Hybrid Bicycles - High speed flat, what to expect?

Hey guys, its my first month biking and I found myself going down a hill at around 40mph today on my hybrid. It got me thinking, what would happen if I hit a nail or screw on the front tire at that speed?

Do bike tires 'blow out' or are they generally slow leaks? Down a hill + blow out + 40mph sounds like it'd be a real bad day, but having never had a flat before, I'm just guessing.

Opinions?

My bike has 32mm wide tires at 110psi, if it matters.

I had a 700 X 35 Blow Out at 17 mph on the front wheel.

It was like a shotgun blast, BOOM.
Coasted to a stop the tire was just about off the rim.

The Tube:

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/Tire%20Repairs/BlowOut7722miles.jpg

"My bike has 32mm wide tires at 110psi, if it matters"

Ouch - I am hijacking your thread but 110 psi in a 32 mm tire? Either you are pretty big or your bike rides really rough. Unless you have a big load on the bike you could probably drop those to 95 rear, 85 front and have a much nicer ride and probably slightly less chance of a flat.

My bike has 32mm wide tires at 110psi, if it matters.

I've never had a blow out so can't answer that part, but...Unless you are a really, really heavy guy, you should be running much, much lower tire pressure than that with 32mm tires.

edit: ha! guess we had the same comment at the same time!

10 wheels, how stable was it at 17mph? I think 17mph i could probably handle whatever, but 25-30mph or more could get hairy...what do you think?

Al Criner, the tire says "inflate to 110psi" on the side, so I do. I figure the less rolling resistance the better. I'm 165lbs, and mostly ride paved paths or streets that are pretty smooth.

10 wheels, how stable was it at 17mph? I think 17mph i could probably handle whatever, but 25-30mph or more could get hairy...what do you think?

Al Criner, the tire says "inflate to 110psi" on the side, so I do. I figure the less rolling resistance the better. I'm 165lbs, and mostly ride paved paths or streets that are pretty smooth.

It was very hairy at 17 mph, You don't want to use the brakes.

The tube had been on the wheel for four days, about 300 miles before it blew.
Don't know the cause.

I had a blowout very similar to 10 Wheels when I was in college. Downhill at a speed around 20. I was able to control it, but it was pretty close to a total wipeout in traffic. You hear the bang and as time slows to a crawl, your steering control and directional stability goes away. After that and a leaf-induced crash in the Autumn, I stopped trying to set speed records on hills.

I've never had a blowout instead of a slow leak. For which I'm very grateful.

I have had a front blowout and the other at various times. One time, I lost a front going around a corner at >25mph, (in the rain, no less). I slid out and fell hard on my side. I fell so fast, that I still had my hands on the bar when I came to a stop. The fall felt like one of those hard falls you have when you go ice skating for the first time.

... I fell so fast, that I still had my hands on the bar when I came to a stop. The fall felt like one of those hard falls you have when you go ice skating for the first time.

good way to fall. probably saved a broken arm or wrist.

So far I've only had slow leaks while riding, knock on wood, but I've had a few blowouts when mounting tires. The last one was in my mud room, which is about 12x8 feet. Man - that was loud! My ears were ringing all night.