By Andrew Southwood
I love my cycle to work. Rain or shine it has huge benefits. Physically, financially and mentally – I feel so much better and ready for the day ahead if I’ve biked in. There is however one thing that gets me down… so to speak.
Punctures, the bane of any peddle powered commuters day. Like many things in life they tend to come ‘like buses’. I had done 2 years daily commutes across town without so much as a graze, then suddenly… bang, 3 or 4 punctures in as many months.
Sadly, unlike the riders in the great tours, I am not flanked by 2 estate cars with spare bikes, ready to roll, on the roof. When I get a flat I simply get off and push it home, cursing all the way. It takes me a good half an hour in the relative comfort of my garage, with all tools to hand, the radio on and an old carpet to kneel on, to change an inner tube. This time could easily be trebled if attempted on the roadside.
By far and away the most annoying bursts are those caused by glass. These are avoidable and as far as I am concerned amount to nothing short of criminal damage. I am not entirely sure if the glass is deliberately placed there by a cranially challenged person in an attempt to injure and disrupt, or simply thoughtlessly dropped by someone not in full control of their senses. Either way, it’s bad news.
I’ve tried various tactics to reduce my risk of flats, from pumping my tyres to within an inch or their life… and beyond (a tyre burst whilst I was super inflating it in the garage it a few months ago and exploded like a gun shot – my ears were ringing for hours afterwards). For several weeks I also carried a small brush on my bike, stopping to sweep the path before me at various points. A few strange looks from early morning dog walkers and alike, but it sort of worked I think. Now I tend to use the roads rather than the paths at strategic puncture hot spots. Sorry motorists, but ‘your’ bit of road is almost always far clearer of debris than the adjoining cycle paths.
Ultimately it’s futile of course. If there are senseless idiots intent on inflicting misery and pain within their own community, then leaving broken glass on paths (and kids play areas – don’t even get me started!) is probably a good starting point. Equally, if I am just unlucky, I mustn’t get paranoid about it and above all, I mustn’t let it deflate my mood.
