70 000 miles

I always knew I would be writing this post, I just never knew when..

At the end of 1997 I mentioned in one of the rec.bicycles.* newsgroups that I had not had a puncture
since 1994. A few people were amazed, others doubted, one even called me a liar.

Well, I can not prove anything, but my puncture free run on the bike continued throughout 1998, 1999
and into the 21st century. In the mid 1990's I was cycling up to 10 000 miles a year, now I am down
to about 4000. I cycle on roads all over Sweden, some of which are not in a perfect state.

I began to wonder if I would ever get another puncture, taking two inner tubes with me started to
seem unnecessary, but I believe in the law according to Sod and if I had refrained from taken inner
tubes I would have punctured for sure.

To add to the authenticity of this posting I can also mention that I am president of a cycling club
and a member of a training group of up to 30 cyclists, some of whom read these newsgroups. I have a
large contact network of cyclists all over Sweden and I am not being presumptuous when I assume that
a lot of frequent recreational cyclists know who I am. Consequently I would find it hard to get a
puncture unnoticed.

So, why this posting. Yes, it happened, the unthinkable occured tonight. I was out with a group of
20 cyclists on a 60 mile ride when my rear wheel suddenly felt strange. First I thought it was a
brake pad sticking and I looked back at it. I was at the back of the group and a slight gap opened
up. I looked again, my tyre was deflating. PUNCTURE! - My first one since the summer of 1994 and
after about 70 000 puncture free miles. My first puncture on the Pinarello Gavia I bought in
February 1995. By the time I realised what had happened the group was so far up the road they didn't
hear my shouts. I changed the inner tube slowly and surely and cycled the remaining 20 miles back
home alone. As nobody actually saw this I could have changed it and not said anything if I had any
interest in making up this story.

I feel I have rejoined the human race today, now I too can get punctures just like everybody else. I
suppose I am going to start getting them all the time now. Watch this space.

I credit several factors for my puncture free run.

1) Luck
2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
3) That I use standard inner tubes
4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
6) That I let some air out the tyres
7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
quality into consideration
8) Luck, luck and more luck.

Garry Jones President Mora Cycling Club English cyclist ResIDING in Sweden

 

>2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
>3) That I use standard inner tubes

and they are...

 

Garry Jones wrote:

> I credit several factors for my puncture free run.
>
> 1) Luck
> 2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
> 3) That I use standard inner tubes
> 4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
> 5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
> 6) That I let some air out the tyres
> 7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
> 8) Luck, luck and more luck.

Congratulations!

I doubt 5 & 6 have anything to do with it, but I would add:
9) That you look where you are going and avoid glass, etc.
10) That you ride a good distance out from side of road to avoid the worst crap

~PB

 

My congrats as well. BTW, are you a tire wiper?

 

Funny - I got a flat today- I also got one last Wednesday, and I got one a week ago Sunday (while
touring in Montreal). I find that Europe tends to have less broken glass and debris on their roads
than the United States.

Garry Jones wrote:

> I always knew I would be writing this post, I just never knew when..
>
> At the end of 1997 I mentioned in one of the rec.bicycles.* newsgroups that I had not had a
> puncture since 1994. A few people were amazed, others doubted, one even called me a liar.
>
> Well, I can not prove anything, but my puncture free run on the bike continued throughout 1998,
> 1999 and into the 21st century. In the mid 1990's I was cycling up to 10 000 miles a year, now I
> am down to about 4000. I cycle on roads all over Sweden, some of which are not in a perfect state.
>
> I began to wonder if I would ever get another puncture, taking two inner tubes with me started to
> seem unnecessary, but I believe in the law according to Sod and if I had refrained from taken
> inner tubes I would have punctured for sure.
>
> To add to the authenticity of this posting I can also mention that I am president of a cycling
> club and a member of a training group of up to 30 cyclists, some of whom read these newsgroups. I
> have a large contact network of cyclists all over Sweden and I am not being presumptuous when I
> assume that a lot of frequent recreational cyclists know who I am. Consequently I would find it
> hard to get a puncture unnoticed.
>
> So, why this posting. Yes, it happened, the unthinkable occured tonight. I was out with a group of
> 20 cyclists on a 60 mile ride when my rear wheel suddenly felt strange. First I thought it was a
> brake pad sticking and I looked back at it. I was at the back of the group and a slight gap opened
> up. I looked again, my tyre was deflating. PUNCTURE! - My first one since the summer of 1994 and
> after about 70 000 puncture free miles. My first puncture on the Pinarello Gavia I bought in
> February 1995. By the time I realised what had happened the group was so far up the road they
> didn't hear my shouts. I changed the inner tube slowly and surely and cycled the remaining 20
> miles back home alone. As nobody actually saw this I could have changed it and not said anything
> if I had any interest in making up this story.
>
> I feel I have rejoined the human race today, now I too can get punctures just like everybody else.
> I suppose I am going to start getting them all the time now. Watch this space.
>
> I credit several factors for my puncture free run.
>
> 1) Luck
> 2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
> 3) That I use standard inner tubes
> 4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
> 5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
> 6) That I let some air out the tyres
> 7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
> 8) Luck, luck and more luck.
>
> Garry Jones President Mora Cycling Club English cyclist ResIDING in Sweden

 

RE/
>1) Luck
>2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
>3) That I use standard inner tubes
>4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
>5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
>6) That I let some air out the tyres
>7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
>8) Luck, luck and more luck.

9) (Maybe...) Sweden has retunable glass containers?
-----------------------
PeteCresswell

 

My flats have been way down since: 1. I started using kevlar lined tires;
2. I use an extra kevlar lining inside it; and 3. I use thorn resistant tubes (because before that I
had two flats from the kevlar lining rubbing against the thin tubes. i've got a good run going
with no punctures, and will have to figure out the mileage, but I'm sure it's over 10,000 miles,
mainly in the Milwaukee area. Previously, I averaged a flat every 1000 to 2000 miles. Att cycla
paa Sverige maaste vara bra. "Garry Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I always knew I would be writing this post, I just never knew when..
>
> At the end of 1997 I mentioned in one of the rec.bicycles.* newsgroups that I had not had a
> puncture since 1994. A few people were amazed, others doubted, one even called me a liar.
>
> Well, I can not prove anything, but my puncture free run on the bike continued throughout 1998,
> 1999 and into the 21st century. In the mid 1990's I was cycling up to 10 000 miles a year, now I
> am down to about 4000. I cycle on roads all over Sweden, some of which are not in a perfect state.
>
> I began to wonder if I would ever get another puncture, taking two inner tubes with me started to
> seem unnecessary, but I believe in the law according to Sod and if I had refrained from taken
> inner tubes I would have punctured for sure.
>
> To add to the authenticity of this posting I can also mention that I am president of a cycling
> club and a member of a training group of up to 30 cyclists, some of whom read these newsgroups. I
> have a large contact network of cyclists all over Sweden and I am not being presumptuous when I
> assume that a lot of frequent recreational cyclists know who I am. Consequently I would find it
> hard to get a puncture unnoticed.
>
> So, why this posting. Yes, it happened, the unthinkable occured tonight. I was out with a group of
> 20 cyclists on a 60 mile ride when my rear wheel suddenly felt strange. First I thought it was a
> brake pad sticking and I looked back at it. I was at the back of the group and a slight gap opened
> up. I looked again, my tyre was deflating. PUNCTURE! - My first one since the summer of 1994 and
> after about 70 000 puncture free miles. My first puncture on the Pinarello Gavia I bought in
> February 1995. By the time I realised what had happened the group was so far up the road they
> didn't hear my shouts. I changed the inner tube slowly and surely and cycled the remaining 20
> miles back home alone. As nobody actually saw this I could have changed it and not said anything
> if I had any interest in making up this story.
>
> I feel I have rejoined the human race today, now I too can get punctures just like everybody else.
> I suppose I am going to start getting them all the time now. Watch this space.
>
> I credit several factors for my puncture free run.
>
> 1) Luck
> 2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
> 3) That I use standard inner tubes
> 4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
> 5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
> 6) That I let some air out the tyres
> 7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
> 8) Luck, luck and more luck.
>
> Garry Jones President Mora Cycling Club English cyclist ResIDING in Sweden

 

Garry Jones <[email protected]> brightened my day with his incisive wit when in
news:[email protected] he conjectured that:

> I always knew I would be writing this post, I just never knew when..
>
> At the end of 1997 I mentioned in one of the rec.bicycles.* newsgroups that I had not had a
> puncture since 1994. A few people were amazed, others doubted, one even called me a liar.
>
> Well, I can not prove anything, but my puncture free run on the bike continued throughout 1998,
> 1999 and into the 21st century. In the mid 1990's I was cycling up to 10 000 miles a year, now I
> am down to about 4000. I cycle on roads all over Sweden, some of which are not in a perfect state.
>
> I began to wonder if I would ever get another puncture, taking two
inner
> tubes with me started to seem unnecessary, but I believe in the law according to Sod and if I had
> refrained from taken inner tubes I would have punctured for sure.
>
> To add to the authenticity of this posting I can also mention that I am president of a cycling
> club and a member of a training group of up to
30
> cyclists, some of whom read these newsgroups. I have a large contact network of cyclists all over
> Sweden and I am not being presumptuous
when
> I assume that a lot of frequent recreational cyclists know who I am. Consequently I would find it
> hard to get a puncture unnoticed.
>
> So, why this posting. Yes, it happened, the unthinkable occured
tonight.
> I was out with a group of 20 cyclists on a 60 mile ride when my rear wheel suddenly felt strange.
> First I thought it was a brake pad
sticking
> and I looked back at it. I was at the back of the group and a slight
gap
> opened up. I looked again, my tyre was deflating. PUNCTURE! - My first one since the summer of
> 1994 and after about 70 000 puncture free
miles.
> My first puncture on the Pinarello Gavia I bought in February 1995. By the time I realised what
> had happened the group was so far up the road they didn't hear my shouts. I changed the inner tube
> slowly and surely and cycled the remaining 20 miles back home alone. As nobody actually saw this I
> could have changed it and not said anything if I had any interest in making up this story.
>
> I feel I have rejoined the human race today, now I too can get
punctures
> just like everybody else. I suppose I am going to start getting them
all
> the time now. Watch this space.
>
> I credit several factors for my puncture free run.
>
> 1) Luck
> 2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
> 3) That I use standard inner tubes
> 4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
> 5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
> 6) That I let some air out the tyres
> 7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
> 8) Luck, luck and more luck.
>
> Garry Jones President Mora Cycling Club English cyclist ResIDING in Sweden
>

I have certainly not ridden the same amount of miles but my 1995 Dawes Galaxy has certainly seen a
few of them : mostly heavy laden.

I too have never had a puncture.

I put this down to one thing : riding the bumps. I don't sit fat assed on the saddle and any bumps,
holes, obstacles generally see me out of the saddle, weight on the pedals, relieving the weight on
first the front and then the rear tyres.

Touch wood.

Now I have upgraded my bike & wheels & my tyres I feel sure that I am doomed

(btw, I changed the inner tubes twice a year regardless of mileage)

--
Walter Mitty.

 

In article <[email protected]>, Garry Jones <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>I credit several factors for my puncture free run.
>
>1) Luck
>2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
>3) That I use standard inner tubes
>4) That I check tyres often and change them when I see damage
>5) That I hang my bike up indoors after every ride.
>6) That I let some air out the tyres
>7) That I pump to max pressure 8 Bar before every ride, without taking temperture or expected road
> quality into consideration
>8) Luck, luck and more luck.

So watching where you're going doesn't have anything to do with it?

 

"Gary Smiley" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...

> Funny - I got a flat today- I also got one last Wednesday,
and I got one a
> week ago Sunday (while touring in Montreal). I find that
Europe tends to
> have less broken glass and debris on their roads than the
United States.

That's because they have deposits on glass bottles. They also don't eat as much take-out food and
drink, and if they do they stop, sit, and eat like civilized beings instead of stuffing their
faces while driving. Plus they have government workers to pick up any trash that does make it to
the roadside.

Matt O.

 

DanSMeyers wrote:
>
> >2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.
> >3) That I use standard inner tubes
>
> and they are...

The tyres I have bought have been in the range $25 - $50

When I bought the bike it had standard cheap Pirelli tyres. I bought Specalized for a few years, I
changed to Michelin a few years ago when the Specalized tyres became extinct over here.

The Specialized tyres were called Turbo/CR and had a tyre thread made up of these small characters <
> / \ | - I got a lot of miles out of those, about 5000 miles a tyre.

I have been through various Michelin tyres as they have changed and discontined certain models over
here. But these inlcude "Axial Pro", "Axial Super Comp" and "Hi Lite Bi Synergic".

Apart from those the tyre that last the longest was a Hutchinson that I bought in a local shop
whilst away at a cycling event. I think I got over 15 000 miles out of that and even thought it did
not have any sign of damage I changed it anyway one winter. When I was in France a couple of years
ago I bought two Hutchinsons (can't remember model), but these showed damage after a few weeks of
heavy cycling.

All of the tyres mentioned above have been 622-20 - The tyres on the bike now are Michelin Pro Racer
622-23, a store owner convinced me that 23 was better. I often maintained that as 20 gave you less
road contact you were less likely to puncture. There may be nothing in that and you can call it
superstition if you want but I am going back to 622-20. The tyres have been on the bike for about
4000 miles and don't look damaged. The hole was on the road side of the inner tube so it's not from
a rough spot inside the rim.

The make of inner tubes I have never really paid any attention to. I change them yearly when I strip
the frame down and give the bike a good wash and polish. And always when changing tyres. I just walk
into any bike store and pick up a couple of standard inner tubes, I throw the boxes away, but I
think the ones I have now might be called SHIO. I have noticed other more expensive inner tubes with
descriptions like "super light weight" and so on, but I have not tried any of these.

As for looking at the road as some others mentioned, sure I do that and try and steer around any
objects. But I have ridden through glass several times. I read once that if you brake and steer when
your in a pile of glass you are more likely to puncture.

Garry Jones

 

"(Pete Cresswell)" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
>>
> 9) (Maybe...) Sweden has retunable glass containers?
> -----------------------
> PeteCresswell

That would be very useful if your bottles went off-key

But seriously, I see lots of beer bottles smashed on the roads and
bike paths, and those ARE returnable and have a deposit (10 cents?).

There vwas a time people would wander around collecting them to earn the deposit, but I guess
it's more fun just to smash them and watch cyclists flat out.

(that could explain the nails strewn on the bike path as well).

 

Walter Mitty <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> I too have never had a puncture.
>
>> the saddle and any bumps, holes, obstacles generally see me out of
the
> saddle, weight on the pedals, relieving the weight on first the front and then the rear tyres.
>

Could it be that broken glass and other debris sees you as well, and scurries out of
your way?

Some tubes seem slightly more flat-resistant (amazing how a tiny bit more rubber makes a
difference). That's for regular tubes - the extra-thick / extra stiff ones are even better, at
the cost of weight and perhaps ride / handling.

I've also found I get more flats as the tread wears down (Vredstein touring tires - same
happened with Hitchinson Globetrotters). So tread may not help traction, but it appears to help
avoid punctures from broken glass and such.

I also find far less debris when I ride out of the city. The bike paths are absolutely littered
(intentionally - I've seen nails sprinkled along the path).

ymmv

 

In rec.bicycles.tech Matt O'Toole <[email protected]> wrote:

> That's because they have deposits on glass bottles. They also don't eat as much take-out food and
> drink, and if they do they stop, sit, and eat like civilized beings instead of stuffing their
> faces while driving. Plus they have government workers to pick up any trash that does make it to
> the roadside.

This is generally true, at least in Finland. Most drink containers are plastic, not glass, but in
either case there's a deposit and more than 90% are successfully recycled. However, I believe that
the most important factor is the fact that people just don't throw garbage out of their cars. I
don't know how often the roadsides are cleaned, but it must not be more than once a year, and for
all practical purposes they are clean.

-as

 

"Matt O'Toole" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Gary Smiley" <[email protected]> wrote
> > I find that Europe tends to have less broken glass and debris on their roads than the United
> > States.
>
> That's because they have deposits on glass bottles.

Really? How much is the deposit on glass bottles in France? And where does one redeem the deposit?

 

Garry Jones <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
>
> Apart from those the tyre that last the longest was a Hutchinson that I bought in a local shop
> whilst away at a cycling event. I think I got over 15 000 miles out of that and even thought it
> did not have any sign of damage I changed it anyway one winter. When I was in France a couple of
> years ago I bought two Hutchinsons (can't remember model), but these showed damage after a few
> weeks of heavy cycling.
>

The old non-Kevlar Hutchinsons with the "U" tread were brilliant tyres
- I had a pair of these and they seemed to last for ages; despite the lack of anti-puncture
measures, flats were very, very rare. The Kevlar version (with the blue band on the sidewall) and
the more recent Excel model (that replaced the "U" tyres) don't seem to be anywhere near as good
in terms of lifespan.

David E. Belcher

Dept. of Chemistry, University of York

 

"Garry Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...

> 2) That I use quality puncture resistant tyres.

Which ones?

When my rear Continental Top Touring wore out at about 6000 miles and zero flats, I replaced both
tires with Panaracer Pasela TG's because I'd gotten them cheap and their lightness appealed to me.

I had three flats in the first 400 miles. Two punctures (glass and a roofing tack), and one
pinch flat.

It's hard to blame the punctures on the tires, but nevertheless I then did what I should have done
in the first place, moving the hardly-worn front Conti to the rear, and replacing it with a new tire
on the front (one of the Panaracers).

I'm sticking with the TT2K's in the future. Unless Garry here has a better suggestion!

RichC

 

""""Apart from those the tyre that last the longest was a Hutchinson that I bought in a local shop
whilst away at a cycling event. I think I got over 15 000 miles out of that and even thought it did
not have any sign of damage I changed it anyway one winter.""""

you got 15,000 miles out of "that"??

What's "that" ????? Just thought I'd ask. Once in while one product of a series shows up that has
singular characteristics. Maybe your fortune is to string them together and embrace them. To be able
to embrace them. The NY L.Island Volvo owner iza good example. Go with the Flow.

are there any other unusual qualities to your life? Do you know about statistical clustering?

 

Hi Garry:

I am an ignoramous, like most Americans (except for for god Sheldon and vicegod Jobst). Hence, I
know very little about Sweden or Swedes. A poll showed that less than 20% of Americans could point
to Sweden on the map.

These are somethings that I know:

People are really pale white, with yellow hair.

They make a weird looking car and a bad ass airplane

The have weird names like Olaf and Eric (got this from reading Hagar the Horrible) and Morten (this
is the name of my friend from Norway, but close enough)

The have almost no sun.

In medievall times they used to kill Romans, christians and others and drunk wine from their
hollowed skulls (got the skull part from reading asterix)

They had gods named thor and odin with lots of lightining and thunders (got this from reading
marvel comics)

The relevant thing that I know is that they are anal-retentive about cleanliness and perfection, and
their streets are probably as smooth and clean as indoor tracks (ie, no thorns, glass, etc).
Therefore, it is no wonder that you don't have flats. The anal retentive part I got from Jobst who
is supposed to be from germany, but I've heard that the further north you go the more anal retentive
people get.

Almost forgot, they are the largest exporters of movies with women with voluptuous chests and big
yellow hair.

Is this about right? Would this knowledge put me at the level of the 20 percent who know
about sweden?.

Andres

 

"g.daniels" wrote:
>
> you got 15,000 miles out of "that"??

Yep, most of the tyres I have used have been foldable, the Hutchinson was just there hanging up in a
cycling shop that dealt solely in MTB and everyday bikes. When I returned some years later the shop
was a pizzeria. (If this was the Twilight Zone I would now tell you that the pizza guy said that he
had had the premises for over 10 years and that he didn't think that there had ever been a cycling
shop there. And later on someone in the village would tell me there was a bike shop there but that
it was nearly 80 years ago. An old black and white picture would reveal the guy that sold me the
tire died in the 1920's. Lightening would flash and a cyclist would appear from nowhere on a 20's
bike with wooden rims and a tyre round his neck).

The Hutchinson tyre didn't have a model number or name on it.

> are there any other unusual qualities to your life? Do you know about statistical clustering?

I notice numerical patterns in everything, especially dates. I did my first 100 mile on June 3rd
1989. This puncture occured on June 3rd, it's a milestone date for me. Statistical clustering?
Enlighten me.

Garry Jones