Mileage between punctures....?
Discussion
Another puncture today. My question is as simple as "how many miles does an average rider manage between the dreaded flat tire?" I know that it is not an occurrence that can be predicted with any degree of accuracy, but I'm curious as to the experiences of other riders on here.
For the record, I'm on a Merida Road-Race 905, a 2010 Ultegra Aluminium framed model (curiously missing from this years range). I had planned to fit Conti GatorSkins like I ran on my old steel Falcon, but I've stuck to the Vittoria Rubinos that were supplied fitted to the bike. The Contis were great, only one puncture in 2,000 miles, and that was a 'snake-bite' caused by foolish speeds in complete darkness on unfamiliar rural Essex roads. (I'm answering my own question here, I think!). Since October I've clocked up 1276 miles on the Merida, but at the cost of 3 punctures. I know that I should probably switch the rubber from the old (unused) bike to put the Contis on the new one, but is the 3 punctures in 1276 miles....
A) Awful. Get new puncture resistant tires NOW.
or
B) You lucky so-and-so, I wish my tires were as reliable as that.
I know that a lot depends on were you ride and it can be the luck of the draw, and maybe I should just stay away from Thaxted (2 flats near there), but can anyone recommend a tire that reliably resists punctures like a Gatorskin, combined with light weight and low rolling resistance? And while you're about it, the location of the Holy Grail and a map to help me find the Ark of the Covenant would be nice too!!
P.S. The bulk of my riding is done around the North Essex/Cambridgeshire/Hertfordshire/Suffolk area. Ride distances vary between a regular 24 miler to a 96 mile loop around Cambridge and Newmarket via the fens and Ely (completed only once).
For the record, I'm on a Merida Road-Race 905, a 2010 Ultegra Aluminium framed model (curiously missing from this years range). I had planned to fit Conti GatorSkins like I ran on my old steel Falcon, but I've stuck to the Vittoria Rubinos that were supplied fitted to the bike. The Contis were great, only one puncture in 2,000 miles, and that was a 'snake-bite' caused by foolish speeds in complete darkness on unfamiliar rural Essex roads. (I'm answering my own question here, I think!). Since October I've clocked up 1276 miles on the Merida, but at the cost of 3 punctures. I know that I should probably switch the rubber from the old (unused) bike to put the Contis on the new one, but is the 3 punctures in 1276 miles....
A) Awful. Get new puncture resistant tires NOW.
or
B) You lucky so-and-so, I wish my tires were as reliable as that.
I know that a lot depends on were you ride and it can be the luck of the draw, and maybe I should just stay away from Thaxted (2 flats near there), but can anyone recommend a tire that reliably resists punctures like a Gatorskin, combined with light weight and low rolling resistance? And while you're about it, the location of the Holy Grail and a map to help me find the Ark of the Covenant would be nice too!!
P.S. The bulk of my riding is done around the North Essex/Cambridgeshire/Hertfordshire/Suffolk area. Ride distances vary between a regular 24 miler to a 96 mile loop around Cambridge and Newmarket via the fens and Ely (completed only once).
For you, now? Not many - you have jinxed yourself a treat :P
Depends on so many factors - tyres, rider weight, riding style, road condition, luck...
I rode the Paris Roubaix course on Vittoria Open Paves (best wet weather and sturdy race tyre in the world IMO - there is a reason the pros all use them on cobbles - this is your tyre right here) and picked up no punctures at all, despite running a fairly low pressure.
Contrast this to riding the IM course in Switzerland - beautiful smooth tarmac, conti GP4000s tyres which served me well in Edinburgh, nice high pressure and 3 punctures in about 60 miles.
Edinburgh - worst roads on the planet (they would give the PR course a run for its money in places :P) - 5 years of commuting on whatever was cheapest on wiggle - maybe 1 puncture.
I would guess at maybe 1 per 500 miles, but no real idea - they seem to come in groups when they do come - the biggest factor for me is luck and not being a tool (i.e don't try to bunnyhop a drain when on carbon race wheels running latex tubes)
Depends on so many factors - tyres, rider weight, riding style, road condition, luck...
I rode the Paris Roubaix course on Vittoria Open Paves (best wet weather and sturdy race tyre in the world IMO - there is a reason the pros all use them on cobbles - this is your tyre right here) and picked up no punctures at all, despite running a fairly low pressure.
Contrast this to riding the IM course in Switzerland - beautiful smooth tarmac, conti GP4000s tyres which served me well in Edinburgh, nice high pressure and 3 punctures in about 60 miles.
Edinburgh - worst roads on the planet (they would give the PR course a run for its money in places :P) - 5 years of commuting on whatever was cheapest on wiggle - maybe 1 puncture.
I would guess at maybe 1 per 500 miles, but no real idea - they seem to come in groups when they do come - the biggest factor for me is luck and not being a tool (i.e don't try to bunnyhop a drain when on carbon race wheels running latex tubes)
My neighbour has a LBS (High end) and some mates told me to get shot of my standard tyres etc.
I asked LBS and his wife what tyres they recommend purely to combat the dreaded punctures on a long 3 day ride - LBS said:
'Don't bother! The puncture Gods will decide when it will be your turn to humour them'
So far, they were right - my cr4ppy standard tyres and tubes haven't let me down and we had very few flats over 220/230 miles on a ride with 65/70 bods.
And not a drop of rain!!!! (well a few big ones but no wet miles)
So, to tempt fate, I have now done c. 700 miles or so on my bog standard entry level stuff and on all sorts of roads, from A down to unclassified near farm roads - no flats. SHould note I started of around 18st 3ilbs with under inflated tyres (by mistake) and now down to under 17st with 100psi
I asked LBS and his wife what tyres they recommend purely to combat the dreaded punctures on a long 3 day ride - LBS said:
'Don't bother! The puncture Gods will decide when it will be your turn to humour them'
So far, they were right - my cr4ppy standard tyres and tubes haven't let me down and we had very few flats over 220/230 miles on a ride with 65/70 bods.
And not a drop of rain!!!! (well a few big ones but no wet miles)
So, to tempt fate, I have now done c. 700 miles or so on my bog standard entry level stuff and on all sorts of roads, from A down to unclassified near farm roads - no flats. SHould note I started of around 18st 3ilbs with under inflated tyres (by mistake) and now down to under 17st with 100psi
Well with respect that's bull.
Wrong tyres for terrain will mean flats, get decent ones and that chance is massively reduced.
What does he have to say about puncture gods when as mentioned I got 7 in 4 hours, switched to hard cases and never had another (2500 miles) till I went back to race tyres!
Wrong tyres for terrain will mean flats, get decent ones and that chance is massively reduced.
What does he have to say about puncture gods when as mentioned I got 7 in 4 hours, switched to hard cases and never had another (2500 miles) till I went back to race tyres!
I rarely get a puncture. Think I've had 2, ever and I use michelin pro race 3 tyres on the good bike which aren't particularly known for their puncture resistance. On my training bike it has continental gators (I think), just cos that was what was on it when I bought it and they look like you could ride across razors they're so thick/beefy by comparison.
I do make a point of picking my routes fairly carefully - I rarely ride a cycle path, and usually sit in the groove of the road left by the cars NS wheels - I figure this is a fairly "clean" bit of the road, whereas closer to the gutter and cycle routes often have loads of debris.
(It also gives me an extra foot or so of "bail out" space if I need to swerve to avoid something)
I have cocked up fitting the spare innertube causing the valve to fail before - but self inflicted doesn't count right?
I do make a point of picking my routes fairly carefully - I rarely ride a cycle path, and usually sit in the groove of the road left by the cars NS wheels - I figure this is a fairly "clean" bit of the road, whereas closer to the gutter and cycle routes often have loads of debris.
(It also gives me an extra foot or so of "bail out" space if I need to swerve to avoid something)
I have cocked up fitting the spare innertube causing the valve to fail before - but self inflicted doesn't count right?
Well on my road bikes, I use continental 4 seasons and have never had a puncture with them. On my 3rd set now and have covered about 9k miles on all 3 sets combined.
Mountain bike, no idea what the tyres are but I average one puncture every 500 miles. Oh and i do 99.99% of my cycling on the road...
Mountain bike, no idea what the tyres are but I average one puncture every 500 miles. Oh and i do 99.99% of my cycling on the road...
okgo said:
Well with respect that's bull.
Wrong tyres for terrain will mean flats, get decent ones and that chance is massively reduced.
What does he have to say about puncture gods when as mentioned I got 7 in 4 hours, switched to hard cases and never had another (2500 miles) till I went back to race tyres!
Must admit that I kind of agree with you on this. I struggle to believe that some of teh 'armadilloe' or Gator skins etc dont provide MORE protection than my stock cr4ppy tyres....Wrong tyres for terrain will mean flats, get decent ones and that chance is massively reduced.
What does he have to say about puncture gods when as mentioned I got 7 in 4 hours, switched to hard cases and never had another (2500 miles) till I went back to race tyres!
I can see his point when you are talking about similar tyres on similar roads - dont concern yourself - but awfu quite side roads in teh country compared to A roads that are 'clean'... may lean towards changing my tyres as really cant think of anything worse than a flat half way up a b1tch of a hill after 35 miles!
Been lucky so far!
Can see his point argument - just think he was making a point - possibly rather badly?
6000km on Conti Touring Plus - 0 punctures.
3000km on Schwalbe Marathon Racer - 1 puncture
6000km on Schwalbe Marathon - 2 punctures
4000m so far Schwalbe Marathon Racer - nothing to report so far
Always get punctures on rear. Had the same marathon racer on the front for 13000km, and it's still got plenty of tread left on it.
3000km on Schwalbe Marathon Racer - 1 puncture
6000km on Schwalbe Marathon - 2 punctures
4000m so far Schwalbe Marathon Racer - nothing to report so far
Always get punctures on rear. Had the same marathon racer on the front for 13000km, and it's still got plenty of tread left on it.
summit7 said:
do you really need anything lighter than that for the riding you are doing?
This is a fair question. The honest answer is no. I was considering the purchase of lighter weight tyres to reduce the amount of weight I'm working to rotate due to a huge increase in the amount of saddle time I'm putting in. The other alternative is to MTFU, but I'm not getting any younger, nor is maintaining fitness getting any easier. In the past I've always accepted the stock tyres fitted to my bikes, and mostly I've had 2nd hand bikes, so the tyres have been 'run in' to say the least. In the past I would have been hugely proud of 'achieving' 2 hours riding in one go, or riding, say, 50-60 miles in the course of a day. Now, due to military service away from the main family home, I have the time to spend cycling of an evening without feeling selfish (as I'm away anyway). This has resulted in my mileage increasing incrementally as the daylight hours have increased, with the result that I no longer consider it 'worth bothering' with anything less than a 2 hour ride, other than a 'fast' (for me) 10 mile loop against the clock. I'm not trying to be pompous, as I've been accused of before on here, the fact is that more miles means more to me than more speed. This increased mileage brings with it the downside of increased risk of punctures.
The main purpose of the original question was to ask whether my experience of puncture frequency was typical of other riders, or atypical in either a good or bad way. Following your comment, summit, and those of others on here, I have concluded that the real lightweight tyres are best left to real racers who would better reap the benefits, and I should probably stick to more puncture resistant tyres more suited to my type of riding.
Alternatively I could just buy some White Schwalbe Ultremo R1 Evo's on the grounds that they 'look nice and would finish off the look of the bike a treat'. Form over function, anyone???
Typical bad luck. I've been watching this thread. I'm now sat in a cafe(look mum no hands) waiting for a puncture to be repaired. Just got back on my Canondale bad boy, 6 weeks after my ACL repair. Rode two days last week and now it's pissing down I get a puncture. Bugger. I've ridden to Paris on my road bike and nothing. Gotta love Specialized Armadillos.
A couple of weeks ago I had a nightmare ride, 3 punctures in 30 miles. I'm pretty new to road bikes & have since found out it was due to too low pressures in my case, causing 'snake bite' punctures. So I invested in a track pump & now inflate to 100psi. A few hundred miles later, including 60 miles yesterday, no punctures!
I hadn't had a punture in about 300 miles until Friday on my way home from work.
Pretty good going considering I commute along the A23 into London which is like the surface of the moon in places and I use Pro Race 3s which are not renowned for their puncture resistance - they are fast though!
Pretty good going considering I commute along the A23 into London which is like the surface of the moon in places and I use Pro Race 3s which are not renowned for their puncture resistance - they are fast though!
Continental Ultra's 100 miles for first puncture, although the shard of glass that did it would have probably gone through most things!
Also in the wet today they were awful, the bike moved around and the front end was loose. After a chat with our resident tri-nut in the office I have ordered a set of 4 seasons which hopefully will give more confidence. This bike isn't staying indoors when it rains
Also in the wet today they were awful, the bike moved around and the front end was loose. After a chat with our resident tri-nut in the office I have ordered a set of 4 seasons which hopefully will give more confidence. This bike isn't staying indoors when it rains
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