Time taken to sort out p*nct*re

Hornetto

I was out on the 60 mile Test Valley Tour yesterday and 25 miles in ran over a big stone which the guy in front of me managed to swerve round. I hit it full on and it almost pitched me off my bike (both hands came off the bars and a big wobble, not entirely sure how I didn't crash - the guy in front seemed quite surprised by the loud swearing that came from behind him as I mentally prepared for the fall). Then there was a big hiss from the rear tyre.

It was my first p*nct*re on the road bike since I got it last year, and after a bit of faffing about it took me 25 minutes to change the tube, pump it up and get going again. The tyre was a bit of a pain to get on afterwards, which led to a bit of a delay as I struggled with my levers.

So my question is, how long does it take you to change a flat out on a ride?

mask of sanity

Probably just over five minutes. I find the most time consuming thing is organising all the stuff that falls out my saddle bag when I remove the spare tube. I'm a lot quicker when I'm alone as the stress of holding people up makes me worse at changing it :oops:

CiB

End to end about 10 mins, by the time I've got the old tube out, unpacked what's needed and the done the reverse process getting everything back together and then got enough pressure in the tube with the not-as-good-as-you'd-hoped miniature pump. Wait till it happens on a freezing cold morning, when your fingers are too number to do the job properly.

sods_law

With other people (to hold the bike and your stuff etc) about 5 mins. Probs 7-10 on your own. Like with anything, its just practice!

Hornetto

OK, I figured that I was a bit slow. Hopefully I won't have to do much in the way of practicing in future, but I guess it was just that it was my first time and I was trying to make sure that all of my bits and bobs from my saddle bag didn't go missing in the grass verge.

Must have had about 20 cyclists go past me and about 18 of them offered help, which was nice. Two even stopped for a quick chat and later on when I passed one going up a hill he said "glad you got your tyre fixed OK". It's things like that that make me enjoy cycling.

skinson

I've never timed myself, but it doesn't really matter how long it takes as long as it's done correctly and doesn't result in a pinch puncture. Treat it as a break, and have a biet to eat at the same time
Dave

kieranb

My tyres are a real pain to get on/off the rim so it seems to take forever. Once I had a puncture in the cold and rain when my hands and body were shaking from a long wet, cold ride, so I rang home to see if my wife could come and collect me in the nice warm car, but she couldn't! I don't know how I managed to fix it but I did.

crankycrank

If the guy in front was somebody you'll be riding with again, let him know that it's proper edicate to point out hazards in the road to the riders behind him. :roll:

balthazar

crankycrank wrote:

If the guy in front was somebody you'll be riding with again, let him know that it's proper edicate to point out hazards in the road to the riders behind him. :roll:

ahem, etiquette?! (That's a brilliant misspelling!)

Hornetto

crankycrank wrote:

If the guy in front was somebody you'll be riding with again, let him know that it's proper edicate to point out hazards in the road to the riders behind him. :roll:

No I won't be, it was just another cyclist who I'd just caught up with maybe 200 yards previously having closed in on him for the previous couple of miles. To be fair to him he probably didn't know I was there, so might not have known to give a signal. The way he swerved to avoid the stones himself makes me think he didn't see it until late anyway.

crankycrank

balthazar wrote:

crankycrank wrote:

If the guy in front was somebody you'll be riding with again, let him know that it's proper edicate to point out hazards in the road to the riders behind him. :roll:

ahem, etiquette?! (That's a brilliant misspelling!)

Ha Ha! I just rolled out of bed. Need coffee! Need coffee!

geoff_ss

It depends. Not long when the cause is obvious as in this case (5/10 minutes?) but can be longer if you need to identify the cause to avoid a second puncture from the same embedded piece of glass/thorn as the first. Digging out the foreign object can sometimes be a bit time consuming - I usually carry a penknife for the purpose.

Geoff

Flasheart

5 -10 mins to repair and get tyre back on. Another 10 to get all the junk (and kitchen sink) back into saddlebag

balthazar

crankycrank wrote:

Ha Ha! I just rolled out of bed. Need coffee! Need coffee!

Well I couldn't manage to turn my computer on before I'd had coffee first thing, let alone go to the BR forum and dispense advice, even less spell french words; so kudos to you!

k-dog

Did one on Saturday in just under 2 mins.

That was just changing a tube obviously - not patching it. Was doing a sponsored walk with a cart for the Scouts I'm involved with. Just as I gave the 2 minute warning for getting going after a food stop one of the boys asked me if I knew the tyre was flat.

We still got away on time. Wished I'd packed my track pump like I thought about - had to use a thing with about a 3" stroke.

Jon8a

Normally about 5 minutes. Just make sure you do it properly. It's easy with a pinch because you know what did it but if it's glass or debri make sure you find it otherwise you'll be mending another puncture in a few more pedal strokes. Also take care not to pinch the new tube.

Riding buddies should be helping. Checking the tyre, deflating and packing the old tube, holding things. It's easier with a bit of help.

redvee

when on my MTB I could do it in ~5 mins from stopping to getting back on the pedals with a slightly softer tyre than before. A little longer on my roadie with much narrower tyres. One on the rear of my Tricross single can now be measured in days as it's a solid axle.