[Pegasus]

A bicycle, not my Majesty.

Early last year, my son borrowed my bike. I had a lock on it, gave him the key, and told him to lock it. Thinking it was safe in a friend's backyard, he didn't lock it: it was stolen.

I went through virtually all of '05 without a bike. I didn't need one really as I rode my Majesty everywhere anyway. But I always felt kind of guilty - because I wasn't getting exercise on the Majesty.

So this year I determined, somewhat, that before riding the Majesty, I would always try to get out for a bike ride first, if possible. And I waited for my son to replace the bike he borrowed and didn't lock, but it just didn't look like that was going to happen. So this past week, I picked up a new road bike.

We've had some lousy weather here in Minnesota, but today wasn't too bad. Left early in the morning for a quick loop through the Twin Cities for the bikes first real ride. About ten to fifteen miles from home, while riding just past the center of the UofM, my front tire went flat in a flash. Couldn't believe I actually lost control of the bike and went down. No real damage to either the bike or myself. We walked back to "dinkytown" at the UofM and found a bike shop. Replaced the tube and the tire in a jiff and we were back on the road.

The tube "burst" near a seam / reinforced area next to the valve and could not be repaired. And upon examination, the technician said that while the tire was okay for the day or short term, he highly recommended replacing it soon if not immediately because of wear around the edges.

To save a few bucks, I had purchased a new '05 model that was on closeout. I knew it had been test ridden a bit, but it never occurred to me that the tire might be that worn already. I contacted the dealer I bought the bike from because I needed to order a couple plastic tabs that broke off the brake / derailleur handles. When he heard what happened, he asked for the tire and tube to inspect them. I didn't ask him to cover anything, but it looks like he will if he sees there was a defect.

Anyway, sorry for the long post, but here's the real issue: that tire going flat so fast and then losing control and falling on a bicycle, got me thinking just how would things be if you had a flat at various speeds on the Majesty. What can you expect with respect to maintaining control of the motorcycle and staying upright? What are the correct actions to take or the things to avoid doing should this happen to you. Anyone have experience with such an event? Thanks.

 

[Blexcroid]

The tube "burst" near a seam / reinforced area next to the valve and could not be repaired. And upon examination, the technician said that while the tire was okay for the day or short term, he highly recommended replacing it soon if not immediately because of wear around the edges.

First, glad to hear that you and your 'other' bike are OK and didn't get too much roadrash. :shock:
The comment by the repair shop stating the tyre had "wear around the edges" makes me wonder if the dealer sold you a bike that was older than an '05 (or the wheels were). Unless it was sold as a "demo" model, the tyres should not have any wear. Personally, I would take the bike back to the dealer and ask them to do a complete "safety" inspection of the bike. A blowout on the first ride indicates there likely was dry rot on the tube, and the heat generated from your extended ride was enough to completely blow it. If he is a good dealer, at minimum I suspect he will replace the other tube for free, check the tyres and replace them if they show ANY wear or dry rot, check the brake pads for glazing & hardening, and replace the brake/derailleur handles.
If you haven't already, purchase a spare tube AND patch kit, tyre spoons, and a tyre pump that attaches to the frame of the bike. The other parts will fit in a small bag that attaaches under or immediately behind the seat. You now will have the technology to change your own tube and repair the tyre in a pinch. 8)

 

[glennd]

I think the wear around the edges, was likely from the short period while it was flat. In regard to the Majesty tire... They're performance tires and should maintain a fair amount of control after going flat. Saw 1 at the dealer and the guy had driven it flat to a store, but some flat sealant, then drove it 30+ miles to the dealer that didn't have a tire in stock. They were attempting to repair it while I was buying mine. Personally, I would never repair a tire that had been ridden on flat...

 

[Larry Newman]

Your question pertained to what would happen if you went down, and how to prevent it.

Check tyre pressure/condition regularly.

Wear armor in jacket & pants, with good boots and gloves.

Regular bike service, checking: brakes, forks, controls, etc.

Alcoholic beverages..."24 hours from bottle to throttle."

...and about a million other things...

 

[gpsnut2003]

i have never had the front tyre go flat on me on a motorcycle (at speed) but have had the experience of the rear going flat at 60mph (100kp/h) with zero warning.

how i stayed upright is beyond me. it's not a fun experience at all, and im just thankful that it was not the front, as if it had been, im sure i would have gone down, and hard.

after that experience, i went and bought a product called "tyreshield"

http://www.tyreshield.com.au/

its a liquid latex that you put inside the tyre, and if you get a puncture, this stuff re-seals the hole, before the tyre goes flat. in fact most of the time you will not know that there was a puncture in the first place.

this stuff has saved me on at least two occasions from very long walks, and possible injury / damage.

im sure that there is a similar product avalible in the USA.
i highly reccomend this stuff. it can seal holes up to 6mm dia that's 1/4 inch dia in tubeless tyres, and 3mm dia in tubed tyres.

(no i have no commercial interest in the company).

anyway, if you do get a flat trye at speed (front or rear) UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES USE THE BRAKES !

if you do, you will almost certainly crash the bike. you must get off the throttle as soon as you feel something's wrong, and let the bike coast to a stop, while trying to stay upright.

like i said earlier, this happened to me, and i dont remember much , just that the training that i have done, kicked in and it just came naturally.
still not sure how i didnt do down.

jason.

 

[Larry Newman]

www.ride-on.com has the product that I use in my tyres.

 

[Ishabaka]

Larry - thanks for that link, I ordered some of the stuff. If you do get a puctured tire "Motorcycle Consumer News" reviewed the tire repair kits
and the Progressive Suspension TRK-5 came out first. This uses a CO2 canister to inflate the tire and probably won't bring it up to full pressure so you should ride slowly till you get to someplace that has an air hose.
Also it fits the puncture with a plug - these will leak and eventually fail
(it happened to me) so either get the tire patched (the kit contains patches in case you can do this yourself) on the inside or better yet buy a new tire as soon as you can. But if you have a flat 100 miles from nowhere one of these kits just might save the day.