Flat Tire

I got suited up to ride the bike to work this morning, but it had a flat tire. NOW it occurs to me I could have taken the other bike. But I didn't.

The high was over 105 today, the hottest day of the year. It is supposed to drop down ten degrees tomorrow, and another ten degrees on Wednesday.

I finished Breath, by Donna Jo Napoli. A rather depressing book. I started a Nicholas Sparks book today. I forget the title, but it takes place around Beaufort, North Carolina, a town that I LOVE the name of. Beaufort. It makes me giggle a little. I am a little familiar with place, having read an article in Model Railroader (January 1990 issue) about the Beaufort & Morehead "Route Of The Jets" railroad. It's a 3.17 mile long short line that hauls fuel from the unloading facility for eventual transfer to the Navel Air Station. An article on Wikipedia shows the little line has gone through some changes since then. Here is one of their choo-choos.

I haven't fixed the flat yet, so I SUPPOSE I will drive tomorrow, too.

Flat Tired

Put on a new tire, get a flat.

Look what greeted me when I tried to leave work this afternoon!



On the other hand, click to the BIG image and noticed how clean the chain is!

There's the culprit!



A little tiny bent piece of wire caused all this grief.



Fortunately, I had the foresight to mount this repair stand at work. Makes the whole tire repair thing go a lot smoother.



And I had a pleasant, uneventful, ride home.

Saturday I was geocaching in the San Diego River at Santee. Again. I saw this abandoned bicycle. It looks EXACTLY like the bike my daughter had, that my son had stolen when he was a-visiting a friend. Same color, same brand. Except this one is a girl's frame.



Speaking of geocaching, I had a personal victory Sunday. We wuz up on Mt. Laguna,looking down at the desert. I had noticed there was a geocache up here earlier, but due to a lack of decisional motivation on all our parts, I did not write down the co-ordinates,nor even bring the GPSr. So we wuz walking around, leaning into the big breeze, and there was even a bit of snowball tossing, when I says to myself, "Hey, self, just for the heck of it, go look over there." And so I did, and so I found the cache.

But, instead of garlands of flowers and a ticker-tape parade, today I find myself scraping what was hopefully doggy poo off the sidewalk right in front of the library door, and fixing a flated bicycle tube. Oh woe, oh woe.

Oddly Wednesday

It might rain tomorrow (20% for, 80% against), it definitely might Friday (60% for). The Weather Underground says is the wind is calm here, but I see trees moving about...

I plugged in the battery recharger this afternoon when I got home and nudged the front tire on Jamis as I did so. It PROMPTLY sprung a leak. What the deal is, man?

I'm going to play Desktop Tower Defense now. Maybe I'll fix it later...

Flat Thursday

I WOULD have ridden Jamis this morning, since my leg is only slightly with pain, but the front tire was flat. I shall have to investigate this later...

Instead, I rode the Schwinn. I've had trouble figuring out how to mount the LED blinky in the front, but I figured out a BRILLIANT solution which I shall have to implement. HINT--It involves the use of a Twofish Lockblock, a dowel, and a screw.

Saw this guy in the bike lane this afternoon. After passing him it occurred to me that I could make a BRILLIANT political rant about Republican McCain supporters, so I made a BIG LOOP (about a mile) around and back again so I could score a pic.



Turned out it was a Ray Lutz (Democrat) supporter blocking the bike lane... Is my face red (or that blue?)!

Ten miles on the Schwinn today.

Saturday

Got up late, at eight a.m., but it still seemed overcast, so I went down to the Dam and back again.

I followed a fellow in the bike lane on Fletcher for a while. He looked dressed for a restaurant-type job. I passed him in The Construction Zone when he took the pedestrian path behind the concrete barrier, and I took The Lane.

After coasting down Swallow at a great rate of speed, I turned left on Cuyamaca (Spellcheck suggestions: Camacho, Curacao, and Macaulay.) I decided I was thirsty, I reached down, NOTHING! I forgot the water bottle again!



It was still overcast when I got to the Father J. Serra Trail (road).


Looks better larger, click to image to visit my zooomr page!

There were not as many fellow travelers on the multi-use path as I would have thought for late on a Saturday morning, probably around 20 all told.

Laboring up Jackson Drive Hill in the 24/24 combination (You KNOW I just fake this gear stuff, I have so many spread sheets with graphed gears, I can't EVEN remember which one is correct!).

Anyway, I got a flat. A little piece of thorn obviously sticking through the tire, into the tube. You can see it here, the un-black/grey spot on the tire.



So I sat on the sidewalk and fixed it. A fellow on a bike commiserated with me as he passed. I just replaced the tube with my spare. The spare was a little smaller, but it certainly went in easier, as a result!

Oh, did I mention, the flat was on the FRONT! So much easier to work on!

Of course, things were going TOO smoothly, so the Zefal HPx pump decided to not work very well. If "they" sold pump mounts separately I could have brought the pump I've on Jamis. But they do not. I managed to get 35 pounds into the tube, and that was good enough. The Zefal might just need a new rubber, I don't know.

Oh, and it started to sprinkle!



You notice the clear spot. I kept that dry with my BUTT!

I pulled up next to an old VW bug at a light. At the next light the VW was sitting in the right-turn lane, dead in the water, as it were. I swerved around them to make the right. I COULD have said "Get a BIKE!" as I passed, but I didn't.

Here we see two drops of Genuine California Rain Water (Summer) on my glasses.



I think that's enough of this folderal for now!

Mileage for the ride was around 20 miles. Fifty miles for the week, so far.

Foggy and Flat

It was kind of foggy this morning, so it was cool, but not THAT cool.



At the top of the grade I felt the wobbles coming. Oh, no, not ANOTHER flat! Yes, another flat on the rear tire of Jamis!

I was so disgusted I didn't even fix it, I pushed it the mile to work. When I got to work the fire alarms were ringing, so I had to stand around outside till they got THAT sorted out.

I pulled the tube. It had a nice puncture, not one of those hidden pinholes. I couldn't find anything sticking out of or through the tire. The Big Swede dropped by and took a look, too. He found a little piece of glass in the tread, but opined that it was not sticking through the tire. He also offered the opinion that maybe I had pinched the tube.

Hey, pinch THIS, buddy!

The Squeakycyclist does NOT pinch tubes!

So, I don't know...

Found this little guy the other day, in the bike lane.



Put the Presta/Schrader Rim Adapter in the Schwinn front rim last night.



Later!

Flat Tuesday x2

Hit a pothole and some speed this morning on the way to work, and, sure enough, the tube went flat a few hundred yards down the road.

Front wheel, for a change. The one which requires one to un-screw the skewer a couple inches (some sort of safety feature), then battle one's way past the low-rider racks (which I never use, so why don't I take them off? (Because I'm going to bike Denmark, some day!)).

Replaced the tube with one that Steve the M. gave me the other week.

Pumped it up. Hiss, hiss, it goes flat.

>Insert your favorite curse words here<

Replace the tube with one of MINE, pumped it up, no problemo.

Only took twenty minutes. Probably some kind of record!

Later I thanked Steve the M. for the tube. He INSISTED I give it back, he is going to return it. I said, your lady friend FOUND that tube on the side of the road. Just because it was rolled up and LOOKED new, does not mean you can return it. He is going to return it. I accede.

Double Your Pleasure

It was surprisingly warm this morning when I headed out on a ride that would eventually lead to the dam. I thought.

I still wore the helmet liner, and the glove liners, but no saggy leg'n'arm warmers today!

I wandered around, not sticking to the Dam Ride route, but crossing it forth and back, picking up cans all the while. Ended with sixteen cans today, too!

Eventually got to Santee and headed west on Prospect. Near the trailer park I felt the front tire getting bumpy. A flat! Oh, well, it's on the front, that's much easier (and cleaner) to repair than a rear.

Took a look at the tire. Thorns! Yikes! Several! How did the rear tire avoid picking up any?

Took off the front wheel, sat on the ground and examined the tire. Noticed rear tire is now flat, too.

Took picture.




The front tube had four punctures, which took all my small patches.

The rear I replaced with the spare tube. Which was a long stem Presta. Very difficult to get in and out.

After much work, and fielding offers of assistance from passing cyclists, I finally got everything back together and pumped up. Love that pump!

I decided to pass on the dam, and take a shortcut home. The shortcut is dirt, but is not a problem, as long as it's dry.

There is a geocache there that I found, but have not found the log yet. I checked again, still can't find it.

I've seen three bees visit the BRIGHT YELLOW JACKET, apparently thinking it is some kind of GIANT FLOWER.

So, the mileage for today is just over twenty miles.

Shopping List

• 100 pack of Rema patches
• 1 can tire talc (I BELIEVE!)
  

Flat Tire, Again and Again

Rode the Jamis to work. Had a flat tire on the way to work. Pushed the bike to a comfortable grassy spot with something to sit. Replaced the LONG STEM Presta tube with and old SHORT STEM Presta tube, one that had several patches already. Oh, and of course it was the REAR wheel.



At work I located the holes, TWO of them! Snake bite!

Of course, as I was pushing the bike out the door after work, I realized it was FLAT AGAIN!!

Instead of fixing right there, I pushed it over to Mr. M.'s domain. I started to pump it up with the fabulous Topeak pump. Mr. M. was NOT impressed, and whipped out his Zefal HPx to top off the tube.

I had to stop and pump FIVE times coming home, and even suffered the indignity of crossing a busy intersection in the crosswalk, pushing the bike, to avoid having the tube go flat while in traffic.

But, I perservered, and made it home ok.

Now I need to go out to the garage and FIX IT CORRECTLY!!