I hate flat tires...
So I was out on my Torpado today. Rode to the top of my favorite local hill...doing sprints up it.
On my way home (3 miles out), sitting up riding and getting a drink...CLUNK, PSSS, PSSS, PSSS, PSSS...rear tire goes flat. I hit something, don't know what...I looked around and didn't see anything. Luckily my personal savior (my wife) came and got me...so I could fix tire at home. Just thought I'd share... http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/a...A60F41B425.jpg |
Bummer about the flat.
Your problem is, your bike and the tires aren't C&V enough. Proper gumwalls wouldn't have had this problem. :D You could have hit a chunk of metal, glass, or lots of other things. It really doesn't matter, does it? Check for a cut in the casing though. |
Seems to me you were hit by a torpado. ahem.
Whilst cycling over well travelled bike paths in Seattle, glass and debris strewn, it seems to me the Cascade bicycle club should buy a 4 foot wide mini street sweeper. People could donate to get it and run it. One sweep in the Spring and Fall would go a long way to reduce flats. I am going out on saturday on my Pasela PT's 32mm to see how they do in gravel. Taking a tube and patch kit and Park tire boot. |
i don't mind a flat. it's one of the few times i talk to other cyclists. they always slow and ask if i've got it.
solidarity. |
In West Texas where I think the "goat head " is the state flower, we use liners. Best $10.00 I've ever spent!
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Originally Posted by Ex Pres
(Post 16992853)
I've had a rash of flats recently, and it seems they're partially due to old tubes.
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Sorry to hear about your Ridus Interruptus.
I had a huge pile of used inner tubes I have held on to in a big ol' Coca Cola crate. While loading the car of my many tubes during this fast move to the coast, I was grabbing only the ones that seem to still have air in them. Thought that would indicate good- to- go. Looking at one of these for a size though, when I pinched the side flat I noticed a crack in the crease. Went back and did the same to many of them and found most were ready to disintergrate. Would have been short rides on them ! wound up leaving most of them there. I have lived and learned. |
I had a wickedly bad stretch of flats a few years ago. I was getting punctures, pinch flats, rim strip issues, defective valves, you name it. I don't even want to talk about it for fear of angering the flat tire gods again. But it appears that I served my penance and my luck has improved. I don't think I've had more than a dozen flats this year. Knock on wood.
We've been married 21 years and I have yet to call my wife to come pick me up from a ride. I'm sure she wouldn't mind, but I'd rather get home a little late with dirty hands than to call the sag wagon. Again, knock on wood. |
I don't think I've had more than a dozen flats this year. Knck on wood. or maybe you bike through gaza? |
I'm getting better at carrying spare tubes AND a patch kit these days. Just a few 4- and 5-mile walks home will learn ya' real good on that.
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Originally Posted by rhm
(Post 16993979)
We've been married 21 years and I have yet to call my wife to come pick me up from a ride. I'm sure she wouldn't mind, but I'd rather get home a little late with dirty hands than to call the sag wagon. Again, knock on wood.
Originally Posted by Lascauxcaveman
(Post 16996171)
I'm getting better at carrying spare tubes AND a patch kit these days. Just a few 4- and 5-mile walks home will learn ya' real good on that.
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Originally Posted by eschlwc
(Post 16993999)
that sounds like either a helluva lot of riding or really terrible luck.
... Flat tires are a part of riding a bicycle. Get used to it, get good at fixing them, and forget about it. I'm sure I hate them as much as the next guy, but I rarely let a flat tire ruin a ride. |
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http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=396698
My 'universal' seat bag has both 26" and 700c powdered tubes in plastic bags, a patch kit, 2 tire tools, allen wrenches, small crescent, a Ritchey combo tool w/chain breaker and a shop towel with a Blackburn Air Stik slung under it. Easily swapped to the other bikes. |
Be glad you didn't flat an expensive Challenge Parigi-Roubaix tubular like I did last night. I plan to bust out the needle & thread tonight while watching a baseball game. It was my first flat in about 2,500 miles, so I can't complain. Although repairing tubulars can be a hassle, I find I get fewer flats than on clinchers--no pinch flats, no basetape issues, no tube installation snafus.
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I know purists might frown, but does the sealant like the one in the link below work, at least for a quick getaway?
Hutchinson Fast'air Inflator/Sealer *ORMD* Fast Air [3248382044763] - $12.00 Velomine.com : Worldwide Bicycle Shop, fixed gear track bike wheelsets campagnolo super record vintage bike |
Out here in goat head land, they mowed the bike trails a few weeks ago and I got stung 4 times in 4 days. The City has since "swept" the path and I've been good so far.
LBS recommended FlatAttack tire sealant. I got the messy, PITA, bottle and finessed it into my Presta tubes, but you can buy pre-loaded tubes in popular sizes. Yeah, it/they add weight, but the weight is becoming less of a concern vs. flat-fixin'. Thats the very reason I ditched the cute little, lightweight mini-pump in favor of a full size frame pump. 200 strokes to get to 80psi in a 700 x 23? Really? |
At the start of the Vancouver Bike Rave, a pretty young girl on a decorated cruiser got a flat. Someone in my group pointed her in my direction because I was showing off my new Lezyne pump earlier. Turned out it was an led light that screws onto a Schrader valve stem that was depressing the core. A quick air up and a free glo-stick and she was on her way. I received a peck on the cheek and a hug for my troubles.
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Try This
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Not meaning to sound rude , but first thing to do is to get rid of those Michelin Dynamics , read the reviews on them ,Heres my answer ,VITTORIA RUBINO :D with Bell tubes from WalMart , yes I said Bell tubes from WalMart !
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Originally Posted by Bledfor Days
(Post 16997689)
At the start of the Vancouver Bike Rave...
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Rented a bike yesterday from Epic Sports in Bismarck ND, a pretty nice Specialized Roubaix. Not overly fond of Sora, but generally speaking not a bad road bike. Did 40-ish miles up to Milepost 100 on the Lewis & Clark 1804, spent some time at Double Ditch (look it up, pretty cool place), then back down to Mandan. Five miles out from the store got a rear flat, luckily I had my own saddle bag with me and was able to replace the tube in a jiffy. Was some small piece of very fine wire/metal that had worked its way thru the casing and into the tube. Where does that crap come from? Anyhow, the shop was the recipient of a new tube on their rental bike and I had an excellent day. Good thing, too, as Mrs. Doc was in meetings all day and wouldn't have been able to come get me...
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Originally Posted by texastwister
(Post 16998179)
Not meaning to sound rude , but first thing to do is to get rid of those Michelin Dynamics , read the reviews on them ,Heres my answer ,VITTORIA RUBINO :D with Bell tubes from WalMart , yes I said Bell tubes from WalMart !
On my LeMond I use Continental Grand Prix Four Seasons and have been real happy with them. Time to get a new set.... |
Originally Posted by gaucho777
(Post 16998543)
Don't take this personally, but "Bike Rave" sounds like a bad idea.
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trust me, your wife is more pissed off about it than you
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Originally Posted by Essthreetee
(Post 16992454)
So I was out on my Torpado today. ...
http://i929.photobucket.com/albums/a...A60F41B425.jpg |
Originally Posted by Ed.
(Post 17000510)
That does it. I have to drag my Torpado out, blow off the cobwebs and pose her in front of the garage door for a photo, even if she is sans chain...
Out this neck of the woods, if there is excessive debris on the highway a phone call to highway maintenance will send a sweeper truck to make it bicycle friendly again. Yeah, those microscopic pieces of wire, I hate them. My Gatorskins seem to be a tight fit on my Campagnolo rims, making flat changing a PITA. From what I'm reading on this forum the Vittorio's might be an easier fit. |
lovely
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Originally Posted by Ed.
(Post 17000510)
That does it. I have to drag my Torpado out, blow off the cobwebs and pose her in front of the garage door for a photo, even if she is sans chain...
I wish I could find a shorter version of the stock pantographed stem, and a longer version of the pantographed seatpost. |
Okay, I admit it, I have been disrespectful of the Flat Tire Gods and I deserved my punishment. But I have done my penance. Since making my irreverent post I have used up four patches on a single tube. I am humbled. I have learned my lesson. No more flats, please.
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Originally Posted by rhm
(Post 16993979)
We've been married 21 years and I have yet to call my wife to come pick me up from a ride. I'm sure she wouldn't mind, but I'd rather get home a little late with dirty hands than to call the sag wagon. Again, knock on wood.
Someone who rides often complained that she gets a lot of flats on her old English 3-speed and it's annoying. I asked her how often. She said something like three times in four years. I suppressed my laughter, and I said she's doing very well. If tires were more puncture-resistant, they'd be no fun to ride. |
I had a bout with bad tubes and tires. I turned it into a good opportunity to move onto another bike :thumb:.
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