounded like a shot gun.

if it was installed incorrectly i would not think i could get 150-200 miles on it before failure

Right. But you're telling us the tube failed (possibly due to the tire coming off the rim?), not the tire. I think?

I am pretty sure it was not the tires fault, but an incorrect installation. I did produce such an explosion once myself, although I have no clue what I did wrong. My tire was fine afterwards.

talked to the lbs and he thinks the tire popped because of over inflation. it was 55 degrees when i aired up and 85 when the tire popped.the temp may have caused the tire pressure to raise to the point it let go. he did warranty the tire due to the cut in the side wall neither of us could tell if it was a defect or happened when the tire went flat. he said he had some trouble with the specialized armadillos and replaced it with a bontrager race lite hard case. he is about my size and said he liked the ride better but not to inflate over 115 so i guess we will see what happens.

if it was installed incorrectly i would not think i could get 150-200 miles on it before failure.


this one did not whoosh it sounded like a shot gun.

Yup on occasion it will last that long before the shotgun goes bang. Rarely, but it does happen. Other times it goes bang anywhere from 2 to 10 minutes after you inflate the tire to full pressure.

-- Mike

talked to the lbs and he thinks the tire popped because of over inflation. it was 55 degrees when i aired up and 85 when the tire popped.the temp may have caused the tire pressure to raise to the point it let go.


Yup on occasion it will last that long before the shotgun goes bang. Rarely, but it does happen. Other times it goes bang anywhere from 2 to 10 minutes after you inflate the tire to full pressure.

Long time ago I pumped up tires in the cool basement. About five minutes down the road in the hot sun the rear tube blew.

After that I got a pump with a gauge.

It does sound like a classic case of over-inflation: pressure causes tube to separate tire bead from rim, tube section bulges through, then pinches, causing a long cut and explosive bang.