Got a flat - no pump, tube, patch kit, or tools...

[2wheel_lee]

I was recently telling someone a story about a flat I had several years ago, and then I thought some of you would get a kick out of this.

I don't remember what year it was, but it was a week after the guy was killed by a mountain lion at Whiting Ranch. My friend and I parked at Cook's Corner, and we planned on riding up to the Santiago Truck Trail and then down the Luge.

We stopped to chat about half way up the STT. All of a sudden, a burst of air came out of my front tire. Because I figured it was just a short simple ride, I didn't wear my Camelbak, and I didn't have any tools or anything. My friend didn't have anything either.

Well, my friend was already paranoid about mountain lions, and us being stopped there nearly caused her to go into hysteria (despite being in a very open area on top of a ridge). I pulled off the side of the tire, then started stuffing grass into the tire - roots and all, dirt included. After all, she was really getting scared now, I had to act fast. I continued to stuff as much grass into the tire that I could. I fitted the bead back on, and we continued up to the top of the Luge. It was about the same distance either way, and since this was her first time on this ride, I didn't want to cheat her out of the whole ride.

Being that it's a singlespeed, I continued to stand and climb. I was impressed how well the front tire was holding up. On a few of the decents, I had to use some brakes, and again, the bike handled fairly well. Actually, I was carrying a fairly good pace, not too much slower than normal.

By the time we got to the top of the Luge, I was starting to feel a few "flat spots" so I pulled off the tire and began stuffing even more grass in where the older grass had already compressed. There was also already some green liquid.

Because I had confidence in the tire, I went down the Luge pretty darn fast - hey, I climbed the STT on my SS, so I wanted to have some payoff, right? Again, the bike handled very well. Toward the bottom, I had to grab a handful of brakes, and after that, I felt a bit of a flat spot develop. You can see by the zip tie on the fork that I used nearly full travel at one point.

We made it back to the truck without any problems. We both had a fun ride, and I'm now confident that having a flat tire is of little concern if I am not prepared. But best of all, I think I have a pretty cool story.

These are the photos I took after I got home.

[faded1004]

that is macgyver status! good you made it safely... this will be in my list of secrets to use on trips...

[Neccros]

hey your tire dropped a deuce on your driveway

[crazyjeys]

i'll keep this in mind!

[doublewide]

Thats my method for smugglin' uhh stuff!

[sdyeti]

Back east, I've seen people stuff leaves from broad leaf trees (maple, oak, etc) into a flat, too.

[Lambda_drive]

Looking at the exif data on your photos, it says you took the pictures in 2004.

[Fishysticks]

At least Lee didn't stuff the tire with body parts from people who are slower than him again, because at that point we are all fair game.

[wheezy]

There was an article on this very subject like a decade ago in one of the MTB magazines. I believe the same article showed using a dollar bill for a torn sidewall patch.

Good Stuff!!!!

[northshore]

That's awesome! Lee, you were like a portable Jamba Juice wheat grass extractor!