This certainly was not my weekend to ride. Yesterday my ride was delayed due to a large staple in my rear tire. Today things got worse. I should have listened to that little voice that told me to check the tire and tube (I did not change it yesterday) but I got involved in things and never got around to it before I departed for the starting point. The tire appeared to be okay and so I assumed it was. At about the two mile mark while flying down a hill I heard a loud pop and I knew it was my rear tire. I quickly pulled off the road and could tell immediately I was in trouble. The side of the tire was shredded. The tube had a 4" gash in it and the beads on the outside wall were exposed. Luckly, the wires were still okay so after some discussion with those who stopped to help and offer advise I decided my ride was over for the day. I changed the tube, put some air in it and gingerly rode back to my car. I was advised to stay off the seat as much as possible and I did my best to follow this suggestion. I guess I should not complain that tire had over 10,000 miles on it. The upside was I was not hurt, I did not lose control of my bike coming down the hill and I had a spare tire at home. All is well!