Dreading flats!

[VeloVT]

I'm a fan of glueless patches (well, they're pre-glued/self-adhesive actually). Much easier than the old-fashioned kind and they work just fine. Plus the box is super teeny.

But any time we're riding more than 30 miles or so we bring 2 tubes each plus a patch kit. Rarely need it but better safe than sorry.

A few things to always do before fully remounting the tire and reinflating:
1. Check the inner surface of the tire for debris
2. When you're mounting the tire (getting the second bead on) it helps to actually push the valve up into the rim -- this helps ensure that section of the tube is seated well, it's an easy place to pinch for some reason.
3. Before you reinflate, but after you've fully seated both beads, go around the entire rim (starting and ending at the valve), pinching both sides of the tire away from the rim and making sure there aren't any areas where there is tube under the tire bead. This only takes a few seconds but it can save you from blowing out a tube.

There's a trick to getting the rear wheel back on easily and once you get the hang of it it's super quick. My first rear flat took me ages. I also used to be really slow at the actual tire-changing process... with plenty of er, practice , I've gotten pretty efficient -- and I can change a tire and hardly even get my hands dirty. The first few times I tried I was covered in black by the time I was finished . Hands, legs, face...