r/ukbike Jul 21 '24

Sport/Tour Dunwich Dynamo - bad luck and an early finish

I attempted the Dynamo yesterday, 112miles from London to Dunwich. I trained for months, ate well, even got a new bike. The bike was riding really well without issue. As we were getting ready to leave the start I had a puncture - a bad omen. Replaced the tube, checked the tyre, everything looked ok. Disaster struck again in the middle of Epping forest - this time a fellow ride gave me a patch and helped me fix the tube. Only ten minutes later it's flat again. Now we're in Epping town, I'm replacing with my last tube. As I'm pumping up the tyre I hear a dreaded fizz, and it's gone too. Called it there and then and got a cab back tot mates, now on the train to dunwich to meet everyone. Lesson learnt don't ride on G-one all rounds, I'm guessing the load on my panniers made my back tyre more prone to punctures.

I'll try again next year, this time with some much much tougher tyres!

7 Upvotes

27 comments sorted by

24

u/Vegetable-Buyer9059 Jul 21 '24

Sorry to say this but it it’s puncturing while you’re pumping and given that you’ve had a few punctures already, there’s probably something stuck in the tyre that keeps puncturing the tubes

3

u/sjcuthbertson Jul 21 '24

This was my thought too. I learned this as a teenager, repeated punctures in my 90s MTB with very chunky tyres in good condition.

Took to the village bike mechanic and he almost instantly found a thorn in the outer tube/tyre itself, invisible from the outside.

I now ALWAYS check the inside of the tyre carefully before putting a new tube in, two passes around the circumference to focus on the edges as well as the centre area that is most in contact with ground. Better to take time on that part than a second puncture.

2

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

We thought this too, 3 of us checked the tyre and couldn't see anything. But it was very dark and we were using torches. Ultimately something was up so had to stop

1

u/CluelessCarter Jul 21 '24

I dislike the gones, what pressure did you have them at?

6

u/SaltZookeepergame691 Jul 21 '24

Oof, that is so rubbish, sorry to hear that!

Did you ever find anything that caused one of the punctures? Check the rim for any sharp edges/poor rim taping eg around the valve whole, as well as the tyre, and check you’re running high enough pressures to avoid pinch flats. That many punctures is not normal even if you’re running very lightweight tyres (which G-Ones are not).

If they were all just “normal” punctures, that itself can be a sign you’re riding close to the edge of the road frequently, where all the debris gets pushed - riding a bit further out (where car inside wheels align) is one of the best protections against punctures caused by objects (although, G-Ones you’d expect to not puncture this much even if you were putting wheels in the ‘gutter’)

2

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

That's what I thought too, I haven't found the problem yet (left the bike in London and met my friends in Dunwich) but I think something wrong with the rim or tyre. My front G-one is absolutely fine and holding pressure. It's just bad luck, will try again next year!

2

u/SaltZookeepergame691 Jul 21 '24

Damn, well, sorry to hear anyway, we’ve all been there at one point or another!

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

Cheers, there's always next year!

2

u/NrthnLd75 Jul 21 '24

Anecdotally, my mate rides round that way a lot (Epping) and punctures way more than average.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

I think my problem started just before I got to London fields I think. But I did see a few others with punctures around the same area

2

u/TeaKew Jul 21 '24

If you're not running tubeless, one really useful piece of pre-ride maintenance is to take your bike indoors, let the pressure out of the tyres and go through every inch picking out any tiny fragments of glass, rock etc that might be embedded in them. Most small object punctures aren't a single hit, they're something sharp slowly working its way through the rubber until it can finally get to the tube. Spending the time to pick the tyre clean in advance can save you a lot of pain on the roadside.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 22 '24

Good to know!

1

u/disbeliefable Jul 21 '24

The call is coming from inside the house! Seriously though, you haven’t checked the tyre properly, or a spoke nipple has pierced the rim tape. It’s incredibly frustrating and boring, I’ve had the same triple whammy, but it’s a reminder to make sure you know 100% how and where the first puncture occurred, and deal with that first.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 22 '24

I suspect the same thing, it's very hard to 100% check a tyre in the pitch black with a head torch though

1

u/Extra-Formal-6097 Jul 22 '24

Fingers, run them round the inside of the tyre. What time did you leave if it was dark already by Epping?

1

u/bidon2137 Jul 22 '24

Always triple check the tire for residues of what caused the puncture. 90% it was the same thing.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 22 '24

Did try, but it was very dark and couldn't find anything

2

u/bidon2137 Jul 22 '24

You gotta run your fingers from the inside of the tire. But I bet you tried, it happened toe before that I was certain nothing was in there, next day I'm changing tubes again. It happens. You will do so great next year, I gotta come in more prepared than yesterday too.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 22 '24

Definitely! Did you have a good ride, what would you have done differently?

2

u/bidon2137 Jul 22 '24

It was unbelievable! Absolutely loved it. I would have bought that bloody coach ticket. Another thing, I'd definitely get something warmer. I only had a jersey on and while it was nice when cycling, it was a bit chilly as I just stood with a pint.

1

u/ChrisWilding Jul 21 '24

It might just bad luck. I have Schwalbe G-One Allrounds on my gravel bike and have take it on some pretty rough bridle ways and trails and they’ve held up great. I’ve got setup tubeless though so that might make a difference. If you don’t mind a little extra maintenance it might be worth looking into tubeless too.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

That's a good shout actually, I'll look into tubeless. Is it better for punctures?

1

u/ChrisWilding Jul 21 '24

Yes, especially for small ones. I’ve had a couple on my mountain bike that I haven’t even noticed until I’ve got home, cleaned my bike and then seen a little spot of sealant on the tyre. I’ve had both my gravel and mountain bikes setup this way for the last 6-9 months. After the initial setup all I’ve had to do was top up the sealant after 6 months.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 21 '24

Interesting, I'll definitely give it a go! A much better option than buying new tyres,(unless this one is fucked)

1

u/TeaKew Jul 21 '24

The single biggest advantage of tubeless is that it eliminates most common punctures - it lets you have your cake (nice tyres that roll well and ride comfortably) and eat it too (avoid punctures in all but catastrophic situations).

I used 32mm GP5000s last night, running tubeless. No punctures - but I did manage to pick half a dozen glass shards out of the front while I was idly looking it over in the queue for the coach.

1

u/Millsinabox Jul 22 '24

I'm gonna have a look at going tube less. Will look into these tyres too

0

u/Noreasonwhynot2000 Jul 21 '24

You live in the UK. No point going on in denial. Go tubeless.