I have been extraordinarily lucky. We moved back to Boston in 2006 and I've been commuting daily by bike since then. In these almost 4 years I have never, ever, had a flat. First I rode Kenda tires on my Raleigh Sport, then a mish-mash while I converged on my current solution, Schwalbe Marathons on my Dawes. I'll be the first to tell you that I think good tires are worth the money.
Yesterday I had my first flat. It took an enormous construction staple going directly through the tire.
As I went through the headache of changing a rear 3-speed tire I wondered why I'd thought that 10-to-3 speeds was a good idea. It is more of a hassle, any way you slice it. However I certainly spent more time trying to service that old derailleur than I've spent on the 3 speed. Here's hoping for another 4 years of flat-free commuting!
Boo, I just heard from a Craigslist seller that a bike listed today that I was going to see tonight for my dad has already sold. I hate when you think you have a plan and they don't tell you to act faster. Boo.
5 comments:
I totally agree with you about tires. I've had Schwalbe Marathons on my Raleigh since I've had it, with only one puncture (a huge piece of glass), but I had the cheapo factory tires on my Electra Amsterdam for a while, and had a whole bunch of flats until I put some good Continentals on, then no more at all.
Unfortunately not all Craigslist sellers have a sense of what is ethical. If you made an appointment he/she should have kept the bike until you arrived. I made a purchase recently and the seller was honest enough to turn down a later offer that was higher than my purchase price.
my fiancee has the same tires on her Danish bike. I've changed the front tube 3 times and the rear once. 3 of the 4 were the same type of staples. i agree the rear hub is a pain to remove. I'm surprised how she has managed to puncture these so many times!
Is that a brand of durability?
It's completely worth the extra cost of Schwalbe tires on a IGH bike because it's such a pain to replace the rear tires. I have to remove my rear wheel for the DL-1 this weekend, and I'm dreading it- It's such a production.
I have Delta Cruisers on my new bike and am a bit worried about how they'll compare to the Marathons.
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