Misery Needs Company
 

I was driving my old pickup truck home from town this AM in steady mid-40F drizzle on a local Hill Country road when I saw a cyclist on the roadside, rear wheel off and cell-phone in hand. I pulled over and asked the obvious "You OK?"

Hypothermia is no joke, this very fit guy on a local club with lots of experience had flatted and shot both CO2 cartridges into Bexar County's atmosphere with zero effect on his flat. That will not get you home.

He sat with me listening to Steve Earle w/ the heater on full until a friend came out to drag his wet *** home.

Some things here:

1) Always carry a pump, they reliably put air in tires. Bring CO2 also if you feel the need.
b) Carry your 'phone, if someone will come and fetch you in inconvenient remote rural spots at odd hours.
iii) You are next.

-Bandera

I've seen this happen so many times. Even a pump isn't perfect. After having a pump go bum on me at an inconvenient time and place, now I'm much more careful about pump maintenance. Also 2 tubes plus a patch kit. Plus a spare tire if I'm going anywhere interesting. Many places I ride don't have cell coverage.

I also carry a pump, 2 tubes and a patch kit. The pump also allows you to pump up the dead tube to look for the hole if you can't immediately see it so you can pull the offending item out of the tire.

Having a wheezing-no-pressure "pump" that you've schlepped up/down/hill/dale for the last few years while standing in a cold steady drizzle on a remote backroad without cell service would try my better nature.

Pumps, and all systems should be tested at least every season. My 2 favorite Silcas get a wipe of grease of the leather plunger every winter.
It's not a pump if it doesn't inflate.... take some tubes, a patch kit doesn't weigh much......

-Bandera

I carry one tube and two CO2 cartridges. If that doesn't get it done, I've got a cell phone and my wife is usually home.

Having said that, I'll soon end up stuck at the furthest possible point from home and my wife will be sleeping and won't answer the phone.

Good on you for stopping and letting him soak up some warm while he waited for his friend. What you did is the way things should be with all of we cyclist. Well done, sir, well done.

Bill

I'm another obsessive. I carry two tubes, patch kit with unopened glue, 2 CO2 cartridges and a cell phone. I test my pump on at least 1 flat a season. I think my best tube has 3 patches on it.

While you were chatting, did he explain why the CO2 cartridges didn't work?

Get a good pump and test it, CO2 if you care to. Be prepared for more than 1 puncture and don't count on anyone else to get you home.

-Bandera

Dudel,

You know how it is.
Tough for a 4% body fat young stud to admit that he was improperly prepared to someone old enough to be his grandfather.
How would he know I've been cycling long before he was born? It wasn't a topic of conversation, Steve Earle was.
Hypothermia is not be trifled with, been there myself.

-Bandera

Just wondering. The only time I've had problems with CO2 was when I first got it and didn't know what I was doing. No problems since.

As cold as it's been, though, no one should fault him for venting it into the atmosphere.

And it could just as easily been your (or MY) old truck that for whatever reason... stopped. I've owned my old truck for more than a dozen years.... and can't even remember the last time I even saw my spare. Cars and trucks break just like bicycles do.

I am big on being prepared and having back-up gear... and back-up gear to the back-up gear. Whether driving or cycling. But we can never predict when equipment failure, accident/injury, illness, or even criminal assault might leave us in need of help.

I hope everyone takes the time and makes the effort that Bandera did.

I always offer my Silca and patches to anyone I see on the road flatted out. Gives me the excuse to stop for a rest if they ever take me up on it.

What model Silca do you have?

Just one of the old plastic frame pumps that I carry. It gets up to about 80 and that's about it. It'll get me home. Also have the floor pump at home with extra replacement parts.

Excellent advice.

I rarely ever see cyclists on the road but motorists have stopped in bad weather conditions to offer assistance during puncture repair. I also carry one of those folded Mylar emergency blankets in case nothing works and I have to hunker down. They take up very little space.

This. Very light and about the size of two decks of cards.

Me too. I rode for years with CO2 and no pump back up and was never left stranded. I switched when I started using higher volume tires that a 16 gram cartridge won't fill.

Also, before berating anybody for venting CO2 into the atmosphere, where did it come from in the first place?

Number of years ago helped a young fellow who had flatted and was waaaayyyy out of cell phone range. No spare, no kit, nothing. Fortunately we were out in our mini van and were able to take both him and his bike to a nearby town. Nice young man but hadn't realized how remote he would be.

I carry two spare tubes, 3 CO2 cartridges, patch kit and a frame pump. Also carry my cell phone but can't be sure I'll reach someone who can help. The mylar blanket is a great idea. I've got a couple from marathons that I ran that I can pack up quite small and carry in a jersey pocket.

I carry my trusty - and vintage ;) - Zefal HP aluminum frame pump, one new-in-package tube, levers and a patch kit. I still use a seat bag - not a wedge - to carry a bunch of tools. I never had a cell phone until a few years ago.

http://i628.photobucket.com/albums/u...rcj/Strobe.jpg

The Mylar is a good idea. I carry one of those 99 cent plastic ponchos in a jersey pocket if there is even a remote chance the weather might get sketchy. If there is a chance of rain, I include a rain jacket that folds into a pouch. I think I will pick up one of those Mylar emergency blankets for my winter rides. Thanks for the idea!

Although I live in a city today I am originally from a rural area. And sometimes when I ride out into the country I ask myself.... if there was a problem ether with my bike or my body... how difficult would this be today. Admittedly... throwing a bike on my shoulder and hiking a few miles isn't a sport that would normally interest me. But if it happens... it won't turn me off of cycling ether. I did call the wife to come get me once when I had a flat 3-4 miles from home in a cold rain.

I am not completely convinced that a medical emergency on the road would be much worst than one in the privacy of my own bed or bathroom. A crash left me in need of assistance once while on a remote bike path. I know it wasn't ten minutes before another cyclist came along and helped me remount my bicycle... so I could ride out. But if I rolled down the stairs while home alone.... it's not likely anyone else will be strolling or cycling by.

One pump, one tube, one patch kit, one cellphone. Worked just fine until the (Lezyne) pump decided to unscrew the valve from the spare tube -- twice -- as I was pumping up the tire at the end of the change-the-flat process. Friend stopped with a CO2 cartridge, and that got me home, so I'm going to start carrying this one now (it happened on the last long ride of the season, of course).

I switched the Lezyne pump out to the Road Morph. I love the tiny Lezyne for its lack of weight and bulk, but the screw-on idea just doesn't seem to work so well.

The only time co2 let me down on a road tire was when I was too much in a hurry, and too damn dumb to check the inside of the tire. A small peice of wire put a whole hole in a brand new tube I just put in. Other than that, co2 has served me well on the road.

Reminds me of a story. My wife and I were driving in the middle of nowhere in western Colorado and I see this cyclist, but he was going along pretty good. I always carry a cooler of water so I though I would stop and give him a bottle. I got out held the bottle out and he blew right by me. Not a word out of him. Sometimes it make you wonder.

Yes I carry 2 tubes, two co2 and a pump.