What happens when you get a flat?

[Irulan]

For mountain biking, in addition to thorns etc, you can also pinch flat - which is basically smacking something so hard it allows the tube to get pinched in between the rim and the tire.

Slime is supposed to be very useful in areas with lots of goat head thorns. I don't use it myself.

Another way to get flats is if your tire is old and stretched out a bit. I had one bike where the tire would shift ever so slightly on the rim, tearing the stem out. I had to get about a dozen flats like this before I figured out I needed to replace the tire and not the tube.

When I've flatted, I've always known right away.

[Aint Doody]

I've had many flats living in the "land of the goatheads." And as everybody has said it's rather gradual. Last summer on the Oregon Bike Ride I had a blow out where the tire blew apart in an L shape. The sound was so loud that I thought somebody had shot a gun. I screamed. A man riding beside me said, "Have you got a spare tube?" When I glanced back I said, "A tube won't do any good here!" I slowly braked. No problem, but I had to be SAGGED in. (It was sooo hot; I was glad!)

[withm]

I've never gotten a flat tire while riding. What happens --

Mostly 4-letter words and in a quantity directly proportional to the lateness, cold, or darkness factors.

[PamNY]

Mostly 4-letter words and in a quantity directly proportional to the lateness, cold, or darkness factors.

Thank goodness I have that skill already. My Coleman lantern has refused to pressurize on my last two camping trips so I have practiced cold/dark related epithets.

Thanks everyone for the interesting and informative discussion, btw.

Pam

[sundial]

Do flats happen less often with mountain bikes with larger wheels? Please, say yes. I have green goo in my tires, does that really help slow down the flattening process?

Nope, I had more flats with my mtb. Teeny tiny thorns worked their way into my tire. Gah!

I have since used Stan's no tubes stuff and no more flats. Yippeeee!!

[Flybye]

In my experience, you turn a corner and because the front wheel does not have enough air in it to corner well, crash. In front of spectators. Who you know.

[malkin]

I had a BANG tire on a busy street downtown. It was frightening, but I think time did that big slow down, and I did manage to both stop and get my feet unclicked out of the pedals. I was all shakey changing the tube.

Right after that I had 3 flats in the next 3 rides, so I got'em gooped and haven't had a flat since, like July or August.

[sundial]

I had a road tire blow and it sounded like gun fire. I hitched a ride with a fellow back to the car. He was very respectful.

[GLC1968]

My husband put new tires on one of his bikes, pumped them up, and then left the bike propped against the fireplace in the living room while we did something else. First the front tire blew - scared the ever loving daylight out of me. Hurt my ears, scared the cat half to death...ugh! About 5 minutes later, the rear tire blew! Crap tubes inflated too much or poorly installed.

I've had quite a few flats, but only three while I was actually on the bike.

The first one was a fast leak but it didn't actually blow. I was just exiting the parking lot on my way home, so I wasn't going very fast. I hit something that I heard fly off to the side (it sounded metal) and immediately lost all air in my front tire in a big *whoosh*. I came to an almost immediate stop without breaking, so had I been going fast, it would not have been pretty.

My second one was also a front tire flat but it was a slow leak that I had no idea had happened until I tried to turn into a rest stop and could not effectively steer the bike. Even then, it wasn't completely flat, either.

The last one just happened about 2 months ago. I was on my commute home, drafting off DH. He was NOT pointing out debris and when he swerved to avoid a piece of glass, I had no warning and ran right over it. My front tire survived but the back one blew. Air went out immediately and in an effort to avoid biking into a storm grate, I almost crashed. I was able to hop off before either I or the bike hit the ground though. I had a hole in my tire about the size of a chocolate chip! I had to use a folded up piece of paper to keep the new tube from bulging out of it long enough to make it home. What was appropriate was that the paper I used was the registration to the car that I'd just sold since I was commuting by bike often enough to not need it!

[Blueberry]

I've had 3 - 2 on one ride on my recent trip to san diego. The first was a front tire - I didn't hear anything, was on flat ground and the handling started to feel weird. Fortunately, I was pulling into my subdivision.

When I went to ride Coronado on our vacation, I got off the trolley to find my front tire flat. I couldn't find a leak, put the tube back in and off I went. It's still holding. Number 2 was in front of the naval air station. I heard my rear tire go whoosh, and stopped. I was, of course, running for the ferry, into a head wind. For the first time, my Bike Friday cooperated and I was able to get the tire changed. As best I can tell, the valve stem failed (it was leaking air whether open or closed) - very strange. I always pack 2 tubes - I didn't ever thing I'd come that close to running out

CA

[gnGracie]

Sometimes my legs feel really heavy. I think my tire is flat. I can FEEL it!

I step off my bike to check my tires. Pinch each hard between my thumb and middle finger.

They are not flat at all. I'm just weak and tired.

LOL This strange phenomenon happens to me as well!