Cat heads

suzyj said:

Suzy (who really doesn't want to be back at work)

Oh look, it's 5pm. Work day over. 1 work day to go!!! 😄

(Out of character, on topic bit: "3-corner jacks", where I come from.)

hippy
"Yeah, go on, rub it in ya [censored]!"

Suzy,

I ran over a heap of those things near Lyneham on that big road that
goes out to Belco. After pulling out 3 from the front and 2 from the
back I managed another 2 or 3 punctures from the spike of one of those
things that had embedded itself in my tyre. My gf clued-on and checked
where the puncture was happening with respect to the tyre, thankfully.
I've also had one of these spiky demons wedge itself in my tyre when
riding near Parliament House.

-- gecko

suzyj said:

Bad thing was the cat heads. I got four punctures during the trip, and
three was from cats heads (the last was because a tube worked its way
through a slice in the tyre where I should have put a boot).

Anyway, being a city gal, I've never encountered these things before.
They're formidable little buggers!

Here's a pic of the offending bits. I hear they're called all sorts of
other things depending on where you're from:

[image: http://pics.davesgarden.com/pics/Xenomorf_1093649182_41.jpg]

A.k.a. 3 corner jacks, bindiis, f#&^*g b#%$&*(#d thorns.

Scientific name is emex australis I believe. A South African import that has
thrived in Australia's dry savannah country and spread particularly well in
the fleece of sheep. Hence they are often common around railway facilities
where sheep are transported. The plants also apparently thrive in compacted
soils ie dirt roads and tracks. So once you get out into the outback country
stick to the tarmac, don't ride your bike across the grass and if you have
to ride gravel or dirt roads, make sure your tubes are Slime-equipped.

Also watch where you put your Thermarest down, bit of a bummer to get it
spiked by a bindii. Don't know that Slime will work in the Thermerest :-)

Cheers
Peter

suzyj said:

Hiya guys,

Just back from nine days cycling around Cowra (actually four days
cycling around Cowra, one day visiting wineries, and the rest riding
there and back.

Good thing about riding way out west, is _no glass_. Nada, zip, not
even a little bit (except that holding my Guinness each evening after
riding).

Bad thing was the cat heads. I got four punctures during the trip, and
three was from cats heads (the last was because a tube worked its way
through a slice in the tyre where I should have put a boot).

Anyway, being a city gal, I've never encountered these things before.
They're formidable little buggers!

Here's a pic of the offending bits. I hear they're called all sorts of
other things depending on where you're from:

[image: http://pics.davesgarden.com/pics/Xenomorf_1093649182_41.jpg]

I ran out of spare tubes, and got quite adept at patching during my
ride.

Regards,

Suzy (who really doesn't want to be back at work)

Way out in the real west (Western Australia) they're called Double Gees.
Not sure why, but they are.

Marty

Marty said:

Quoted message said:

suzyj said:

Hiya guys,

Just back from nine days cycling around Cowra (actually four days
cycling around Cowra, one day visiting wineries, and the rest riding
there and back.

Good thing about riding way out west, is _no glass_. Nada, zip, not
even a little bit (except that holding my Guinness each evening
after riding).

Bad thing was the cat heads. I got four punctures during the trip,
and three was from cats heads (the last was because a tube worked
its way through a slice in the tyre where I should have put a boot).

Anyway, being a city gal, I've never encountered these things
before. They're formidable little buggers!

Here's a pic of the offending bits. I hear they're called all
sorts of other things depending on where you're from:

[image: http://pics.davesgarden.com/pics/Xenomorf_1093649182_41.jpg]

I ran out of spare tubes, and got quite adept at patching during my
ride.

Regards,

Suzy (who really doesn't want to be back at work)

Way out in the real west (Western Australia) they're called Double
Gees. Not sure why, but they are.

Marty

stand on one, you will yell 'Oh Gee!,, Oh f***en GEEE!!!
That's why.
We used to tie a bit of stiff wire across the frame forming an arc above the
tyre. As the tyre picked the cathead up and rotated, the cathead was
removed by passing the wire. The thorn will usually take a while to
puncture (ie. many rotations) so the number of punctures is decimated.
Jock
Jock

suzyj said:

...
Bad thing was the cat heads. I got four punctures during the trip, and
three was from cats heads (the last was because a tube worked its way
through a slice in the tyre where I should have put a boot).

The LBS does quite a trade in thorn-resistant tubes here (Dubbo). They
seem to work quite well. Most days I pull a few thorns out of my tyres.
One penetrated deep enough to create a very slow leak, but I haven't had
a full on puncture in a year of living here.

--
John Pitts <[email hidden]>
(Obviously, I've munged my e-mail address)

"Bother," said the Borg. "We've assimilated Pooh!"

"Jock" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Marty said:

Quoted message said:

suzyj wrote:
> Hiya guys,
>
> Just back from nine days cycling around Cowra (actually four days
> cycling around Cowra, one day visiting wineries, and the rest riding
> there and back.
>
> Good thing about riding way out west, is _no glass_. Nada, zip, not
> even a little bit (except that holding my Guinness each evening
> after riding).
>
> Bad thing was the cat heads. I got four punctures during the trip,
> and three was from cats heads (the last was because a tube worked
> its way through a slice in the tyre where I should have put a boot).
>
> Anyway, being a city gal, I've never encountered these things
> before. They're formidable little buggers!
>
> Here's a pic of the offending bits. I hear they're called all
> sorts of other things depending on where you're from:
>
> [image: http://pics.davesgarden.com/pics/Xenomorf_1093649182_41.jpg]
>
> I ran out of spare tubes, and got quite adept at patching during my
> ride.
>
> Regards,
>
> Suzy (who really doesn't want to be back at work)
>
>

Way out in the real west (Western Australia) they're called Double
Gees. Not sure why, but they are.

Marty

stand on one, you will yell 'Oh Gee!,, Oh f***en GEEE!!!
That's why.
We used to tie a bit of stiff wire across the frame forming an arc above
the
tyre. As the tyre picked the cathead up and rotated, the cathead was
removed by passing the wire. The thorn will usually take a while to
puncture (ie. many rotations) so the number of punctures is decimated.
Jock
Jock

Brilliant.

Simple but bloody brilliant!!

I was camped in Baraba in NSW in the 1980s. Went to the pub for a beer
after a hard day of pulling cat heads out of the tyres. It was such a
depressing town at the time. The asbestos mine had closed, the banks
were closing, they were surviving on bore water that tasted and smelt
like a stagnent pond.

While I was sitting, contemplating whether I'd get another seven
punctures the next day, a couple of young fellas come in to the bar. I
overheard from their conversation that they had had just come back from
dragging each other bare chested through the cat heads, for fun. And
people say Sydney is weird.

--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Peter McCallum said:

I was camped in Baraba in NSW in the 1980s. Went to the pub for a beer
after a hard day of pulling cat heads out of the tyres. It was such a
depressing town at the time. The asbestos mine had closed, the banks
were closing, they were surviving on bore water that tasted and smelt
like a stagnent pond.

While I was sitting, contemplating whether I'd get another seven
punctures the next day, a couple of young fellas come in to the bar. I
overheard from their conversation that they had had just come back from
dragging each other bare chested through the cat heads, for fun. And
people say Sydney is weird.

--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Peter, do you cycle with a club in Mackay, and if so how long have you
been with them?

Tamyka

Tamyka Bell said:

Peter McCallum said:

I was camped in Baraba in NSW in the 1980s. Went to the pub for a beer
after a hard day of pulling cat heads out of the tyres. It was such a
depressing town at the time. The asbestos mine had closed, the banks
were closing, they were surviving on bore water that tasted and smelt
like a stagnent pond.

While I was sitting, contemplating whether I'd get another seven
punctures the next day, a couple of young fellas come in to the bar. I
overheard from their conversation that they had had just come back from
dragging each other bare chested through the cat heads, for fun. And
people say Sydney is weird.

--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Peter, do you cycle with a club in Mackay, and if so how long have you
been with them?

Tamyka

Do you mean a racing club? If so, the answer is no. I contemplated
joining a club in Sydney when I was younger but quickly came to my
senses and stuck with cycle touring.

Pete
--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Peter McCallum said:

Tamyka Bell said:

Peter McCallum said:

I was camped in Baraba in NSW in the 1980s. Went to the pub for a beer
after a hard day of pulling cat heads out of the tyres. It was such a
depressing town at the time. The asbestos mine had closed, the banks
were closing, they were surviving on bore water that tasted and smelt
like a stagnent pond.

While I was sitting, contemplating whether I'd get another seven
punctures the next day, a couple of young fellas come in to the bar. I
overheard from their conversation that they had had just come back from
dragging each other bare chested through the cat heads, for fun. And
people say Sydney is weird.

--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Peter, do you cycle with a club in Mackay, and if so how long have you
been with them?

Tamyka

Do you mean a racing club? If so, the answer is no. I contemplated
joining a club in Sydney when I was younger but quickly came to my
senses and stuck with cycle touring.

Oh I meant just a social club or something. I had a friend who was
riding in Mackay for a while, her name's Pinno, and I was wondering if
you knew her.

Tam