Closeup of my first flat tire in San Francisco.
On my ride to work today, I heard a hissing sound and thought there was something rubbing against my tire. I pulled over and examined my wheel and noticed a giant piece of glass embedded into the rubber. As soon as I removed the glass, all the air came out of my tire.
Philz Coffee on 24rd and Folsom St.
Fortunately, I was only a block away from my favorite coffee shop. So I locked up my bike and called up a pick-up service. Last year, I paid for a ($250) premium service from my bike shop (New Wheel), which is paying off now.
The tow truck guy tying my bike down.
It sucks to pay for maintenance, but the reality is that I’m kind of lucky that I’ve gone so long without a flat. I’ve lasted a year and a half with 2300 miles on my e-bike. The only thing I’ve had to replace were my brakes in terms of wear and tear. And truth be told, I probably needed to replace my rear tire soon.
I was running Schwalbe Marathon tires—and now I’ve upgraded to Marathon Plus. It’s advertised to have a little extra puncture resistance over the Marathon, in exchange for higher rolling resistance and costs a couple $$. Either way, I’m hoping that I won’t get another flat for a while.
One of my buddies said that I have had “really bad luck with this bike”…
But a flat tire isn’t that bad.
I remember getting flat tires every few months in Richmond, VA… and I didn’t ride as far back then.
On the other hand, San Francisco roads are full of pot holes, debris, broken glass, drug needles, etc. The fact that I’ve gone this far without getting a flat kind of boggles my mind.
Anyway, all is back to normal. I’m kind of glad I got the comprehensive membership. I highly recommend it to anyone if you’re in the market.