This event took place on 8/2/08.
Just a short note, here.. i'm still in utah. ..stopped for a construction break with my daughter's house in ogden. internet is sketchy.. pics & ride reports will come later.
But i thought i'd post a little comment about riding a tire flat. I was heading up to ogden a couple of saturdays back, when i got a front flat. I had ridden through the 'hell's backbone' trail, & was just outside of boulder, ut. There was about 25 miles to go, all pavement. I had my cool spoons, but no patch kit or tire pump. I asked a couple of rv'ers if they had a tire pump in their rigs, but no offers.. one of them had bicycles loaded on.. i guess they were trying to help the environment by keeping a motorcycle off the road.
But i did get back on! I just put on my trusty zip ties!
I kept it around 30 in the mountain switchbacks.. elevations were in the 9k range. After about 10 miles of riding, i saw a camper with quads off the road. I stopped & asked if he had a pump, & he generously offered to help. I pumped the tire up, but could hear it losing air fast. I got on the road, but only got a few mile before it was gone. So i continued plodding along on the side of the road. curves are tough with a flat.
I made it into Torrey, ut. which is near capital reef, my destination. The garage was closed, but the convenience store had a patch kit, & air was near, so i commenced the patch.
I found a plastic bucket & tilted the bike onto it for a stand. took off the wheel, tire & tube. A local character stopped by, already full of beer, & offered his observations & running commentary. I patched the hole, which wasn't too big, & pumped the tube up to check for other leaks. My helper was watching closely, & might have bumped the bike, or the bucket just buckled & the bike came down on me, the gallery, & the newly patched tube. My associate helped me reposition the bike back on the bucket with too many assurances that he did not bump the bike. I reassured him that he surely didn't bump it, but the bucket just buckled, like buckets do when supporting a 300# bike.
But now i had a big cut in my tube. I put a bigger patch on it, tested it, then mounted it. It seemed to hold air. I bought my new friend the biggest can of beer they sold at the market, & after a few more stories, bid my farewell. It held up fine through bryce canyon, & made it nearly 100 more miles before i noticed it was flat again. I still had nearly 200 miles to go, it was gettin late, & was to I-15, now. I found a station who let me use their air, took the tire off, & tried to patch it again. The station owner had a bigger patch, & suggested putting it over the old patch, so i did. It seemed to hold. I gave him $10 for his patch & air, then started on the long ride on the freeway.
I tried to keep it under 65, riding behind some slower trucks. But less than 50 miles & i was flat again. There was nothing around, & slim chance of finding a tube, so i shifted my weight back & rode. I-15 is pretty straight, so i could cruise at 60 without much trouble. I made it to Provo & called my daughter. She was coming back with her boyfriend from a bicycle race in Wyoming, & would be several hours before she got home. It was after 8, almost dark, & i still had about 80 miles of freeway.. city freeway.. to go. No point whining. get on the bike & ride. It was pretty stressful.. trucks passing.. lane changing, curves & traffic on a saturday night. I could only do about 60 comfortably. There was no swerving or sudden stops for me, so i had to look ahead & hope to be lucky. I was. No problems.. no trips to the IC unit. City traffic in Ogden was just as tricky.. turns were very difficult. The front would wobble around the corners. It was after 10 when i got in.
Naturally, it would be the front, instead of the rear teraflex, which will run flat easily.
But short of carrying a spare tube, i had no other option. I put a total of about 180 mile running flat, most of which was on the freeway at 60mph. I kept my weight back & avoided sharp movements or braking. I used the rear brake when stopping. I slowed way down when turning.
I think i will add a patch kit & a small bicycle pump to my travelling tools kit. But it is good to know that in a pinch, you can ride it flat. My front was getting a little worn, anyway, so i replaced both the tube & tire when i got to my daughter's house.
It might have been different if i'd have had a lot of weight, but i travel light, & only had 20# or less in my tail bag.
I had just gotten the motion pro aluminum spoons.. they are nice. They make changing a tire in full gear a lot easier. They were pricey, but i was glad i had them, though why have them with no tire patch?
Anyway, i haven't posted much, but will have a few more adventures (misadventures?) upcoming.
I'm looking forward to getting back home, & hope to return in another couple of weeks.
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