Discussion: race

what race are you doing?

Conquer Castlewood.

Re: Flats. I'm always amused that you USCF-types know nothin' about changing flats.

What is it...the cycle-team hierachy doesn't permit riders to change their own flats? Or are you so used to sew-ups that you just don't know what to do with a tire iron? Or does the extra weight of a spare tube, pump and tools offend you?

How do you conclude that I know nothing about changing flats from the fact that I didn't have a tube with me?

Well..I would never go for a ride without spare tube, patch kit, tools and pump. It's all packed into several little seat-paks on my various bikes. But maybe that's because I ride in the big city, and accept the inevitability of flats.

But a lot of guys I race against in triathlons carry nothing...and I see these guys walking back to the transition area in their cleats, dragging their flatted bikes.

How come experienced bike riders don't carry a spare?

in my case, its because i have 'senior moments' - or maybe just didn't have enough upstairs in the first place. or i just dont bring enough to handle the problem, which seem to comes in bunches (don't forget to clean out that tire before you put the tube in - more senior moments)

I typically don't carry a spare at Castlewood if I'm doing the ridge trails because I'm never more than a 10 minute run from the car. As for not carrying one in a race, I guess the feeling is that for distances less than olympic distance, a flat kills the race anyway, so why bother? I generally don't carry spares unless the race is at least 90 minutes long.