You are hereThe ups and the downs of last week.
The ups and the downs of last week.
Last week was a whole shitload of fun on bikes. My week was filled with the Monday Metal Ride, Thursday Night Social Ride, lots of mountain biking, riding around with friends, and culminating with the goodness that was Friday's Critical Mass ride (click for pics). Even with the rain and the disintegration at the Capitol I had a freaking blast, and the afterparty was an excellent time as always. Not everything bike related in my weekend went good though.
I seriously think my bikes hate me. Not so much my bikes, more their tires and tubes. Over the course of last week I had a total of 6 flat tubes, had to drop out of a ride, and then miss another one due to flats. It's not over yet, as this morning I woke up to my 1x1 sitting on the rims, both tires flat as pancakes. I didn't even ride it yesterday, how the fuck did this happen? I've got one question: WHAT VENGEFUL BIKE DEITY DID I PISS OFF AND WHAT MUST I DO FOR PENANCE?!? This shit's getting really old. With the hectic activity of the past week I've almost run out of patches and glue. Hell, I'm even running out of tubes and that's with patching them 3-4 times each before giving up on them. I'm ready to sacrifice my minibike on a broken-frame altar if it'll keep the rest of my bikes safe from this demon of tube deflation.
Anybody know any good bike magic? I don't want to end this one on a down note, so I wanted to share a bit of info I just read. Recently a friends' bike was stolen, but due to the heroic acts of a local bike superhero it was recovered over the weekend and returned to its' rightful owner! Deadly force may not have actually been required, but it was applied nonetheless. Fuck bike thieves. This is Texas and we'll hang someone for stealing horses, I think the same should apply to theft of our two-wheeled methods of conveyance as well...
Looks like we're all experts when it comes to flats, eh?
I picked up the bike again about four years ago (after a multi-multi-year layoff) and have ridden thousands of miles since. So far, six flats total. One of those was definitely on me (hit a curb real hard on my cross bike). All kinds of tires on all kinds of bikes, all kinds of road (and not road) surfaces in all kinds of locales. I'm thinking you must have some kind of bad aura. See the ju-ju doctor soon.
I'll probably have a dozen flats in the next week now.
The slime stuff works pretty well for me as far as punctures go. But at the beginning of the summer I had issues with the seams ripping on the tubes. I think that may have had something to do with the drastic temperature changes that my bike (tubes) endured when I brought it inside after a ride in 105 degree weather…. But that’s a theory I have yet to validate—input would be nice actually.
This is Texas ya'll, we ride on dillos!
Also make sure you are keeping your tube pressure within the bounds of what the tire can hold. My tires (700cx32) shouldn't be pumped above 85psi, and realistically, when I bring them up above 75-80 psi they tend to flat frequently - they pick up more debris at the higher pressure and I get more puncture flats. I had no idea why I was getting so many flats (the tubes are rated to 120psi, so I thought I could go up to 90, no problem) until I actually checked what the tire itself was rated for.
I'm about to buy some new puncture-resistant 700cX28 hopefully today/tomorrow, so thanks for the good tire suggestions, everyone.
My tires are rated to 125 psi max, but I pump'em up to 140 or so to cut back on the pinch flats.
I was flatting about once every 100 miles. Then I got them, haven't gotten a flat (on that bike) even after 1500 miles. I got the 700x28.
As for tire pressure, the tube isn't what's supporting the pressure -- it's the tire. So it's the tire's rating that matters, not the tube's. (Which is basically what you said, but said in a different way.)
I've always had more flats during this time of the year, and I speculate that it is caused by the number of people moving in and out for the new school year. It puts a lot more junk on the road.
as tube protectors. I mean, the best protection I've found against flats is to use a really thick tire, or one with multiple layers (usually advertised as "flat protection"). Replacing all of your tires on all of your bikes can get pretty expensive, though. As a stopgap, you can take your old flatted tube, cut a slice around the inside of it, and shove your new tube inside, Buffalo Bill style. Or maybe Ice-planet-star-wars-style. You get the gist. It won't be the *best* flat protection, but it helps against those prickly burrs.
When the grass turns crispy brown that means it's time to avoid riding on grass. Especially avoid the green patches among the brown which are almost always weeds and therefore an abundant source of goatheads and other prickly zygotes.
Clarence put up a few hundred of them! here and here.
Here are the other rides he's gotten so far.
could it be the bird? Maybe it needed something better to chew on besides J's lip..meh.
gets freaked out by bikes so she doesnt mess with them. if you put her near one she takes off and tries to escape.
I agree with the earlier comment about possible embedded objects. I always run my fingers along the inside and outside of the tire to make sure there is nothing in there. Often I'll find a small piece of glass barely poking through.
You might also check your rim tape. If its the plastic or rubbery kind, replace with cloth. I've had tons of trouble with the plastic ones causing flats, but the cloth Velox has never failed me. If the holes are in the inside (valve side) of the tube, that's a definite possibility.
Finally, for road tires I don't think you can do much better than the Continental GatorSkins for flat resistance. I've gone 9 month stretches without flats on those suckers. They don't fit all rims (Campy wheel rims especially) so if they won't fit, try the Vittoria Diamante Pro or Rubino for an easier fit and good flat resistance. (they also provide a more supple ride than the Contis.)
Elliott from Austin On Two Wheels
How many miles do you have on the tire? Where on the tube are the flats happening?
Whenever you get a flat do you also check the tire for whatever caused the puncture? I had a TINY speck of glass that was in one of my tires a while back. Caused 3 flats in one ride. Finally after the 3rd flat I was able to find the little piece of glass and remove it. That ride sucked.
I would guess you have something still inside of your tire that continues to puncture the tube. If you keep having problems it might be time to change out tires if you can't find it. Also take some course steel wool and rub the inside of the rim to remove any metal pieces that could be puncturing your tubes.
I was in the same situation, getting flats two or three times a month.
Then I got pointed at Specialized Armadillos:
http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqSuperSection.jsp?ssid=Armadillo...
The flats stopped cold. The only ones I've gotten since then have been pinch flats from hitting sharp bumps at high speed (my next bike will NOT have x23 tires), and a two-inch piece of aluminum scrap through the sidewall (I'll give them that one).
They may cost more than standard tires, but the lack of having to change a flat on the way to work more than makes up for it.
There are other brands of puncture-resistant tires out there, but these are the ones I've got experience with. I'm sure the others work equally well.
I use these cheap 'slime tube protectors' from academy sports:
ttp://www.slime.com/product/211/Slime-Tube-Protectors.html
I ride my BMX through the old dirt bike trails on Stephenson farm and even the mesquite thorns don't pop my tubes most of the time.
The preserve is a great place to ride. Right next to Longview park in S. Austin. There's even some funky art sculptures hidden in there that are built out of old junk that was found on the property.
map:
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/parkmaps/images/trails_stephenson_prese...