Flat tire on the road

In article <[email hidden]>, ANunziat1215

Quoted message said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it OK
to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel? If it is OK, do I bike fast
or slow? If not, what other options do I have other than walking it back?

It is not OK for the wheel or the tire, and would be not very fun for your butt either. The solution
is to repair the flat on the road. A little pack of supplies you need:

1. seat bag
2. tire levers
3. tire patches and glue
4. spare tube
5. pump

Quoted message said:

In an unrelated matter, is it a driving violation if my trunk rack covers up my license plate?

The law probably depends on the state, but what you really need to know is whether cops in your area
ever care about that sort of thing. Where I live cars are regularly on the road with no plates of
any kind and this doesn't seem to bother the cops.

--Paul

Andy Nunziat said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it
OK to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel? If it is OK, do I bike
fast or slow? If not, what other options do I have other than walking it back?

Those are not the alternatives that normally come to mind. Use your spare tube and patch the old
tube before continuing.

Quoted message said:

In an unrelated matter, is it a driving violation if my trunk rack covers up my license plate?

Yes. It makes no difference for what reason you appear to have no number plate. You have no number
plate. If you get pulled over for having no number plate, it will make no difference that you can
say it's in the back seat or under my bicycle.

Jobst Brandt [email hidden] Palo Alto CA

Quoted message said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it OK
to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel?

Not recommended to ride on a flat tire. It can easily damage the rim and of course the tire will
likely be history.

But it is unlikely that you would ride more a few feet once the tire goes flat because the bike
becomes difficult to control.

The best thing to do is learn how to install a new tube so that if you do get a flat you can take
care of the problem yourself. A decent tire pump, a set of plastic tire levers and either a patch
kit or a spare tube or two. Out of habit, I normally carry 4 spare tubes, this is more than would
normally be necessary but I like to have some extra's so I can help out riders in need.

Some tips to help avoid getting flats:

Pinch Flats: Pinch flats occur when the tire collapses against the rim and the tube is pinched and
cut. These are also called snake bites because they are two small punctures that a snake might make.

These are avoided by keeping your tires properly inflated and by avoiding potholes and objects in
the road. Bicycle tires naturally lose air so I pump mine up every week.

Puncture flats are normally caused by running over a foriegn object, nail, glass in the road is
maybe the most common, thorns, staples, to avoid puncture flats keep a close eye on the road and
avoid riding over broken glass. It is also possible that a worn or poorly installed rim strip will
cause a hole in the tire. With a new bike the shop should have taken care of this.

When changing a tire, it is important to discover the cause of the flat. Otherwise, you will most
likely have another flat. Find the glass or thorn and look for more as well.

jon isaacs

(ANunziat1215) said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it OK
to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel? If it is OK, do I bike fast
or slow? If not, what other options do I have other than walking it back?

Well, it would make sense to not ride on a flat tire but here's what I actually saw one time. On one
of my rides (many years ago) I ran into the bicycle part of a small local bi or tri-athlon (forget
which now). I noticed this one girl was riding on a flat tire. I couldn't believe it because if I
did that on my cheap rims they would be shot or at least very much out of true soon enough. And here
she was going at a reasonable clip. I rode up near her and asked if she needed help to patch it. Her
reply was that she was feeling good and didn't want to stop. I looked at her rim a few times and it
looked OK (which was surprising to me). Afterwards, I wondered if allowing someone else to help with
patching the tire would have resulted in a disqualification. It also must have been a relatively
challenging contest as I saw one guy walking up a very steep incline alongside his bike with his
shoes in his hands. Or he was just inexperienced or injured perhaps.

Quoted message said:

In an unrelated matter, is it a driving violation if my trunk rack covers up my license plate?

Any and all advice is welcome, many thanks.

(ANunziat1215) said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it OK
to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel?

My experience in recent years is that it's physically impossible to ride a bike with a flat tire. As
soon as we get good biking weather around here, I'm going to start carrying two spare inner tubes, a
wrench, and a pump with me at all times so I can fix a flat right there on the spot.

--

I think. Therefore, I am not a conservative! ------ todayslastword.orgtodayslastword.orgOpen ↗ -------

(Paul Southworth) said:

3. tire patches and glue

I had a kit with patches and glue, but the glue wasn't worth [censored]. Elmer's would have probably
worked better.

--

I think. Therefore, I am not a conservative! ------ todayslastword.orgtodayslastword.orgOpen ↗ -------

Quoted message said:

Pinch Flats: Pinch flats occur when the tire collapses against the rim and the tube is pinched
and cut. These are also called snake bites because they are two small punctures that a snake
might make.

I can't attest to the accuracy of this, but I have heard that people have actually died from fixing
flats on car's caused by actual snake bites. Apparently, the person's fixing the flats had cuts on
there hands and some of the toxin entered their blood stream without them knowing it. If true, I
suppose it could happen on a bike tire also. Does that mean we need a snake bike kit with all this
other stuff. :-)

ANunziat1215 said:

Say I'm out riding my new Trek 7200 and 10 miles away from my apartment I get a flat tire. Is it
OK to ride the bike back to my apartment or will that bust up the wheel?

Not ok. Read the following:

sheldonbrown.comflats.htmlOpen ↗

You should practice removing and installing the rear wheel and tire in the comfort of your home so
that when you have to do it on the road you will know what to do. Be sure to carry a good frame
pump, spare tube, and tire levers on every ride.

Art Harris

Harris said:

You should practice removing and installing the rear wheel and tire in the comfort of your home so
that when you have to do it on the road you will know what to do. Be sure to carry a good frame
pump, spare tube, and tire levers on every ride.

If you practice (or at least are aware of how you will be going about
it), then you are less likely to panic/rush thru the repair when you do get a flat. By not rushing
through the patching process, you ensure it's on right the first time and not have to do it over
again. Always make sure the glue is still useable (check tube from time to time).

Something Stinks In Here said:

(Paul Southworth) said:

3. tire patches and glue

I had a kit with patches and glue, but the glue wasn't worth [censored]. Elmer's would have probably
worked better.

That's odd, because most of the glue in a decent kit is pretty good if you use it according to
directions.

But patching a tube on the road is a back-up. Take extra tubes with you, and you will not have to
worry about the glue until you get home.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | What is objectionable, and what is dangerous about extremists is _`\(,_ | not that they are
extreme, but that they are intolerant. (_)/ (_) | --Robert F. Kennedy

David L. Johnson David L. Johnson said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

3. tire patches and glue

I had a kit with patches and glue, but the glue wasn't worth [censored]. Elmer's would have probably
worked better.

That's odd, because most of the glue in a decent kit is pretty good if you use it according to
directions.

I used to path 2 tires a week with no problems, except in very cold weather when I'd have to warm up
the glue inside my coat for a few minutes first.

Recently though, on the rare occasion I have to patch a tire, I've found the glue did not work.
Something has changed about it to make it nonfunctional. It's also possible that I'm just using very
old glue, since this happens only about once a year today, what with fat tires and cleaner roads in
Ohio than in NJ.

But maybe some sniffable ingredient has been removed that also made the stuff stick to the rubber.
They ruined quick-drying airplane glue that way long ago.
--
Ron Hardin [email hidden]

On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Ron Hardin <[email hidden]> wrote in :"]news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Recently though, on the rare occasion I have to patch a tire, I've found the glue did not work.
Something has changed about it to make it nonfunctional.

I've patched many tires over many years. As long as the glue is still liquid, I've never had a
problem using it. Just follow the directions and allow the glue to dry somewhat before applying the
patch. The glue can dry out in the tube after it's opened, so I always carry an unopened tube on my
bike. If I have to break the seal, I'll use that tube in my home repair kit (where I do most of my
tube patching).

Ken

Ron Hardin said:

But maybe some sniffable ingredient has been removed that also made the stuff stick to the rubber.
They ruined quick-drying airplane glue that way long ago.

It figures that they'd ruin a perfectly good product using the excuse that people might sniff it.

--

I think. Therefore, I am not a conservative! ------ todayslastword.orgtodayslastword.orgOpen ↗ -------

Something Stinks In Here <[email hidden]> wrote:
: It figures that they'd ruin a perfectly good product using the excuse that people might sniff it.

here's hopin': you can, umm, huff gasoline.
--
david reuteler [email hidden]

An alternative suggestion: Use thorn-resistant tubes. I've had them on all my bikes and trailers for
the last 5 years. I recently fixed the 2nd flat tire I've had in all that time. Before that, I
averaged 3 flats a week. Of course, they all came when either 1. I had to be somewhere at a certaIn
time. 2. It was raining and cold. 3. I found that the tube was beyond repair and my spare tube had a
defective valve.

Thorn-resistant tubes cost a little more and are 2 to 3 times as heavy as standard tubes. But,
I don't notice the extra weight and once you get rolling, I don't think you would be able to
measure any added effort that was needed to maintain speed. The assurance that I won't likely
have a flat and be delayed, is worth a lot to me and it makes bicycle travel much more
dependable and feasible for me. Another benefit is that they ooze air more slowly and I have
to reinflate my tires less often. I also speculate that the added sturdiness of them increases
the overall strength of the wheel assembly and the tires and rims may have less strain and
last longer.

Steve McDonald

I use to buy those strips you place inside the tire to make it more puncture resistant. It works. On
a long trip, it provided the added peace of mind. I didn't really want to deal with a flat on a 100
mile trip out in the middle of nowhere. You want as little to go wrong as possible when doing such
distances.

(Steve McDonald) said:

An alternative suggestion: Use thorn-resistant tubes. I've had them on all my bikes and
trailers for the last 5 years. I recently fixed the 2nd flat tire I've had in all that time.
Before that, I averaged 3 flats a week. Of course, they all came when either 1. I had to be
somewhere at a certaIn time. 2. It was raining and cold. 3. I found that the tube was beyond
repair and my spare tube had a defective valve.

Thorn-resistant tubes cost a little more and are 2 to 3 times as heavy as standard tubes. But,
I don't notice the extra weight and once you get rolling, I don't think you would be able to
measure any added effort that was needed to maintain speed. The assurance that I won't likely
have a flat and be delayed, is worth a lot to me and it makes bicycle travel much more
dependable and feasible for me. Another benefit is that they ooze air more slowly and I have to
reinflate my tires less often. I also speculate that the added sturdiness of them increases the
overall strength of the wheel assembly and the tires and rims may have less strain and last
longer.

Steve McDonald

Maybe the problem is the tubes and not the glue. I bought several tubes mail order that had a harder
finish than the rubbery feel I was used to. (It's hard to describe, but they felt sort of
plastic-like). I couldn't get patches to stick to them very well at all. A second layer of glue,
after the first one dried, helped a bit, but not enough.

I called the place that I bought them from and spoke to their technical dept. They said that they
had heard a few complaints about these tubes. I sent them back and bought tubes and a repair kit
from my LBS. No problems since.

Patch it and ride on, Don

"Something Stinks In Here" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:3e6031b9.5067552@localhost...

Quoted message said:

(Paul Southworth) said:

3. tire patches and glue

I had a kit with patches and glue, but the glue wasn't worth [censored]. Elmer's would have probably
worked better.

--

I think. Therefore, I am not a conservative! ------ todayslastword.orgtodayslastword.orgOpen ↗ -------

Jbenkert111 said:

I can't attest to the accuracy of this, but I have heard that people have actually died from
fixing flats on car's caused by actual snake bites. Apparently, the person's fixing the flats had
cuts on there hands and some of the toxin entered their blood stream without them knowing it.

This sounds suspiciously like an urban legend - or in this case maybe a rural legend. I wouldn't
want to run into a snake that could bite through a car tire! Being bitten by a snake while fixing a
flat tire: now *that* I could believe.
--

John Foltz --- O _ Baron --- _O _ V-Rex 24/63 --- _\\/\-%)
_________(_)`=()___________________(_)= (_)_____

In article said:

Jbenkert111 said:

I can't attest to the accuracy of this, but I have heard that people have actually died from
fixing flats on car's caused by actual snake bites. Apparently, the person's fixing the
flats had cuts on there hands and some of the toxin entered their blood stream without them
knowing it.

This sounds suspiciously like an urban legend - or in this case maybe a rural legend. I wouldn't
want to run into a snake that could bite through a car tire! Being bitten by a snake while fixing
a flat tire: now *that* I could believe.

Well, maybe you're driving somewhere infested with Gaboon vipers. They're almost as dangerous as
vinshield vipers.