I had a blowout yesterday. The tire was pretty new, only about 300 miles on it, so maybe 2-3 weeks old.

It wasn't a defective tire. There is a lot of gravel on the road, spillover from gravel driveways and gravel side roads, and maybe trucks carrying gravel. I am out in the hills coming down on the descents, and my tires hit the large pieces of gravel, just a few of them, but the rocks break and come up and cut right through the sidewall.

Yesterday I was lucky in that the blowout happened only three miles from my house. I put a new tube in and put the wheel back on so I could push the bike. I live on top of a small mountain so I had a steep three mile climb home, walking and pushing the bike up the mountain.

It is the second time my sidewalls have been cut that way. Earlier this month I was on a long ride into the Cascades with Suzie. We had a steep continuous eight mile descent coming down out of the mountains. About every half mile there was a road sign that proclaimed "Caution Loose Gravel on Road." Yes, it was an asphalt road, but there was really a lot of loose gravel over the entire surface, and I really had to ride my brakes to keep my speed down to 25-30 because of the danger due to the gravel. I got my sidewall cut, but didn't get a flat. That is why the blowout tire was so new.

Darcy