Have you ever threaded on thin lines?
3 punctures highlights a frustrating week. I found out that my rear tire have been thinned out from almost 1000KM. Since I got a second hand tire, I have no idea how much more miles were put on it.
The first puncture happened at home. I realized it as I brought the bicycle out before Monday morning's ride with E. I reminded myself that checking and preparing my ride the night before is a necessity. I tried to fix the flat at Shell station in vain. Regretably, I wasted half an hour of E's time. Not to mention the disappointment of not riding.
The next was a timely puncture. On Wednesday, I told E that we'd go straight to school because I had 8am classes. I climbed to the top of a slope in school when I felt alot of the road. After the descent, I got a flat. This time it was my slipshod mounting of the tube. I was frustrated at my inept mechanical skills.
I looked forward to anything that took my mind off the bicycle. Thankfully I had a full day of tutorials and plently assignments left undone. Since I end CG at 9pm, I was tempted to leave the bicycle in school and take a bus home. Of course, I'd just be postponing the problem. XK kindly offered to take my rear wheel to the nearby bicycle shop to get the tubes changed. What seemed like a terrible start to the day led to an enjoyable time in school and also the subsequent ride home.
Armed with a properly mounted tube(and an expensive one at that!) E and I went for another ride the next day. Initially, I wanted to go to ECP but settled for our usual route. We didn't manage to go half that distance.
Yes. The wheel blew again.
We had breakfast at Adam Road and walked our bicycles along Bt Timah Road. We spent our time pressing our noses against the posh bicycle shops along the way. Our old steel bikes represented a pale shadow of the latest offerings of carbon and titanium.
This story might have ended on this sad difference between the "haves and the have-nots". However, we had a most amazing of encounter just a couple hundred metres down the road. Pushing our steel machines, I jokingly said we could go all the way down to my place and check out all the bicycle shops along the way. We stopped for a moment at the next shop, expectedly greeted by a locked door. (Seriously, most bicycle shops in SG opens late!)
A lady standing beside a SUV asked if we needed any help. After declining her kind offer and explaining our situation, we turned around to leave. Imagine our suprise when the same lady called us back and opened the glass door to the bicycle shop! All the time I was thinking she could not possibly be the owner! I am ashamed to say that I was prepared to change the tube myself. My embarrassment ended in full circle when she changed my tube in less than 5 minutes. I took half an hour!
As we rode home, I could not help but thank God for the little things in life.
To take a long walk after a short ride.
To enjoy the scenery amidst a cooling breeze.
To meet wonderful people despite the traffic induced lunacy on the road.
To have air in my tires.
3 punctures highlights a frustrating week. I found out that my rear tire have been thinned out from almost 1000KM. Since I got a second hand tire, I have no idea how much more miles were put on it.
The first puncture happened at home. I realized it as I brought the bicycle out before Monday morning's ride with E. I reminded myself that checking and preparing my ride the night before is a necessity. I tried to fix the flat at Shell station in vain. Regretably, I wasted half an hour of E's time. Not to mention the disappointment of not riding.
The next was a timely puncture. On Wednesday, I told E that we'd go straight to school because I had 8am classes. I climbed to the top of a slope in school when I felt alot of the road. After the descent, I got a flat. This time it was my slipshod mounting of the tube. I was frustrated at my inept mechanical skills.
I looked forward to anything that took my mind off the bicycle. Thankfully I had a full day of tutorials and plently assignments left undone. Since I end CG at 9pm, I was tempted to leave the bicycle in school and take a bus home. Of course, I'd just be postponing the problem. XK kindly offered to take my rear wheel to the nearby bicycle shop to get the tubes changed. What seemed like a terrible start to the day led to an enjoyable time in school and also the subsequent ride home.
Armed with a properly mounted tube(and an expensive one at that!) E and I went for another ride the next day. Initially, I wanted to go to ECP but settled for our usual route. We didn't manage to go half that distance.
Yes. The wheel blew again.
We had breakfast at Adam Road and walked our bicycles along Bt Timah Road. We spent our time pressing our noses against the posh bicycle shops along the way. Our old steel bikes represented a pale shadow of the latest offerings of carbon and titanium.
This story might have ended on this sad difference between the "haves and the have-nots". However, we had a most amazing of encounter just a couple hundred metres down the road. Pushing our steel machines, I jokingly said we could go all the way down to my place and check out all the bicycle shops along the way. We stopped for a moment at the next shop, expectedly greeted by a locked door. (Seriously, most bicycle shops in SG opens late!)
A lady standing beside a SUV asked if we needed any help. After declining her kind offer and explaining our situation, we turned around to leave. Imagine our suprise when the same lady called us back and opened the glass door to the bicycle shop! All the time I was thinking she could not possibly be the owner! I am ashamed to say that I was prepared to change the tube myself. My embarrassment ended in full circle when she changed my tube in less than 5 minutes. I took half an hour!
As we rode home, I could not help but thank God for the little things in life.
To take a long walk after a short ride.
To enjoy the scenery amidst a cooling breeze.
To meet wonderful people despite the traffic induced lunacy on the road.
To have air in my tires.
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