Why do people bother to carry puncture repair kits with them?

[shouldbeinbed]

I've just read the first post and am surprised at the acrimony it's created.

to be fair the acrimony only arrived after several pages of people suggesting; on a cycling forum of all places; that fixing a puncture isn't that difficult a task, and started to get the comeback that (paraphrasing here) we're all niche oddballs who are doing it wrong when theres a perfectly good bus service available, even if there isn't.

I don't think it is unreasonable for someone posting, outside of the beginners section of a cycling forum, about choosing to temporarily abandon their bike for something as simple as a flat tyre to have a puncture repair kit suggested to them as a good idea.


maybe you could chip into the sum of knowledge and help @Thursday guy out with a bit of constructive advice to improve his cycling mojo?

edited to read better after dave r liked it.

 

[MontyVeda]

A bloke at work takes his bike to an LBS when he gets a puncture.
...

Someone I know goes to an LBS to get the tyres pumped up! They also (according to them) went 'berserk' when said LBS started charging £1 for the service.

...then there's the tool i use to work with who took his back to halfords (under warranty) because it had a flat tyre and kicked off when told that the warranty doesn't cover punctures.

 

[I like Skol]

What an interesting thread! I cannot imagine anybody who regularly travels more than a mile or two by bike not travelling with the means to fix a puncture. I have carried repair stuff from a very young age and as soon as I began to travel more than a mile or so from home. I am surprised that no one has drawn the parallel with driving and spare wheels. I would have been stranded and massively delayed at least a dozen times in the 25yrs I have been driving if I hadn't the tools and ability to change a flat tyre. Same for riding to work, have never been late due to a puncture on the 10 mile ride although there have been quite a few in my 5yrs of cycle commuting.
Not being prepared for a puncture is a gamble. You might get away with it for a long time as they are a random event and I suppose, statistically, some people will never have one. But I think anyone that rides even half regularly will thank themselves for carrying the repair kit the second time it happens.
I also take full kit if out with the family for a summer Sunday ride. It would really spoil the day if one of the bikes were disabled by a mere puncture during a ride out for a pub lunch. The cry of 'Daddy, you're super and saved the day again' is far preferable to 'Why do you bring us out on these shoot bikes and ruin our weekend!'
Think about it!

 

[Truth]

If he had the three year "Bike Care Plan" with Halfords he could have bought an inner tube from them and they would have put it in for him ! Everything bought from them is fitted free they told me if you have this ...........

 

[Globalti]

The laws of statistics will always prevail and the more bikes there are in your group, the more likely you are to be delayed by a puncture or a mechanical. One of several reasons why I gave up mountain biking was the frustration at having to wait ages while ill-prepared members of the group had their badly-maintained bikes fixed or their tyres pumped by other, better-prepared members. To turn up for a group ride ill-equipped and rely on others to fix your bike is downright bad manners.

For me, one of the joys of cycling is the knowledge that you've got the fitness, the bike, the kit and the nutrition to be self-sufficient while out in the middle of nowhere.

 

[mjr]

Hmm, that's interesting. A skinny tyre will have a long thin contact patch. Won't that have a lower chance of encountering something sharp than a wide contact patch of the same area. Add to that the likelihood that a skinny roadie tyre is going to be at a higher pressure than a big hybrid tyre, then the contact patch will be smaller anyway.

But that smaller contact patch pushes down with higher pressure, so if you do run over a fairy present, there's more chance that it will go through.

Most people I see cycling around town don't seem to be carrying anything more than themselves when cycling.

A patch kit and mini pump will easily fit in a pocket, or even if no pump is carried, it's only a short walk in most towns to a petrol station with a pump - although many advise against using them on bikes, plenty of people do.

Do you use a 2mm Allen key in the little rotator slot to loosen off the cable tension & unhitch it & same getting it back on? It's as quick as hoiking a derailleur out of the way but Shimano do tend to expect you to know the slot is there.

That bit may be, but then there's the brake reaction arm, the chainguard holder and all the other stuff that Shimano hub gears often seem to have hanging on the axle.

To turn up for a group ride ill-equipped and rely on others to fix your bike is downright bad manners.

Not always. Some groups are quite happy to say "only a bike is needed" and the guide and/or back-marker carry common tools and spares. If people keep coming, then it's preferred that they carry suitable spares and ideally mini tools and levers which they may need on their solo rides to/from the start/finish, but there's not that much point in everyone carrying duplicate full toolkits, or letting obtaining those tools and spares being a barrier to starting riding, is there?

A few weeks ago, one of the riders who has been there far longer than me found that he hadn't the correct-size spare tube for his new bike... I didn't hear anyone suggesting it was bad manners.

Personally, my commutes are within town, so I never have to worry about finding a rack to lock up and then catching a bus or walking to my destination.

Where is this utopia with working public transport, plentiful cycle parking throughout town and no thieves?

 

[EthelF]

Genuine question, what are you doing that it takes so long with an Alfine hub?
.

I get rear punctures rarely enough to forget each time what I did the previous time, so there is much faffing about!

 

[Globalti]

Last week we spent a couple of days happily wandering around Amsterdam while dodging thousands of bikes. A bicycle has such a different value and meaning in the Netherlands that I'm pretty sure people have two or more and keep them chained up at the ends of the bus, train or tram routes that they use regularly. We also saw many bikes wrecked and abandoned, probably because people had moved home, forgotten where they left their bikes or just lost interest when the bike broke or had a puncture. We saw a video of a grab pulling dozens of bikes out of the canals, which the Dutch say are 3 metres deep - 1 metre water, 1 metre mud and 1 metre bikes.

 

[Thursday guy]

Even a cursory glance through the forum would have shown you that the cyclists here have a very wide range of rides, whether used for work, commuting, social or any combination of the three. And a rudimentary knowledge of life outside a town should have made you aware that a lot of people do not have access to adequate public transport.

Yeah, hence why I said, 'personally', to indicate that its own experience. I am quite aware of life existing beyond good public transport served towns and cities.

 

[Thursday guy]

I've just read the first post and am surprised at the acrimony it's created.

My attitude to punctures are that they are a good excuse to stop for a breather and a yarn, and a minor irritant that is easily sorted if you are competent and properly equipped. This means carrying tyre levers, a spare tube and a pump or CO2 cylinder. In case those fail I also carry a second CO2 cylinder and some sticky patches. If all fails or something breaks, I would either phone home for a lift or get walking and hope a cyclist comes along, or hitch a lift. I would NEVER abandon my bike as it would certainly be stolen and I'd feel a prat walking around in cycling gear without a bike.

I used to find hitch-hiking was easier if I had my climbing rope on view as people could see the purpose of my trip; I've never had to hitch with a bike but I'm willing to bet I'd get a lift very quickly from someone in an estate car, a van or a Land Rover.

Haha, tell me about it. How on earth did a question about carrying repair kits cause such a fuss? You can never underestimate some people's determination to start a fight over a nothing. I suppose it's healthier to let loose the ego rage on an internet forum than out on the roads.

 

[Globalti]

For me the web forum is a virtual pub, a place for gossip and that gentle joshing humour that the British do so well. For others, it's a place to demonstrate your impeccable PC credentials by shooting down anybody who dares to post anything vaguely contentious or that doesn't fit your view of the world. These people are as censorious as the supposedly open-minded students who ban speakers whose views they find too controversial. The most common form of patronising pseudo-academic put-down (I had this one thown at me a few days ago) is: "Where is the study that proves your point?"

 

[MontyVeda]

Haha, tell me about it. How on earth did a question about carrying repair kits cause such a fuss? You can never underestimate some people's determination to start a fight over a nothing. I suppose it's healthier to let loose the ego rage on an internet forum than out on the roads.

You're just having a sulk because almost all of the replies weren't...

"you're absolutely right... that's the last time I carry a puncture kit... taking bus fare instead never crossed my mind, thank you Thursday Guy!"

 

[Thursday guy]

to be fair the acrimony only arrived after several pages of people suggesting; on a cycling forum of all places; that fixing a puncture isn't that difficult a task, and started to get the comeback that (paraphrasing here) we're all niche oddballs who are doing it wrong when theres a perfectly good bus service available, even if there isn't.

Hmmm.....Where did I say that?

Would love it if you could find the quote. You do seem to have a bizarre interpretation/imagination of what other people say.

 

[Thursday guy]

Last week we spent a couple of days happily wandering around Amsterdam while dodging thousands of bikes. A bicycle has such a different value and meaning in the Netherlands that I'm pretty sure people have two or more and keep them chained up at the ends of the bus, train or tram routes that they use regularly. We also saw many bikes wrecked and abandoned, probably because people had moved home, forgotten where they left their bikes or just lost interest when the bike broke or had a puncture. We saw a video of a grab pulling dozens of bikes out of the canals, which the Dutch say are 3 metres deep - 1 metre water, 1 metre mud and 1 metre bikes.

Interesting. The Dutch do seem a lot more relaxed about their approach. No helmets, etc. I suppose that's what better cycling infrastructure brings.

 

[Bazzer]

So if your personal experience is [commuting]"... within town, so I never have to worry about finding a rack to lock up and then catching a bus or walking to my destination." but you are also "....aware of life existing beyond good public transport served towns and cities." why ask the fatuous question in your start to this thread?