Flat Tire Again.

I went almost two weeks without a flat tire on my bike. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve taken the stupid thing in to get a flat fixed. I haven’t been riding over nails and glass, what could I be doing wrong? Does this happen to all cyclists?

4 Replies to “Flat Tire Again.”

  1. That used to happen to me all the time when I was riding in the Fraser Valley, Coquitlam, and North Van, until I got these weird Kevlar(tm) tube insert things. Cost maybe $15 for a pair. They go in between your tire and your tube, and can protect your high-pressure tubes against sliver-like glass flats. I used to get them a lot when I had my old Nishiki with the skinny tires, but once I got the Kevlar things, I went from a flat almost once a week to maybe once every three/six months.

    Also, check that you don’t have a shard of something in your tire itself. I think Fitz works at a bike shop still, so maybe he can lend a hand if you’re tool-lackin’ for this sorta thing.

  2. Good advice. Also, keep your tires inflated with 5 more pounds of pressure than they recommend. That helps repel all those invisible shards of glass on the street, and, of course, Mordenkainen’s unwanted spikes of doom. Those Kevlar tube dealeos are pretty handy too.

  3. I spent a bit more the last time I bought tires and got ones with a Kevlar strip built right into the part of the tire that contacts the ground. They’ve been great, and the price difference is less than a patch kit anyway.

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