UniversalFrost

Hi all,

On friday I was doing a "fun ride" with some folks at work. On our way back from the 1/2 way point a few of us decided to split from the pack and see how fast we could go. Well at the start of one downhill curve I was going about 40mph (last time I looked at it I was that fast and accelerating). Right before hte curve in the road i tapped on the brakes and was getting ready for the curve (still upright at this time). Then a few seconds later I heard a POP and my rear tire blew out. The rear started to go out to the left and was the bikes rear was trying to come out on me. at that point i layed it down and slid through the curve and into a rock filled ditch. ouch ! bike ended up sustaining a blown rear tire (right at the point where the sidewall meets the "tread" on the left side about 3 inches long) and my shifters are totally destroyed and possibly the front fork (carbon) haven't had a chance to look it over much since I was taken to the ER with massive gashes in my left side of my face and eye and chin and my butt is down to the meat on the left side and my wrists are pretty well messed up but not broken. Buddy I was riding with has the bike back at work. My alpina helmet saved my noggin and the oakley glasses saved my left eye from the rock (but cut really deep into my socket.

Anyway, the tire had 500 miles on it and was in great condition. I had just checked the air pressure in it that morning and was running 118psi. The road was new and nothing was found onthe road that would have caused a blowout. i still don't know why it blew because I was not leaning into the curve yet and the brakes were not touching the tire (had just adjusted the brakes the day before). I am gonna give specialized a call on Monday and hopefully they will have some insight into why the tire blew and hope fully they will fix my bike for me.

Right now I can't wait for my new wheelsets to get in with the pro race 3's, since I have just lost all confidence in the mondo pro's.

DrPete 

Had the same thing happen with some S-Works Open Tubulars.

Do not want.

brians647

I've tried the Specialized S Works tires twice (they came with the wheels I bought). Both times, they've been miserable with cuts on the sidewalls. I've showed it to the guys at the shop, and since it says "Made in France" on the sidewalls, they're supposed to be as good as Michelins. They are not. Not by a long shot.

I've also wiped out on new ones pretty bad because of the sheen on them that they come with as new. A mechanic at the shop did the same thing a few weeks ago (both of us were being aggressive, but not crazy).

Avoid them.

hanksake

I blew out a Mondo pro, too (stock on my '08 tarmac), and replaced it with a Mondo s-works, which has held well for two weeks and 500 miles. I'll gladly replace the remaining Pro in the front and the new S-works in the rear if someone can recommend something more...betterish. The thought of another blowout does noooottttt make me smile.

DrPete 

The regular Mondo S-Works became my workhorse tire. I had no problems with them, FWIW.

yogi13

I didn't have a blowout, but did have a bunch of flats on the mondo pros that came with my allez, and a few cuts. They lasted no more than 800 miles, though I should have probably replaced them sooner. Switched to michelin PR2 tires, had to replace one recently after 2000 miles because of a sidewall cut, the other is still going strong. They perform better in almost all regards, and I've heard the new PR3's are better still, though a little more expensive.

quito70

I've had nothing but bad luck with the stock Mondo's that came with my two Specialized bikes. They're good for about 250-300 miles and then the cronic flats start. I swithed to Contie 4-Seasons. 2,000 miles on the back tire.... no flats. 3,000 miles on the front, no flats. The ride is good enough for hard training and Cat 5 racing, plus no worries when you're bombing down a hill or 50 miles out in the middle of nowhere.

ravenmore

Really sorry to hear about your crash and I hope you heal up quick, but tires blow out. I'm not sure how you can say its the brand of tires fault. I've had tires blow in similar situations. I've had Pro Race2's and 3's blow on fast descents. That'll make you need to go home and change your shorts. I've never run Specialized tires though.

Pharmr

hey...I hope you get better soon and I'm glad it wasn't worse

CKspeed

I have just over 1000 miles on the Mondo Pros that came stock with my Allez. No blow outs and only a single flat from a large piece of glass. Everyone has different experiences with tires. Hope you get better soon - that crash sounds brutal.

DataJunkie

I had a mondo blow out on me last summer.
I have no desire to ever ride any of their mondo tires again.

UniversalFrost

well, just waiting for Specialized to open now (8am pacific).

I am of the mindset if I have one bad experience with a product that causes me undue injury then I will avoid it forever.

I ended up buying a pair of the pro 3 race michelins yesterday, since I want to get the bike put back together asap (even though it will be a long time before I can ride again) and I don't have a solid date as to when my mavic wheelset is gonna arrive (also with the pro3 race's).

I am glad I hit where I did in the ditch (excluding the rocks of course). A few feet over and I would have hit a side marker post and a few feet from that was a bout a 10 feet drop off with even more rocks and a barbed wire fence at the bottom.

The wife took photos of me for our insurance and i might post them, but they are very bloody and graphic (down to the muscle on the left cheek).

On another note, the shifters were thrashed with the long levers ripped completely off. I was looking on Shimano's website and they show the shifter levers as part of a shifter assembly, does any one know if I can just order the shifter assembly's instead of having to get entire new shifters ?

ravenmore

That's a bit silly don't you think? You had a tire blow. It happens dude - part of cycling.

UtahWasatch

I've got just over 1,000 mi on some mondo's. Did get a pinch flat once

UniversalFrost

well, here is an update.

took the bike to the specialized dealer here in town (per the specialized customer service folks direction).

Just from initial quick look they said that it looks like the sidewall failed, which exposed the tube and caused the blow out, but they have to look at it closer.

I am supposed to check with them on Friday and see what the final determination is and if a product failure they are gonna get with Specialized on warrantying the tire and other related issues with the bike because of the crash.

on another note. I just got in my PR3's (in red) today and they look good and I can't wait to get them on the wheels and was browsing eBay while sitting in my online masters class and scored a set of DA 9sp triple shifters for a buy it now price of $172 shipped in like new condition (these things look new and the guy has great feedback from all the shifters he sells so no worries that these will be sticky or anything else).

Also, I am healing up quickly with the exception of my left rear end cheek which is still really raw. I am itching to get back in the saddle, but it looks like at least 3-4 more weeks before I am healed up enough (per the doc).

will keep you guys updated and i still have a good front mondo pro tire with only 500 miles on it and no cuts, anybody wanna buy it off me?

UniversalFrost

Well, it looks like Specialized is gonna come through and warranty the repairs and parts for the bike.

Bascially the only things not getting replaced are the frame, seatpost, saddle, fork and handlebars.

so with specialized replacing everything I am gonna toss in a few bucks of my own so that I can upgrade everything to Ultegra/Dura Ace. Also, since I already went out and got a set of Dura Ace 9x3 shifters and a pair of the Pro 3 Race tires I am getting credit (what it would cost Specilized to replace the 4500 shifters and Mondo Pro tires).

So, i would like to thank specialized for standing behind their products and pending good follow through with the warranty and parts replacement, I think my next purchase will be a Specialized Tarmac that the LBS has had sitting for a while (around my area most folks mt. bike, so a road bike does not sell very fast).

Blade-Runner

One thing to think about with tire PSI. If you inflate/pump up your tires in the morning when its cooler and are out on a long ride keep in mind what the outside temp is doing. The warmer the road, out side air gets the higher your tire PSI is going to get.

I've watched the Specilized Pro tires blow from just sitting in the hot Texas sun.

Also, if your like me and keep your bike inside try to put it outside for 30 mins or so before you pump up the tires.

Food for though

Sonoma76

What kind of tires do the guys in the Tour ride with?

One would think that bicycle tire manufacturers would have designed against epic blowouts.

UniversalFrost

bike is stored 24/7 indoors (except when riding). Luckily I can store the bike in my office at work as well.

Tires psi is always measured with a digital gauge before riding. Even if the psi in the tires increased while riding (was about 30 minutes into the ride). There is no reason for a catastrophic failure. What the bike techs (and myself) think is that the tire seperated at the seam and exposed the tube which of course failed when it contacted the road.

scottmorrison99

I had a lot of flats with Mondo Pros, ending with a blow out on 1 that was under 100 miles. It was a rearblow out as well, but I was luckily able to keep it upright. I have since changed brands of tires, (now riding Maxxis or Continental depending on wheelset). I had several Mondo Pros warranteed before giving up. I was told they had a bad batch by my LBS, but come on.

Ralleh

They probably realized that it would be cheaper than a lawsuit.

mkauffman

I just had a very similar problem. My Mondo Pros had about 600 miles on them and the front one blew just like yours did. I was lucky enough to be going fairly slow at the time and managed to control it, but the concept was still there. I email specialized and they sent me a new set right away, but I'm not convinced they will ever make it onto my bike.

ravenmore

Alright this is going to be harsh but c'mon, are you guys gonna cry every time you have a flat? I don't really care for Specialized tires in general, but I think you guys are looking at this all wrong. Tires blow out. Period. Light sticky race tires are more prone to flats in general because they put less stuff in there to prevent flats in order to improve race performance.

Ralleh

Defective is defective. Change the circumstances slightly and the guy could have been killed.

operator

Not harsh. Just completey wrong.

Properly made tires that aren't extremely worn or damaged externally, installed correctly don't "blow out. period". 100% wrong.