Surviving a Flat Tire at a High Speed
Luckily, flats generally do not occur when you are riding at a
high speed. This is probably because at a high speed, you are
mostly away from the shoulders of road, where the majority of
the flat-producing snippets are present. Secondly, when your
tire passes at a higher speed over the pointed objects, it is
less likely to be pierced by them as compared to a slow moving
tire. These are probably also the reasons you usually do not
have a flat tire on descent.
Although it is rare, but tire of your bike may go flat at high
speed and it is scary as hell. However, if you are careful and
fortune favors you, you can survive it. The key to surviving is
that when you flat, you do not have to stop immediately. You
might hear a hissing sound when the tire flats. Your rim, when
touching the surface of the trail causes this sound. You no
longer have a cousin of air to ride on, and when that happens,
take a lot of time to impede.
The rear tire flats more often. However, if your front tire
flats, never do the following two things:
* Use the front brake to stop. * Ride on slanted surface.
Moreover, do not steer anywhere other than straight in front.
As compared to the flatted clinched tire, it is somewhat safer
to ride a flatted sew-up (tubular) tire. This is because a
sew-up kind of tire, even if flatted, will continue to stay
between the rim and the road provided it