Good Samaritan

[li10up]

When riding Sat. the group I was with came along a guy pushing his bike. Two of us went over to him to see if we could help. He asked if anyone had an air cartridge. He said he had already used the one he had but he blew the tire off the rim or something. I reached into my jersey pocket and pulled out my spare. As I went to hand it to him the other person from my group said he had a pump. The guy took the pump. He worked like mad to air up his tire.

Question: Would you give the person in need the air cartridge? He only carried one on him with no other backup. Without hesitation I was going to give him my sprare...I had two on me. But after thinking about it later I thought, why should I give him a cartridge if he wasn't concerned enough about his own ride to carry a spare or a mini-pump?

I carry two cartridges AND a mini-pump. I believe in helping out other cyclists, but don't we have a responsibility to be prepared? Would you have given him the cartridge or let him pump?

[Denise223]

Yes, I would have given him the cartridge. There's that saying...."Good begets good"..

I believe that when we can, we should help our fellow human being. I do my very best to live my life that way.

I think that your first instinct was a good one!!

Have a peaceful day!

Denise

[Lise]

If he blew the tire off the rim with one cartridge, maybe using the pump was smarter. I gave a woman one of my cartridges during a triathlon--it breaks my heart to see somebody on the side of the road during a race. Unfortunately, she exploded her tire with my cartridge! :( But I'd certainly do it again, if it would help. What goes around comes around.

[mimitabby]

I would have lent him my pump.
not everyone owns one or remembers to carry their own on every ride.

[tulip]

Even if you rely on cartriges, it's a good idea to carry a pump. Good on you for stopping and helping him out.

[CorsairMac]

Just as a thought (coz it happened to me): I Used to use cartridges, and a few times on my daily commute I've only had 1 cartridge and 3 days til pay day and I prayed the whole time nothing would happen. If someone had needed my last cartridge - yuppers, they'dve had it. My thought is: that could be me someday and I hope someone out there comes along and helps me. I now have a Road Morph and have stopped several times and loaned them my pump and told them to save their cartridges in case someone isn't around the next time.

[spokewench]

:D
If I am on a ride (not a race) and someone needs something on the side of the road I always help if I can. Usually, if someone had problems like this guy, i.e. blowing his tire off rim (not seated well or something?) I will stop and change the tire for them. Put one of my cartridges on it and off they go and off I go. I don't carry a pump. Carrying one on the bike is always problematic, they don't fit on my bike well (I'm small), I hate on the bike bike pumps, they never work when I need them to, and I don't have to sit there for half an hour pumping tires too.

Besides it is good practice to fix tubes out on the road that way you are ready to do your own when you need to . Sometimes you learn things also, like Campagnola does not have brake releases like shimano they are hidden in the levers (who would have known!).

If you go about changing the tires swiftly and promptly, the guys don't even complain that a gal is changing their tire for them.

[MomOnBike]

All I know for sure is that I've loaned out my pump when asked. No biggie. I also have a patch kit and a small tool kit that I'd loan if the need arose.

Since I don't carry CO2, I don't loan that out, but probably would. (I guess you give that away, no?)

Why not? That's what makes a community work, the sharing of resources. If I loan out a pump it (in theory, at least) makes it more likely I'll get help if ever I need it. Right?

(going off to ponder philosophical issues...)

[Geonz]

I'd have thought "how about a pump" - in his shoes I would have preferred something that didn't cost the otehr person anything - and since I've got a road morph, he shouldn't have to work too hard :) I don't carry cartridges anyway...

[Nanci]

The last brevet I did, I stopped to help the _same_ guy by loaning him my pump, twice. He only had CO2. I almost missed the first cut off because of this. I made it by one second. People need to carry pumps, and even patches. You never know when you're going to have a really bad day and run out of CO2 _and_ tubes.

I would have given him my last anything, though- that's how I am.

Nanci

[DDH]

Okay, the novice here. I don't even know how to change my tire. I never carried anything with me when I rode before and didn't this morning. Not sure what good it would do me since I don't know how. I'm glad I read this though, because it makes me realize I probably need to learn how to take care of my bike. My DH always does everything with them. Guess that wouldn't do me any good though when he usually won't be with me. Guess I need to be more responsible.
I'm glad you stopped to help this person. If it was me I would be very thankful. Hopefully they have learned their lesson and will know better next time. As for me, guess I have some learning to do.
I've always just gotten on it and ridden and didn't worry about anything else.

[Triskeliongirl]

Yes, if a cyclist is stranded on the side of the road I would give them my last anything. But, on a recent ride a girl flatted about 1 mile into an organized metric century, with no tube, and since I knew there was sag support I made her wait for the sag vehicle rather than giving up my own supplies since she should have been better prepared, and probably flatted immediatly by failing to inflate her tires properly before the ride.

[Grog]

I gave a tube to a guy once. I rode past him and his friend, they were stopped on the side of the road on a rainy day (winter in Vancouver) and I asked if they needed anything. They said they blew about four tubes between the two of them in their ride (winter in Vancouver, bis) and patching was an issue in rainy weather. I happily gave them one of my spare tubes (I ride with 3 spares in the winter) and hoped they would be fine. The guy wanted to pay me for the tube, I asked that he just give one to the next person-in-need instead. He was happy with that. Pay it forward.

I don't like giving CO2 to a person who's blown their tires off already, means they might not be very skilled at using it. Maybe I'd offer to do it myself. But I'd rather take the frame pump (mine is not that bad). If I feel the person knows what they're doing I wouldn't hesitate handing them a cart.

[tulip]

DDH, alot of bike shops offer basic maintenance classes. It is useful to be minimally self sufficient on rides. It's also safer.

Check out your LBS to see if they offer a class. If you have an REI near you, they normally do offer such classes.

[DDH]

Oh Tulip, you are so sweet. No worries, my hubby knows it all and I mentioned to him last night that he needs to teach me so I am not one of those irresponsible riders. I would hate for anyone to think ill of me. Quite honestly, I just never even thought about it until I saw this post, because of the fact that DH has always done everything for me.
That was fine I guess when we always rode together, but I'm not sure that is going to happen very often now.

[tulip]

Private lessons are even better!;)

[spokewench]

I'm not really very mechanical and never will be, BUT Ladies, please learn to change your tires. That is one thing you don't want to leave to chance or wait for your husband, or friends to do. It really is NOT that hard. Most bike shops will show you how.

Then go home on a cold winter's night (or a hot humid night) in your living room and both tires on your bike at least twice. This includes taking them off the bike and putting them back on the bike!

It is not safe to ride around by yourself without your supplies to change a tire and then be sitting on the side of the road stranded having to rely on a stranger to change your tires!

PLEASE, learn to change a tire! :)

[li10up]

Thanks for the input. I would never leave anyone stranded. But I was curious...since I had a mini pump AND a cartridge should I loan him the mini pump or give him a cartridge.

[Geonz]

li10up :)

What's important, helping the guy or following some unknown code? He asked for a cartridge... and therefore, if you say "here's a pump," maybe he thinks "oh, she's too cheap!" ... pshaw. First off, he probably doesn't (given the choice, he went for the pump) and second... if you need help, it's cheesy to get that picky about your helper. "Oh, excuse me, not a mini-pump - don't you have a road morph?"
Besides, there's that whole weird thing about the CO2 leaking out of the tires faster.
And what if somebody else had a flat tire three blocks down the road?