Somehow offended the biking gods…
June 5th, 2009
So I’m trying to bike to work more… Hopefully much much more…
So yesterday I’m all dressed for riding, got my clothes packed, laptop arranged… Grab my bike - flat tire!
Only one spare tube, so I skip riding and stop on my way home for more tubes. I go to fix the flat and discover my tire treads have a hole right through them (rock, or something stuck in it). That’s fine, they’re old (original on the bike) so its probably time for new tires anyways.
So this morning I have new tires and new tubes. I’m all set and ready to bike to work! Nothing seems wrong - I hopped on and got pedaling…
Four miles in, I notice a regular scraping sound. Look down and my tire is bumping against the brake pad. I gently stop and get off the bike… The tire had gotten loose from the rim! Great - I need to deflate the tube and reset the tire…
Barely touch the tire to take a look and - HISSSSSSSSS… now the tire is seated just fine, but the tube is empty (and punctured!)…
Luckily I had a spare, but my little pump is pretty worthless (as I discovered!). Had to walk over a half mile (in bike cleats!) back to The Depot, which thankfully is bike-friendly and has several tire pumps on hand…
Did I not notice myself cutting off a bicyclist, that my bike karma is that bad?!