[email protected] wrote:
> Then you never rode into the sharp edge of one of those many potholes
> of which you report.
Not so. I do this frequently. It's very hard not to where I ride.
> I assure you that, for instance riding up a 3"
> high curb without lifting the bicycle WILL cause a pinch flat at
> speeds above 10mph. That you haven't had any tells me that you don't
> ride on rocky trails or cobbles as in Paris Roubaix.
I try not to take curbs aggressively, but I can't always avoid doing
so. Never had a flat as a result. I ride the cobbles of Tribeca and
the West Village (which are square edged and ill-maintained) on a
regular basis. I haven't been to Roubaix, but I have been to Paris.
The cobbles there are like a billiard table compared to what we've got
here.
> > I've had one (very memorable) blow-off flat caused by brake heating
> > on a long steep downhill, and countless punctures caused by bits of
> > glass, sharp stone, nails, etc. Three or four years ago I switched
> > to kevlar-belted tires and have not had a single flat since, by far
> > the longest flat-free period I've enjoyed. Could be the belts,
> > could be the tread compound, could be the tire width, could be
> > nothing more than a run of good luck.
>
> I think it must be low mileage. Kevlar belts have no effect on pinch
> flats. I know of no active riders who have not had a flat in four
> years. When I say active riders, I mean ones who do more than ride
> from their house to the bus stop and back, something like taking a
> bike tour on weekends.
>
I think you don't know me or my riding habits well enough to make this
kind of assertion. I commute (current round trip 23 miles) 2-3 days a
week, frequently take longer rides on weekends/vacations, and used to
do a bit of loaded touring. While nowhere near the mileage of many
others, it's pretty active, and it's certainly enough to put myself in
the way of plenty of puncture causing objects. For most of my riding
life, I got my share of flats. I don't recall *ever* not being able to
find a puncturing object, nor do I ever recall seeing the tell-tale
snakebite, despite lots of agressive riding on very bad roads. This
led me to state that I don't think I've ever had a pinch flat.
Since switching to kevlar-belted tires(follwing a spate of
glass-related flats), I have not gotten a single flat. I didn't say
kevlar prevented pinch flats, and I understand why they wouldn't. I
just said that since installing said tires, I haven't had a flat caused
by puncturing object. Just noting the correlation, not asserting
causality.
John
