After about an hour into a group ride today, Henergy-on-Wheels™ lost his front tube. With no visible damage, we decided to try pumping it to see if that might help get us quickly to the car. We figured that if the tire weren’t punctured, then perhaps the leak was just a small pinch hole from log jumping. Why didn’t we fix it then and there on the trail? We just made the cliched move: no back up tube or patch. Cue the eye roll.
But…it worked.
Sweet.
It got us back to the car, but it was going flat again. We wanted to ride a bit more, so what to do? We rummaged through the car for a patch. The Buang Biker™ can be shamed for not having extra bike repair gear on hand. However, he’s also a ham radio operator. And that means copious rolls of electrical tape laying around.
At first we had trouble getting it to stick to the tube, but that had more to do with the residual talcum powder. We rubbed as much as would come off in the area of the pinpoint hole, and we got a few strips to stay on long enough to reseat the tube/tire and ride for another half hour or so.
A few hours later it’s still firm enough for a ride! But we’re not pushing it. Mainly because we might have to push it.
Still, Henergy-on-Wheels got his first taste of improv. Too bad the joke was on me. 😉