Shortly after joining the canal towpath on my commute home last night, an abrupt clanking noise from the bike made me aware that something was very wrong. I stopped under Gogar Station Road Bridge to investigate and found a large nail embedded in the Marathon Plus to the rear. There was too much nail protruding to continue cycling (the clanking noise must have been the nail scraping against the mudguard) so I wrestled it out (which took some effort) and was unsurprised to find that the tube immediately deflated. The last time this had happened was near the Bridge 8 Hub on the way into work back in Autumn 2018 - on that occasion I could continue cycling since little of the nail was protruding and when I did remove it at work, the tube somehow stayed inflated. I replaced the tyre shortly after that.
I considered my options: pushing the bike back to work and then either attempting to fix it there or locking up and catching a bus back into town, or continuing onwards, possibly via a tram or a taxi. I consulted the WhatsApp group and was reminded that there is the outdoor store Decathlon at Hermiston Gait, which I had never been in, so decided to push the bike there and see if they could help or at least find some light and warmth in which I could attempt to fix it myself...
When I arrived at Decathlon and explained my situation, the store assistant radioed for a member of the bike team to come and see me. I was told that unfortunately the bike mechanic was on a break but that I could start trying to fix the issue myself, which I did. I managed to remove the back wheel quite easily but proceeded to have more difficultly unseating the Marathon Plus. The security guard watched with pity for a while and then came over to offer some advice and practical help and had the tyre off in no time! The mechanic appeared to see how I was getting on, despite being on their break, and invited me to use the workshop in the meantime.
I soon had the punctured tube out, my spare tube in and the tyre back on (with some more advice/help from the security guard!) and inflated it, only for it to deflate almost immediately - either a bad tube or, more likely, that it was twisted/pinched when I was rushing to put the tyre back on given that there hadn't been any debris remaining inside the tyre. At this point the mechanic returned and had the tyre back off, a new tube in, the tyre back on and inflated successfully in no time, and then proceeded to put the wheel back on my bike, attach the hub gear changer and, for good measure, adjust the rear brake caliper which was apparently rubbing a bit (I hadn't noticed).
I was extremely appreciative of the help, asked how much it would be but was told that there was no charge! I tried to protest, but failed...
I'm afraid that I had previously considered Decathlon to offer a similar level of support as Halfords in terms of bikes (despite never having visited) although following the knowledgeable and friendly help from both the security guard and the actual bike staff, the brand has risen considerably in my expectations and I now feel reassured that if this happens again, help is at hand. I am also painfully aware that my own skills with Marathon Plus tyres are severly lacking - I have had them off and on in the comfort of my home but did poorly when tested!
posts
