Flat Face

30 Days of Biking 2018 Mileage Total: 102.5

If I haven't mentioned this before, I love "my" trike. I use the quotations because she's not actually mine, but it feels like she is...Wash Cycle Laundry owns her and any number of our cyclists have used her, but for the vast majority of her life, I've been her primary companion. Some have claimed it's clunky and not as functional as our regular bike and trailer setups, but it's nearly my ideal blend of functionality and comfort. She's also been reliable, because up until Friday, I'd never encountered a flat tire in the 3+ years I've piloted her. There's an old saying, all good things must come to an end:

I was near 19th and Fairmount, barely a half mile from the plant, when I ran over a 1/4" by 1/2" glass shard that might have punctured a car tire, not to mention a bike tire. The trike came standard with kevlar-belted tires that do a good job repelling almost anything, but there was nothing that would have prevented this other than a little bit of luck. So...

Fixing a flat is no big deal when you have the right tools. As bad luck (or carelessness) had it, I didn't remember to bring an adjustable wrench with me to remove the bolts from the fork in the event of this happening. Whoops. Walking all the way back to the plant wasn't an option with a full basket on the back, and almost every option I could think of would have taken far too long to rectify the problem (I had a really busy morning). Thankfully I was only 2 blocks away from Fairmount Hardware, so I walked there and bought a wrench. I guess in hindsight it was a blessing, because I've been meaning to add one to my personal tool kit for some time. Perspective, right?

It took a little longer than I'd hoped to get back where I needed to be on the road, but I got there eventually. The thing about bike maintenance is that it's easy to perform if you have any kind of common sense and mechanical ability, but it's also really easy to screw up if you miss a minor detail. Admittedly, I hurried through the flat fix, so I had to stop a couple times to check on the fork because I felt like something was loose (it wasn't really, but did need a slight torque-ing). I still rode a little bit slower just to be safe. In some cases, I didn't have a choice because it was also a very windy day. I also had a delay with one client that pushed a couple others back. That was more frustrating than anything bike-related. I won't lie and tell you I was the epitome of cool, calm, and collected.

I do think the toughest part about these situations is keeping your cool while knowing you're behind schedule. The funny thing is, my customers never would have known anything was wrong. People only know what you tell them and only see what you show them. Some guy probably wrote a song about it. At the end of the day, she looks the same as when she started:

And that was most of day 6. I packed up my car after work and headed north for the weekend to play a gig and work my occasional weekend job. I barely rode yesterday but I did ride. More on that later. For now, I hope you enjoy your Sunday. I can't believe we're already more than a week through 30DoB, but I think I say that every year...

#30daysofbiking