New tire

My back tire was getting tired. Enough chuncks of rubber had been gouged out that a flat was becoming inevitable. Thankfully, it happed all of a sudden while I was sleeping in bed. Woke up in the morning and it was competely flat. The odd thing was that it held pressure when I pumped it up. I didn't ride it though, it would have been risky.

I finally got around to getting a new tire and changing both the tube and tire tonight. Here is the big surprise, the spare tube that I carry around in my saddle bag ended up being the right size but the valve stem is too short!!!! I specifically asked them what size I needed when I got the bike and they handed me that box. If I had ever had a flat on the open road, I would have gone through all the motions only to realize at the very end that I couldn't inflate the thing. Gah. Makes my stomach contract.

Anyway, I now have a stock of spare tubes that all have the wrong size valve, a tire with no tube, and a half assembled bike. blah. I guess I'll force myself to go back to the bike shop tomorrow and exchange them because spending time in the shop is such a chore for me.