The odds have caught up
 

Mind you, I had taken notice of the fact that I hadn't flatted yet this year in over 1400 miles of cycling. Although I'm not superstitious, I didn't dare utter this fact out loud to anyone, not even myself, knowing that I was cheating fate and not wishing to draw undue attention to my good fortune.

Well apparently one of the cycling Gods noticed - June 1, 2002 - 3 flats in one day :(

man...what a good run you had going.

If I can go a week without flatting I consider myself lucky.

What are you doing to that poor bike? I haven't had a flat in 8000 miles.

RichC

What I'm about to say is gonna be sad, but here goes....The last time I fixed a flat was 3 yrs ago on my X-mart 26 x 1.95 MTB. But now that I got my Sirrus with 700 x 26 tires, how the hell do I do it?

I need a good bike maintaince book. The rims look totally different. Is the concept the same? Please tell me it is.

Just for the record, I ridden 32 miles and no flat yet :D

I wanna see if this works... I have 3,300 km so far this year, and 1,800 km last year since my last flat. That's 5,200 km since the last one...

Let's see what happens...

My old roadie went years---yes-- years without a flat and would still hold air this year before I completely replaced the tires and tubes---although I didn't ride it this year until the replacement.

I've generally found when I start having flats its time for a fresh start with new tubes and tires---and a new rim ring here and there. The new tires-- etc will last several years---then replace the whole thing again-----Also keep your eyes on the road(literally) and don't forget that patch kit---lol.

3 in one day! You must have had something lodged in the tire or a bad rim strip? I always carry a spare tube and glueless patches but I sometimes wonder if I should throw in some glue.Hopefully you will be flatless for a long time,but if not ,you should be an tire repair expert!:D

I have to pass through two areas with a lot of bars and nightclubs. The broken glass from idiots tossing beer bottles on the streets is the main culprit. I've tried the usual preventive methods (tire liners, slime, etc.) and nothing works 100% of the time. It has become easier just to fix the flat than to spend time trying to prevent them. I've become very good at fixing a flat in a hurry.

Unfortunately, there is not an easy way around these areas without adding a lot of time to my commute.

"Random events occur non-randomly." Punctures are not truly random, but they do occur in uneven patterns, and occasionally one hits a string of bad luck. I have had very good luck with Specialized Armadillo tyres, and even my Conti Ultra2000s have not been too bad. My nemesis is thorns.

Hi All,

I used to use 700X23 foldups and sure the ride was good but lots of flats. About a year ago I went to a 700X28 conti 2000 and that was the end of the flats. Its a great tire and really like the range from 90psi to 120 psi. Usually I run them at around 100 psi. They feel as fast as the expensive foldups and alot more sure footed on any sand or gravel you might hit on the road. If you are running a time trial or you live to break away in the hills then by all means use the foldups but for going down the road ditch the 23's and use 28's.

Ride Safe ....Dudley *S*

No one has mentioned wiping their tires.

I'm betting those of us who go long miles without flatting wipe each tire immediately after passing glass on the road.

Sometimes I stop and do it very thoroughly but I always at least touch front, then rear tires with glove leather without slowing down, just to knock off any tiny piece of glass before it works its way into the tire.

Does anyone still use tire savers ?
Does anyone even remember them?

I don't understand the impulse to break bottles all over the street, but there it is. On my route through southwest Philly there are blocks where the sound of glass crunching beneath my tires is the loudest thing I hear.

No question that a sharp piece of bottle class standing upright can slice your tire, but I guess I've just managed to dodge them successfully. For the rest, I've been pretty happy with the Conti TT 2000 and Avocet Cross K's (both 700x32c, both pumped to 95psi religiously) on my two bikes -- at least, I've had no flats with the Conti's and only one with the Avocets (that was the one 8000 miles ago, 4000+ miles ago on that particular tire, it was almost brand new at the time).

Maybe I'm just so slow I have more time to dodge the glass than the younger, faster riders do!

RichC

Louis, good input on the somewhat dying art of tire wiping - it was one of the first things the "old" guys taught me on my initial training rides in the early '70's (And, yes, I remember 'Tire Savers'. I think they were one of the best retrofits for commuters & touring, and I knew several "racer chasers" that used them to help protect their sew-ups. They certainly worked quite well).

Anyway, I'm on the other side of the question / At least I think there was some kind of question that started all this. I don't mind an occasional flat (I recollect getting three or four in the past couple of years) because the repair is easy and with CO2 devices, even high pressure inflation is a snap. I rotate the tires on all my bikes regularly, don't run the tires until you can see the air in them, check the pressures regularly, and stay away from front specific tires on the mountain bikes; but I like lightweight wheels so I go so far as to even run Continental 'Supersonics' on a couple of my "Sunday" road bikes, Specialized "S" Works (700x23 / they actually measure 700x24, which is cool) on another (I've never had a flat with them), and Continental 2.3's on my mountain bikes (I've not had a flat with them either). But it's a different story on my "coffee shop single speed" or "ballooner" where a flat is unthinkable, so I use "Slime" type tubes and haven't had a flat in probably six or seven years (In fact I've worn out a set of tires on my 'single speed' without having a flat).

I enjoyed "bikinguy's" comments also. There's a lot to be said for running wider, lower pressure tires (And some may not know this but wider tires have lower rolling resistance / certainly there are limits, but a 700x26 0r 700x28 rolls better than a 700x23, and gives a very comfortable ride - there's a bit of a weight issue, but in many applications, the wider/lower psi tire is an excellent choice).

I don't mind an occasional flat either, sometimes on a fast club ride, a flat gives me some "rest time" :p

wouldn't ya know it!! I got a flat on the way home. I decided to take a road I've never ridden on before. A staple got me this time. Went through my rear tire, a Conti Gatorskin.

Changed the flat and was back on the road in 4 minutes. I use a Crank Bros pump, not CO2 cartridges.

So much for alternate routes:rolleyes:

Louis, that's an awesome skill to possess, any tips you can pass along on wiping the rear tire without sacrificing fingers to the spokes? Up til and including now I've been way to chicken to try the rear tire on the fly :(

So you guys do this while riding? What do you use? I'm assuming a glove or something and just rub it on the tires right?

Yea... While you are riding, just wipe the leather (or substitute) palm of a riding glove onto the tire after you hit a patch of sharp gravel or glass.

The rear wheel is tricky, but the front is most important (and easiest).

Well random events follow a Poisson Distribution. The Poisson Distribution was developed by a german army officer to determine whether fatalities due to horse kicks (they had a potload of horses in the army in the 19th century) followed a random distribution or not. The Poisson Distribution shows that random events tend to be clumped. What that means is you can go without a flat for a while and then get 2 or 3 in a relatively short period of time. By the way, for those who are curious, Poisson proved that fatal horse kicks in the german army did not deviate from the random distribution. You can not PROVE that something is random, you can only prove that it does not deviate "significantly" from the random distribution.

When I was using Twin Techno by Vittoria, for 3 years have no flats, but last year I change my tire to Michellin Axial Pro, I could count how many flat I got on those tire, thinking of buying a new set of Continental tires, how durable are they

Im surprised I have not flattened yet, with all the potholes, broken beer bottles, etc. in my area. But man, 3 in one day! That sucks!:D

You live in NY too? :o

Not New York, but OrangePark, Florida. I guess funding for the roads in this county is very low (at least it seems that way).

It might be a EAST SIDE thing

It's definetly an east thing. I always hear about how great the roads are in the west.