First puncture today

#david2012

Well after 700 miles, I had my first puncture 6.5 miles away from home no spare tube nothing.. Doh
Definately a lesson learnt... All lycra'd up, road shoes, middle of nowhere but I did take my phone

Got picked up and went home, got my spare bike and went back out again
One positive was that when I dropped off the wheel to my LBS got them to take the 'dork disk' off the wheel !!

DeltaOneSeven

I think it happens to everybody at some point - first time for me, no spare tube, no repair kit and no phone = long walk home. Second time, spare kit. 5 mins later on my merry way!

danowat

#david2012 wrote:

One positive was that when I dropped off the wheel to my LBS got them to take the 'dork disk' off the wheel !!

You got your LBS to fix your puncture :shock:

islwyn

danowat wrote:

#david2012 wrote:

One positive was that when I dropped off the wheel to my LBS got them to take the 'dork disk' off the wheel !!

You got your LBS to fix your puncture :shock:

I had same reaction but you'd be surprised how many people actually do this... One of my colleagues refuses to learn OR let me change it, he prefers paying £20 a time... Unbelievable.

farrina

Islwyn wrote:

I had same reaction but you'd be surprised how many people actually do this... One of my colleagues refuses to learn OR let me change it, he prefers paying £20 a time... Unbelievable.

Much to my amazement I have had to rescue two cyclists this year who punctured with no spares/levers on them. I guess it's to much TdF watching - perhaps they were expecting the neutral service car to turn up.

Regards

Alan

#david2012

danowat wrote:

#david2012 wrote:

One positive was that when I dropped off the wheel to my LBS got them to take the 'dork disk' off the wheel !!

You got your LBS to fix your puncture :shock:

I've only done 45 miles on the bike and the owner is a friend / client of mine so it was more to check there was nothing wrong with the rim etc ( plus it was a perfect opportunity to get 'the dork disk removed' )

#david2012

£20 got me 3 new inner tubes, repair, tyre levers, and disk removal

Bustacapp

#david2012 wrote:

£20 got me 3 new inner tubes, repair, tyre levers, and disk removal

Do you ever intend to fix a puncture yourself or just rely on being rescued?

rubyrider

Wow! I think you've been very lucky so far then. It's worth learning how to fix them, so you don't have that long walk like a penguin home.

I commuted for years a long time ago and never had a puncture - cycled over glass and everything! Since starting road cycling last July I've had 4 or 5, one of which was on my mountain bike (a first for me) when the weather was knarly (I might have just made that word up!). I've had to fix two at the roadside and wouldn't dare go out without patches and glue as well as a spare inner if poss.

On my last puncture I had trouble with my pump - struggled to make it work - took me over 40 mins to get back on the road. I thought it was me, but by the time I got home the end was missing, so I think it must have been coming apart at the time. There weren't many other cyclists about and not one of them had a pump with them!

DavidJB

Jesus...LBS to fix a puncture...2 minute roadside job!

Melter

Ever since riding with gas cannisters, getting a puncture is almost a pleasure. I honestly can't believe that there are people who don't ride without tubes and cannisters.
And who needs tyre levers? You don't need tyre levers damn it! Push the beads to the wheel rim centre and then roll the tyre off the edge, same technique for re fitting the bead! Damn these tyre lever companies stealing our money for no purpose!!

daxplusplus

Depends on the tyres and rims .. some you can do by hand other combinations need levers.

cougie

Some tyres and rims are tighter than others.
Not a fan of gas canisters - how many do you take ? I've had double flats before now. And if you're fit enough to ride a bike - you're fit enough to pump a tyre.

Couldn't you have cut the disk off with scissors ?

Fursty Ferret

OP, go down your LBS as soon as possible (or go online), buy the requisite goods and then get home and practice repairing punctures (or at the very least lobbing a new inner tube in) until it's a no brainer. It's the absolute minimum requirement for a cyclist (apart from some legs andthe ability to balance, obviously)

keef66

Well I started my cycling as a teenager in the early 70's. All day rides, sometimes with an overnight stay in a distant youth hostel. No mobile phones, no phone at home, and my parents had no car to come and rescue me. We had to be pretty self - sufficient.

TBH I think I'd be excruciatingly embarrassed to take a wheel to a bike shop to fix a puncture.

If only for your self-esteem, please fix the next one yourself!

cougie

I read of one American on a US board - he does all his rides up and down the same highway in the states. Never takes any spares. When he punctures he phones his wife up and she comes to rescue him.

Wouldn't work for me - I'd probably get hypothermia by the time i'd explained to my wife where the hell I was and why she needed to sort me out when I could have rescued myself in 5 minutes if I'd been arsed to carry my kit.

Roadrookie

I had my first puncture on Sunday too after about 600 miles on my new bike. I usually carry the stuff to fix a puncture but sods law of course I forgot it that day, anyway a call to the wife for rescue saw me picked up and taken home shame-faced. When I got home I completed my first puncture repair :-) and found that the valve was damaged, so I wouldnt have been able to replace it by the roadside anyway which made me feel better.

So that completes my pair of expected beginner problems. The main one being when I fell off my bike due to inexperience with spd's for the first time two weeks ago. But rather than do it on a nice lonely road I thought I would pick my first time out with my local cycling club. I guess its one way to introduce myself by falling over sideways when at a standstill in car park surrounded by 30+ experienced riders. Oops!

cougie

Roadrookie wrote:

I had my first puncture on Sunday too after about 600 miles on my new bike. I usually carry the stuff to fix a puncture but sods law of course I forgot it that day, anyway a call to the wife for rescue saw me picked up and taken home shame-faced. When I got home I completed my first puncture repair :-) and found that the valve was damaged, so I wouldnt have been able to replace it by the roadside anyway which made me feel better.

So that completes my pair of expected beginner problems. The main one being when I fell off my bike due to inexperience with spd's for the first time two weeks ago. But rather than do it on a nice lonely road I thought I would pick my first time out with my local cycling club. I guess its one way to introduce myself by falling over sideways when at a standstill in car park surrounded by 30+ experienced riders. Oops!

You don't patch a tube at the side of the road. Take a spare inner tube (or two) and then just replace it.
Fix the punctured tube at your leisure at home or just bin it.

CiB

cougie wrote:

Not a fan of gas canisters - how many do you take ? I've had double flats before now.

I got a lifetime's supply recently - a box of 30 for about £20, and carry a couple with me. More than three punctures is unlikely on most rides. If it's a long one (100+) I might take more or a pump maybe.

Tip - buy gas cannisters from online catering suppliers. Exactly the same thing but as they come in bulk in cardboard boxes instead of blister packs of 2 and aren't labelled 'Exotic Cycling Equipment', you pay what they're worth.

ShutUpLegs

Lance rode 15 miles on a puncture finishing a race before everyone else. Most I've ridden is 5 miles.

simon_masterson

Melter wrote:

Ever since riding with gas cannisters, getting a puncture is almost a pleasure. I honestly can't believe that there are people who don't ride without tubes and cannisters.

I have an environmental conscience, myself; I prefer to reduce the number of unnecessary consumables I use.

simon_masterson

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Lance rode 15 miles on a puncture finishing a race before everyone else. Most I've ridden is 5 miles.

Not something I would do on a clincher, though!

farrina

cougie wrote:

You don't patch a tube at the side of the road. Take a spare inner tube (or two) and then just replace it.
Fix the punctured tube at your leisure at home or just bin it.

Indeed as I remember on one immortal (or was that infamous) occasion having ridden happily down a country lane only to discover not only had the farmer cut the hedges but he had forgotten (I am being charitable) to sweep up after himself resulting in me puncturing multiple times on front and back tubes from the hawthornes.

I was innocent in those days ..... and thank goodness for spare tubes (have you ever tried repairing a tube at the side of the road in the rain?)

Don't you just hate it when you hear the tic tic of the embedded thorn (almost as much as when you have to run your finger around the inside of the tube checking to confirm that the puncturing detritus is no longer there ....

Funnily enough I bet the farmer would be outraged if I went around dropping tacs in his path.

Excuse my ramblings ....

Regards

Alan

tiredofwhiners

Three canisters.
1 pack of Park Tools Super patches (the D'd B's)
1 spare innertube
1 Crank Brothers Speed lever

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/ ... ever-12661

It all fits in a tiny saddle bag and is enough to get through 2 or 3 punctures depending upon the severity. The Speed lever is awesome and makes getting any tyre on and off very easy.

vfast1

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Lance rode 15 miles on a puncture finishing a race before everyone else. Most I've ridden is 5 miles.

Yeah but he was high on something!

#david2012

Bustacapp wrote:

Do you ever intend to fix a puncture yourself or just rely on being rescued?

Yes and no

Melter

Simon Masterson wrote:

Melter wrote:

Ever since riding with gas cannisters, getting a puncture is almost a pleasure. I honestly can't believe that there are people who don't ride without tubes and cannisters.

I have an environmental conscience, myself; I prefer to reduce the number of unnecessary consumables I use.

Touché !

andyeb

vfast1 wrote:

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Lance rode 15 miles on a puncture finishing a race before everyone else. Most I've ridden is 5 miles.

Yeah but he was high on something!

Dang you pinched my line

I guess if someone else is picking up the tab for a new wheel, you may as well ride on right?

danowat

Simon Masterson wrote:

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Lance rode 15 miles on a puncture finishing a race before everyone else. Most I've ridden is 5 miles.

Not something I would do on a clincher, though!

Not something I'd like to do on a tub either, but when you aren't paying for wheels and tubs I guess anything goes.

cougie

One of my sillier clubmates finished a 25 on a flat rear tub.
He flatted 2 miles before the end but pushed on as he was on for a good time. Cost his parents £600 for a new carbon disk...........

nevman

Lance had the ability to fix most things.