A Tale of The Trail

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent over
my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total distance
ridden while minimizing net distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but only
reaching 5 miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides, etc.....

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc. especially since I don't use
cell phones)

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

Quoted message said:

This is a story about amity on a multi use trail.

Last Sunday, while riding north on the Van Fleet Trail, here in central Florida, A pace line of
lycra clad roadies came by in the opposite direction.They were moving "okay".

On my way back, fewer of them passed on their return trip. At the trail head, I learned what
happened to the missing rider. It seems that he

kicked

Quoted message said:

up a branch in the trail which lodged between his brake and tire, wearing

an

Quoted message said:

inch long spot in the side wall in nothing flat. He had tubes but no

tires.

Quoted message said:

Well!! This is nothing that a cell phone and credit card won't cure, right???

Wrongo, boyo!! It seems that the cab company needs a verifieable address

at

Quoted message said:

the pickup point and at the delivery point. They wouldn't dispatch a cab. (It was Sunday, so
superiors were few and far between.No one to appeal

to.)

Quoted message said:

I looked for my piece of tire that I carry for an emergency boot, but

didn't

Quoted message said:

have it with me. I had ridden to the trail , so I had no vehicle.

We were talking to some teens about the situation ,when their Mother got back from her roller
blade session. We told her the details. She said "So you need a ride to the other end, eh?? I'll
take you". Mind you, that's over sixty miles.

Who says there are no good people left in this world??
--
Miles of Smiles,

Tom Blum Winter Haven, Florida Homebuilts: SWB Tour Easy Clone Speed Machine Clone High Racer
Clone www.gate.net/~teblum

What a turtle and snake story that is , Tom!!! Cell phones work on that trail? Taxicabs? A good old
cutting horse maybe. Love that rail. You are likely never to encounter a human being on it or
around it.

I never carry an extra tire but I probably should. Poor wedgie. Normally they don't carry a tube or
a pump. Some Deliverance guy out of the Green Swamp sees one of those fruity clown suited girly men
and they would never be seen again.

Always carry an extra tire :-))

Rod Kuehl Strada Riverview, FL

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

Quoted message said:

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent
over my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total
distance ridden while minimizing

net

Quoted message said:

distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but only reaching

5

Quoted message said:

miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides,

etc.....

Quoted message said:

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc.

especially

Quoted message said:

since I don't use cell phones)

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

Quoted message said:

This is a story about amity on a multi use trail.

Last Sunday, while riding north on the Van Fleet Trail, here in central Florida, A pace line of
lycra clad roadies came by in the opposite direction.They were moving "okay".

On my way back, fewer of them passed on their return trip. At the trail head, I learned what
happened to the missing rider. It seems that he

kicked

Quoted message said:

up a branch in the trail which lodged between his brake and tire,

wearing

Quoted message said:

an

Quoted message said:

inch long spot in the side wall in nothing flat. He had tubes but no

tires.

Quoted message said:

Well!! This is nothing that a cell phone and credit card won't cure, right???

Wrongo, boyo!! It seems that the cab company needs a verifieable address

at

Quoted message said:

the pickup point and at the delivery point. They wouldn't dispatch a

cab.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

(It was Sunday, so superiors were few and far between.No one to appeal

to.)

Quoted message said:

I looked for my piece of tire that I carry for an emergency boot, but

didn't

Quoted message said:

have it with me. I had ridden to the trail , so I had no vehicle.

We were talking to some teens about the situation ,when their Mother got back from her roller
blade session. We told her the details. She said

"So

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

you need a ride to the other end, eh?? I'll take you". Mind you, that's over sixty miles.

Who says there are no good people left in this world??
--
Miles of Smiles,

Tom Blum Winter Haven, Florida Homebuilts: SWB Tour Easy Clone Speed Machine Clone High Racer
Clone www.gate.net/~teblum

Jay Adair said:

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent
over my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total distance
ridden while minimizing net distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but only
reaching 5 miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides, etc.....

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc. especially since I don't use
cell phones)

Pitiable timidity and reprehensible cycling incompetence.

First, if you ride inflatable tires then you will get flats. They're not hard to fix, and knowing
how is, I think, a prerequisite to riding. So stop riding until you've learned how, then always
carry a pump, spare tube, patch kit, tire levers, some tire boot material, and a simple combo tool.

As for mechanical difficulties, hey, bikes are very simple machines. The probability of having a
mechanical problem which (a) you can't solve yourself with the simple tools you carry and (b)
completely disables the bike so that you can't get home on it is much smaller than the probability
of finding yourself in the same pickle when driving your car.

Injury crashes are another matter, but as long as you are on a road that is traveled at all, help
will always come along.

I have no empathy for your plaint. Ever since I was big enough to ride my bike more than a block
from home, my main objective was to ride it as far from home as time and daylight allowed. I took
great pleasure, as a young child, in exploring by bike the large city I lived in. What a sense of
freedom it gave me! And now, a half-century later, my greatest pleasures in cycling are in long
tours and companionable group riding. (Of course, any responsible club or group requires
participants to carry the means and have the ability to repair flats).

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

Quoted message said:

Jay Adair said:

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent
over my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total
distance ridden while minimizing net distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but
only reaching 5 miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides, etc.....

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc. especially since I don't use
cell phones)

Pitiable timidity and reprehensible cycling incompetence.

First, if you ride inflatable tires then you will get flats. They're not hard to fix, and
knowing how is, I think, a prerequisite to riding. So stop riding until you've learned how, then
always carry a pump, spare tube, patch kit, tire levers, some tire boot material, and a simple
combo tool.

As for mechanical difficulties, hey, bikes are very simple machines. The probability of having a
mechanical problem which (a) you can't solve yourself with the simple tools you carry and (b)
completely disables the bike so that you can't get home on it is much smaller than the probability
of finding yourself in the same pickle when driving your car.

Injury crashes are another matter, but as long as you are on a road that is traveled at all, help
will always come along.

I have no empathy for your plaint. Ever since I was big enough to ride my bike more than a block
from home, my main objective was to ride it as far from home as time and daylight allowed. I took
great pleasure, as a young child, in exploring by bike the large city I lived in. What a sense of
freedom it gave me! And now, a half-century later, my greatest pleasures in cycling are in long
tours and companionable group riding. (Of course, any responsible club or group requires
participants to carry the means and have the ability to repair flats).

While a bit strident, he's right. Knowing how to change a flat can be learned in 15 minutes from
looking on the net. It DOES give you a BIG sense of freedom to not be constrained like that. Try it.
You'll like it. 🙂

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

Quoted message said:

Jay Adair said:

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent
over my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total
distance ridden while minimizing

net

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but only

reaching 5

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides,

etc.....

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc.

especially

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

since I don't use cell phones)

Pitiable timidity and reprehensible cycling incompetence.

Timidity? I'm a 20 year firefighter in a one of the ten largest American cities. I've been in
situations that would make most guys nuts drop off and run the other direction. I'll admit to many
weaknesses, but not timidity. Incompetence? Because I'd rather not work on my bicycle on the side of
the road? Personal preference....just like not using a cell phone.

Quoted message said:

First, if you ride inflatable tires then you will get flats. They're not hard to fix, and
knowing how is, I think, a prerequisite to riding. So stop riding until you've learned how, then
always carry a pump, spare tube, patch kit, tire levers, some tire boot material, and a simple
combo tool.

Didn't say I didn't know how. Just said I dreaded it, the inconvience thing.

Quoted message said:

As for mechanical difficulties, hey, bikes are very simple machines. The probability of having a
mechanical problem which (a) you can't solve yourself with the simple tools you carry and (b)
completely disables the bike so that you can't get home on it is much smaller than the probability
of finding yourself in the same pickle when driving your car.

I remember breaking off my handle bar stem once. Wouldn't have mattered what tools I carried, unless
it included a welding unit.....I have towing coverage for my car.

Quoted message said:

Injury crashes are another matter, but as long as you are on a road that is traveled at all, help
will always come along.

And assuming it isn't a life-threatening injury (a broken rib puncturing a lung, laccerated liver,
cervical spine injury, etc.) that eventual car will be a welcome sight.

Quoted message said:

I have no empathy for your plaint. Ever since I was big enough to ride my bike more than a block
from home, my main objective was to ride it as far from home as time and daylight allowed. I took
great pleasure, as a young child, in exploring by bike the large city I lived in. What a sense of
freedom it gave me! And now, a half-century later, my greatest pleasures in cycling are in long
tours and companionable group riding. (Of course, any responsible club or group requires
participants to carry the means and have the ability to repair flats).

So far I much prefer solo riding. A group of riders just doesn't appeal to
me. I ride when, where, and as long as I prefer. A bit selfish, I'm sure...and nobody tells me
what to carry.

But, hey, that's just me,

Jay

By building a small fire, the credit card could be softened enough to form a reinforcing patch
for the tire.

Another trick is to use a dollar bill wrapped around the tube. Dollar bills are pretty strong, and
will keep the tube from bulging out of the torn tire.

By using either cash or credit this problem could have been fixed well enough to allow the road
biker to return home riding his bike.

Quoted message said:

From: "swamprun" [email hidden] Date: 11/18/03 7:29 PM Pacific Standard Time Message-id:
<[email hidden]>

By building a small fire, the credit card could be softened enough to form a reinforcing patch for
the tire.

Another trick is to use a dollar bill wrapped around the tube. Dollar bills are pretty strong, and
will keep the tube from bulging out of the torn tire.

Does anyone (besides me) carry a needle and thread to sew up a slashed tire?

After getting a 3" slice on my front tire from hitting a discarded kickstand while hauling my kids
to the park, I used a needle and thread from my emergency
+ first aid kit to sew up the gash.

The thread was dental floss that I keep around for doing any temporary or emergency repairs - rips
in clothing or whatever. The repair allowed us to complete the trip to the park and get home again
with no problems.

Since then I've made sure that a needle and some floss is always included in my bike repair kit.

Danxerox

I've never heard that one, but it sounds like a good Idea sort of a tire Triage. Denny in Sayre, PA
"Bent but not Broken"

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

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

From: "swamprun" [email hidden] Date: 11/18/03 7:29 PM Pacific Standard Time Message-id:
<[email hidden]>

By building a small fire, the credit card could be softened enough to

form

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

a reinforcing patch for the tire.

Another trick is to use a dollar bill wrapped around the tube. Dollar bills are pretty strong,
and will keep the tube from bulging out of the torn tire.

Does anyone (besides me) carry a needle and thread to sew up a slashed

tire?

Quoted message said:

After getting a 3" slice on my front tire from hitting a discarded

kickstand

Quoted message said:

while hauling my kids to the park, I used a needle and thread from my

emergency

Quoted message said:

+ first aid kit to sew up the gash.

The thread was dental floss that I keep around for doing any temporary or emergency repairs - rips
in clothing or whatever. The repair allowed us to complete the trip to the park and get home again
with no problems.

Since then I've made sure that a needle and some floss is always included

in my

Quoted message said:

bike repair kit.

Danxerox

swamprun said:

By building a small fire, the credit card could be softened enough to form a reinforcing patch for
the tire.

Another trick is to use a dollar bill wrapped around the tube. Dollar bills are pretty strong, and
will keep the tube from bulging out of the torn tire.

True story:

We were out on a club ride. Among us was a particularly obnoxious, super-competitive, fairly rich
woman. She had just bought a brand new set of $700 wheels.

She flats. We stop. She pulls a 12 penny nail from her wheel - this thing had gone clear through the
tire, tube, and rim, and was sticking up like a broken spoke.

Someone asks her if she has a dollar bill to fix the hole in her tire so she can get home.

To which about 5 of replied, in near unison, "It will take about 400 of those to fix that flat!" And
burst out laughing.

"When your spirit is sour, these things will happen."

-Dondo

Captain Dondo <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>... <snip>

Quoted message said:

True story:

We were out on a club ride. Among us was a particularly obnoxious, super-competitive, fairly rich
woman. She had just bought a brand new set of $700 wheels.

She flats. We stop. She pulls a 12 penny nail from her wheel - this thing had gone clear through
the tire, tube, and rim, and was sticking up like a broken spoke.

Owww... I've had that happen to me. The nail got hammered in hard enough that the tire remained
sealed. Definitely a lumpy ride, though. I pulled over, tried to pull the nail out and it wouldn't
budge. So I called my wife and had her pick me up.

Once home, I removed the rear wheel, deflated the tire (it still held air) and applied pliers to
nail. The nail wouldn't budge. Looked over the situation and figured I had nothing to lose, so I
removed the cassette, removed all the spokes, and tried hammering the nail out from the inside.

The nail wouldn't freaking budge!

I ended up buying a new rim, tire and tube and donating the old rim (a good Mavic MA40) with tire
and tube still attached to a local bike shop.

Jeff

Jay Adair said:

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

Quoted message said:

Jay Adair said:

This is why I try not to ride further from home than I am willing to walk back with a recumbent
over my shoulder....I zig and zag back and forth on neighborhood streets to maximize total
distance ridden while minimizing

net

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

distance from the house....usually riding 20 - 25 total, but only

reaching 5

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

miles as the crow flies from home....

Of course, this pretty much eliminates tours, trails, group rides,

etc.....

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Jay (Dreading the first flat, crash, mechanical malfunction, etc.

especially

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

since I don't use cell phones)

Pitiable timidity and reprehensible cycling incompetence.

Timidity? I'm a 20 year firefighter in a one of the ten largest American cities. I've been in
situations that would make most guys nuts drop off and run the other direction. I'll admit to many
weaknesses, but not timidity. Incompetence? Because I'd rather not work on my bicycle on the side
of the road? Personal preference....just like not using a cell phone.

Hey, I'm sorry, but just look at the language you used in your original post. It definitely conveys
a tone of range-limiting timidity, fear, and lack of skill, as in "dreading the first flat". If
you've not yet had your first flat, and are dreading it, then it is reasonable to guess that you
haven't yet learned to fix one.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

First, if you ride inflatable tires then you will get flats. They're not hard to fix, and
knowing how is, I think, a prerequisite to riding. So stop riding until you've learned how, then
always carry a pump, spare tube, patch kit, tire levers, some tire boot material, and a simple
combo tool.

Didn't say I didn't know how. Just said I dreaded it, the inconvience thing.

Ah yes, inconvenience is a dreadful eventuality. Almost enough to keep one off a bike. And
certainly, carrying your recumbent five miles home on your shoulder is far preferable to taking five
minutes to change a tube!

I had a flat (in my car) on the San Francisco/Oakland Bay Bridge last week and was soooo glad I had
my cell phone with me.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

As for mechanical difficulties, hey, bikes are very simple machines. The probability of having a
mechanical problem which (a) you can't solve yourself with the simple tools you carry and (b)
completely disables the bike so that you can't get home on it is much smaller than the
probability of finding yourself in the same pickle when driving your car.

I remember breaking off my handle bar stem once. Wouldn't have mattered what tools I carried,
unless it included a welding unit.....I have towing coverage for my car.

But without a cell phone you might have to walk a long way to call for a tow.....better carry your
bike on the car, just in case.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Injury crashes are another matter, but as long as you are on a road that is traveled at all, help
will always come along.

And assuming it isn't a life-threatening injury (a broken rib puncturing a lung, laccerated liver,
cervical spine injury, etc.) that eventual car will be a welcome sight.

Quoted message said:

I have no empathy for your plaint. Ever since I was big enough to ride my bike more than a block
from home, my main objective was to ride it as far from home as time and daylight allowed. I took
great pleasure, as a young child, in exploring by bike the large city I lived in. What a sense of
freedom it gave me! And now, a half-century later, my greatest pleasures in cycling are in long
tours and companionable group riding. (Of course, any responsible club or group requires
participants to carry the means and have the ability to repair flats).

So far I much prefer solo riding. A group of riders just doesn't appeal to
me. I ride when, where, and as long as I prefer. A bit selfish, I'm sure...and nobody tells me
what to carry.

Hah, again, you are probably not expressing yourself very well, but this last statement conveys the
tone of a stubbornly petulant child. It is not a question of being told what to carry, but rather a
rational consideration of what one ought to carry to minimize danger and inconvenience while
enjoying the adventure of far-ranging rides, far beyond the pitiful limitations that you set for
yourself, as expressed in your original post.

Quoted message said:

But, hey, that's just me,

Yes, I guess that's you--courageous and competent, but with a strangely limited idea of cycling that
I would never understand.

Ron

"Jay Adair" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>... <snip>

Quoted message said:

Didn't say I didn't know how. Just said I dreaded it, the inconvience thing.

I'm with Jay- fixing bikes by the side of the road isn't something that's enjoyable in the best of
circumstances.

Hell- I spent five years repairing other people's bikes in a shop (and another ten years in the
bicycle business). I've made my offerings to the Bicycle Gods. I just want to ride when I want to
and stop riding when I want to. (Except when I get a nail driven through the tire, tube, and rim.)

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

As for mechanical difficulties, hey, bikes are very simple machines. The probability of having a
mechanical problem which (a) you can't solve yourself with the simple tools you carry and (b)
completely disables the bike so that you can't get home on it is much smaller than the
probability of finding yourself in the same pickle when driving your car.

I remember breaking off my handle bar stem once. Wouldn't have mattered what tools I carried,
unless it included a welding unit.....I have towing coverage for my car.

I can recall John Williams telling me that he had the stem on his homebuilt lowracer break while on
the Seattle-to-Portland 200 mile ride. Fortunately, he was 1/4 mile from the finish. :-)

Jeff

Roadside bike fixes are among the easiest troubles you can get into and out of, vehiclewise. Bikes
are simple and the fixes are very diverse. And usually not even that timeconsuming. Part of cycling
is the fixtime. Why regret it? A simple toolkit with simple spares can fix SO much on a bike. C'mon,
folks, buck up! : )

I fixed a broken frame with wire and a stick. I fixed a broken bar/stem with a whittled stick jammed
into the hole. A stick is a TOTALLY easy fix for most any bar/stem disaster.

Duct tape works GREAT for all kinds of tire/boot trouble.

Most uprighters I know carry toolkit/spare. Benters, too, for that matter. Then they don't worry. A
little unplanned stop is usually quite refreshing actually. Even if it's hot. Find a shade tree,
orient yourself and sort things out. That's bikin'!

--

Jeff Potter
****
*Out Your Backdoor * outyourbackdoor.comoutyourbackdoor.comOpen ↗ publisher of outdoor/indoor do-it-yourself
culture... ...offering "small world" views on bikes, bows, books, movies... ...rare books on ski,
bike, boat culture, plus a Gulf Coast thriller about smalltown smuggling ... more radical novels
coming up! ...original downloadable music ... and articles galore! plus national "Off the Beaten
Path" travel forums! HOLY SMOKES!

Yep. Learn to fix it on the road, there won't always be a sag wagon to take you home.

Last August I bent my rear deraileur whilst changing a p*nct*re in my rear tire... 40 miles from
home. I discovered the bent deraileur when I reached the next steep hill and shifted the chain ...
into the spokes. Oh oh! Off the bike, turn it over, mess with the adjustments, still didn't work
right, but I got it to where I could finish the ride (ten more miles of uphill before a blinding
three mile descent). I was exhausted because I couldn't use my lowest gear, but it was still
working. My ride partner called for the sag wagon because we were 2 hours later than expected (due
to my snail-like pace up hill) and he had an appointment.

The next day, with the bike on the workstand, it was a simple fix to correct the problem for real.
There shouldn't be much on a bike that you can't fix or work around on the road. If I had to limit
my rides to what I could walk home from, I'd never see any countryside, or car-free roads, or
wildlife, or...

I ride my bike to ride my bike. If it breaks, I fix my bike. It has never seen the inside of the
LBS, except to show it to the owner.

<Chas> Slowly recovering from four injured disks here in No. Calif.