CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Commuting

Run of bad/good luck

(10 posts)
  • Started 9 years ago by Edinburgh Cycle Training
  • Latest reply from Edinburgh Cycle Training

No tags yet.


  1. Edinburgh Cycle Training
    Member

    A week past Friday I hit a huge hole at the East End causing irreparable damage to my rear rim and tyre on my SS.

    I did manage to almost get to work before the tyre went flat. Despite the damage I replaced the tube, which almost got me home before it too gave way

    Friday past, my chain snapped nr the top of Jeffrey street. I could freewheel to the Queen's Park. Not as almost home as the previous Friday, but reasonably close.

    This morning, back on the resplendent looking newly repaired SS, a puncture. Nothing obviously in the brand new tyre, perhaps I'd under inflated and hit a wee bump too hard?

    No offer of help from the 17 cyclists who passed me in Roseburn Park, so I walked her to Kwik Fit who lent me a spanner to remove my new rear wheel.

    The old wheel was secured by Allen bolts, this one by standard hex nuts. I'd been daft and not thought about adding spanners to my commute kit ;-(

    Thanks Kwik Fit Murrayfield

    Hopefully I've earned a trouble free summer, but I can't help thinking that that run of bad luck could have been a whole lot worse.....

    Posted 9 years ago #

  2. chdot
    Admin

    Ah yes -

    "To stop or not to stop? (...for another cyclist)"

    http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=5681

    Posted 9 years ago #

  3. dougal
    Member

    I always slow to ask, even if the person looks competent because there's still the chance they're out of patches or just broke a tool or something you can't plan for. Even if it's just a second person to hold the frame while brute force is applied. If I see someone walking their bike I first look for mobile phone clamped to ear. Never needed to help anyone yet.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  4. paolobr
    Member

    I always check, have helped out a few people over the years (punctures, seat adjustments etc, recently young lad with chain jammed between sprockets and rear stay). Last week, on an evening ride in East Lothian, I even slowed to check with a motorist on a back road who had stopped. They were OK, had just had a puncture and had changed wheels...

    Posted 9 years ago #

  5. Edinburgh Cycle Training
    Member

    I always ask, and appreciate that sometimes offends. However I've both handed over a spare tube, and been on the receiving end of one.

    Apologies if I sounded critical of the passer's by. It was meant more of an observation. There does seem to be many more cyclists on my route(s) than a couple of years ago. Maybe you need to be offered help, before you start doing so yourself - I'm pretty sure it was a random act of kindness/concern that got me into the habit of offering assistance rather than any inbuilt/natural philanthropy

    Posted 9 years ago #

  6. sallyhinch
    Member

    Out here on rural roads I always check, and I would never be offended by the offer. It only has to be a slowing down and a 'you OK there? Need anything?'

    Posted 9 years ago #

  7. kaputnik
    Moderator

    I always carry a wee multi-size dumbell spanner in my toolkit, you can get them for sweeties in most bike shops.

    Useful for on-the-road tightening/tinkering with loose/rubbing mudguards.

    Posted 9 years ago #

  8. I were right about that saddle
    Member

    The thing about passing a fellow bicyclist with a mechanical. It's fraught, isn't it? Cold-hearted automaton or patronising clever-clogs? Ah, the great British social faux pas.

    [+] Embed the video | Video DownloadGet the Flash Video

    Posted 9 years ago #

  9. threefromleith
    Member

    I always slow and ask. Most recently it was last week, just after 6am, when I was approaching a rider on the NEPN who was carrying a bike identical to mine on his shoulder. He'd punctured & didn't have any repair kit / spare tubes on him. I offered him one of my spares, but he declined with thanks and said he was heading off to a local bike shop.

    Given the time, I suspect he'd have had a few hours to kill before it opened!

    Posted 9 years ago #

  10. Edinburgh Cycle Training
    Member

    I typed too soon

    Another bloody puncture on the way home on Monday night :-(

    Posted 9 years ago #

RSS feed for this topic

Reply

You must log in to post.


Video embedded using Easy Video Embed plugin