I ask the generous members of Bike Forums to critique my flat fixing speech. Thanks to all from before. I need any responses ASAP.

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Did you know that more than sixty percent of people who ride bikes do not know how to repair a puncture in a tire? You may call this repairing a flat. It is required more often than any other type of repair you can do on a bike. Everyone who rides a bike, even Lance Armstrong, should know how to fix one. Although it sounds pretty hard, in reality, once you do it a couple of times it almost becomes second nature. It is really pretty simple. There are twelve steps to fixing your tire.

The first step is to take the wheel off the bike. This is easily performed on most bikes with caliper brakes by opening the “quick release” lever. The next step is to take the tire off the wheel. To do this you should pull the bead off the rim. In non-cycling jargon that means that you need to pull the tire and tube out of the metal rim on your wheel. You might need plastic tire levers to be able to take it off. The third step is to take the tube off. The tube is underneath the tire and will usually be limp and sagging, like a popped balloon, because it was punctured.

The fourth step is a bit strange. You are supposed to put air in your tube and put it under water to find the bubbles. Where the bubbles are is generally where the puncture occurred. However often you might be stuck on the side of the road with no water in sight. If you are in this type of situation, it is easiest to spritz water on the tire from a water bottle and then squeeze the tire to see where it fizzes. Repeat this procedure on each section of the tube. Once you find the hole see how big it is. If the hole isn't too big patch it using the patch kit. The patch looks like a big band-aid. If the hole is too big, replace the entire tube rather that attempting to patch it.

The next step is very important. Once you have done that check the location of the puncture on the tire to make sure there is not anything that could pop the tube again. Be sure to check the whole inside of the tire. This last step is absolutely crucial and could screw up the whole repair if you don’t do it. Next put the tire and the tube half on. With the tube partially inflated, put the valve of the tube inside the hole of the tire. Then you stuff the tube back into the tire. After that put slightly more air in the tube and then put the tire on all the way. Pump the wheel up to the maximum pressure, and then you are set to put the wheel back on your bike.

Although flats happen once in a blue moon, it is useful to know how to repair one. You may never know when this information could help you. These twelve steps may seem like a lot of information, but in reality I’ve barely scratched the surface.