I am an avid bicyclist. In fact, I do not own a car, and use public transit when biking isn’t feasible. It’s a benefit of living in the city, and an opportunity to stay healthy and support planetary health as well.
This weekend has been filled with odd bike mishaps and shenanigans. Saturday morning, I started down a bumpy alley I often ride, only to hit a hole too hard. The back tire was already weakened from an early run-in with a pothole, so this time, it didn’t take much to blow both the tire and tube. It sounds more dramatic than it was. I knew almost right away it was happening, slowed down and got off to the sound of a hissing tube. Those in the area might have made a double take, wondering where the snake had come from, but I was just fine.
The interesting thing is what happened next. I just turned the bike around, and walked it home. No fussing about it. No worrying that I was going to waste my day away. Nothing.
Once home, I decided to try and patch both this tube and another tube that I had in the closet. Some might say “Great job reusing and recycling!,” but mostly this was an example of me being cheap. As I patched the first tube, I also got the bright idea I could speed up the process by blow-drying the glue around the patch. Impatience in full bloom you might say. After a few minutes of that, I got the air pump and fit the tube into the tire, then around the rim. It held for about 10 minutes before the air emptied out again. At this point, I decided to patch the other tube and let it dry. In the meantime, I’d use the slower, but very dependable mountain bike for the rest of the day.
All was well until I came out of the coffee shop I was studying in last night, hopped on the bicycle, and nearly fell over as the seat slammed down. Someone had stolen the bolt that held up the seat. I just stood there for a moment, wondering why in the hell anyone would steal a bolt. “Why not take the seat, too?” I thought.
And then I just laughed. Because it was funny! Seriously, sometimes, no matter what you do, things are just going to happen.
I hope the bolt stealer enjoyed the bounty.
Photo Credit
Bicycle Shadow @ FreeFoto.com
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