RobT Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 It being another beautiful weekend in Northern California with sunny skies and temps in the mid 60's or better I asked some friends to go for a sunday pre-super bowl ride. They were either sick or busy so it ended up being a solo trip. Took off at 8:45 and headed out hwy 80 to Auburn, up 49 to Sierra City where I stopped for breakfast...and discovered I had forgotten my wallet! Fortunately, met "Joe" and he loaned me $20 so I had breakfast and gas money. After a late breakfast, headed further East on 49 over a 6700 foot pass and down into Sierra Valley (North America's largest alpine valley) where I hooked up with hwy 89. Followed that to Quincy and hwy 70 that took me west to Oroville and on down to Sacramento. Road conditions, by and large were good. Some tricky spots in the higher elevations, especially on 49, where there was sand in some corners. After the first time of almost soiling my pants, I took it very slow through any curve that appeared to have sand. A fair number of bikers out, particularly on 89 and 70. All was going well until I was about 20 miles outside (west) of Quincy. That's when I noticed I had I near flat on my rear tire. I tell myself I am OK since I have my handy dandy Stop & Go tire plugger kit that I had recently purchased, see here: http://www.stopngo.com/plugger.asp Get it all out to fix the tire and...instructions require a pair of pliers..which I did not have. So, back on the bike and with 12 pounds of pressure in the tire cruise at 30 mph with the flashers on. After about 10 miles of this, passed by a BMW rider who stops at the corner where 89/70 split. While Jerry did not have a pair of pliers, he had a 1/2 can of liquid sealant which he generously gave me. Put that in and that got me to all of 15 lbs of pressure. Failed to ask Jerry from Quincy if he was on this Board, but if you are...THANK YOU! I still had 65 miles to get to Oroville on winding mountain roads with NO gas stations in between. So, a slow trip there. Finally got to Oroville and, after borrowing $10 from Mark the station attendant to buy more gas and some more sealant, fueled up and put air in the tire. Traveled on to Marysville, now doing 50 mph and stopped for more air before heading on home keeping at or below 60 and praying the whole way it wouldn't blow out. So, day started great and ended badly. But thank God for the generosity of strangers. I failed to get Jerry's address, but am sending Joe and Mark each $30 today...a bonus on the amount borrowed as a thank you for each. But with the bad comes the good as I did learn a few things: 1) Need pliers in the tool kit. 2) Must practice use of tire plugger. 3) Need to buy a portable airpump. Think I'll get this one: http://www.stopngo.com/Contents/76085.asp and 4) Don't be a dumbass and forget wallet! Finally, I was out in the middle of nowhere, hence no cell phone connection. My 14 y/o son was snow boarding and about 10:40 Sunday fell and broke four vertebrae. Compression factures and docs say he will be fine. In fact, he was home yesterday and with no brace which was surprising. Needless to say, I did not find out about this until I called the wife after getting to Oroville and seeing there were 9 messages on the cell phone. Breaking a spine is always a bad thing, but if it is going to happen, you want to be with a spinal surgeon....which my son was as his friend's dad with whom he was boarding is an orthopedic surgeon at UC Davis. What a day. Link to comment
GelStra Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Strangers can be cool. Throw a Leatherman or something like it somewhere on the bike so you have a knife, pliers, bottle opener (woops! ) available. I carry the patch kit and the Slime pump. It actually fits in the gap bag I have under the luggage rack on the GS. FWIW, greatest tip: Anytime you do minor repairs, only use tools you carry on the bike. That way you always have it when you're not near your garage. Link to comment
BFish Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 +1 on the leatherman...it has many functions and one helluva sharp knife....won't print money tho! Link to comment
Joe Frickin' Friday Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I carry the patch kit and the Slime pump. It actually fits in the gap bag I have under the luggage rack on the GS. +1 on the Slime. Search the Bike-Related forum for "slime:" you'll pull up a thread I started a couple of weeks ago asking people for recommendations on a portable pump. Many recommended the Slime unit; it's about $35, and the same size as the pump you're currently looking at. I just picked mine up a couple of days ago. Link to comment
Redbrick Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 +1 on the leatherman...it has many functions and one helluva sharp knife....won't print money tho! Wow....Quite an adventure and nice to see riders helping each other......But the important thing is your son, of course....Hope all is well with him... Another vote for a Leatherman....I carry a Slime tire pump that comes in a neat little bag and have wired an SAE outlet with a cap direct to the battery (R1200RT) to plug it into....The SAE also serves for the Battery Tender, Gerbings and whatever else needs power...Handy... http://www.slime.com/product.php?product=40001 Phil..........Redbrick Link to comment
RobT Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 I had a leatherman until I lost it while fishing. Great idea to keep one on the bike. And I will definitely get the slime pump since it is 1/3 the price and comes so highly recommended by this Board and others. Son is recovering fine. Thanks for the thoughts. Link to comment
tobyzusa Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I keep a spare twenty tucked away for the time in the future I forget my wallet....and there's the spare key hidden in the bowels of the bike for when I loose my key and am hundreds or thousands of miles from home! Link to comment
RobT Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Just sent $30 checks to Joe and Mark to repay and thank them. Good idea on the stash and the key. I keep thinking to myself though, how in the hell does one forget their wallet when about to embark on a 375 mile ride? Dare I say "Never again"? Probably not! Link to comment
GelStra Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Don't forget to send us some dough. Think of what it woulda cost you if did it again! And the value of all this free......scratch that....valuable advice!! Link to comment
Redbrick Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 I keep a spare twenty tucked away for the time in the future I forget my wallet....and there's the spare key hidden in the bowels of the bike for when I loose my key and am hundreds or thousands of miles from home! +1 Phil..........Redbrick Link to comment
SageRider Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Although your day could have been far worse in many ways, it was bad enough. Hope your future days improve (and your son is OK!). Link to comment
Joel Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 ... Leatherman ... bottle opener (woops! ) [knocking on wood] That part of mine gets more use than any other! [/knocking on wood] Link to comment
tallman Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Don't know why things seem different when "going for a ride", but they are. I think we get caught up in the pre-ride excitement and change routines or lose focus. BTDT. Now, I try to "start" riding mindset before I leave the house. Everything in the same order and everything in the same place. Gear up, keys, wallet, etc... are all in the same pockets/places and double double checked. When I turn the key I'm already mentally scanning so that when the rubber starts rolling I'm not thinking "did I (fill in the blank w/your choice)". I sometimes wonder if stashing a key/money will lead to a self fulfilling prophecy? Last time I forgot my wallet was at the start of leading several bikes 450 miles to an El Paseo. At least I remembered 1.5 miles out or I would've been further up and deeper than you were. Hope all is well w/your son. Link to comment
RichEdwards Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 Another hint: Next time you get a new tire, keep the old one, drive in some screws or nails, remove and then practice your plugging technique in the comfort of your garage. It's tough learning any new procedure pulled over at the side of the road. Link to comment
RobT Posted February 7, 2007 Author Share Posted February 7, 2007 Oh yeah, the advice and info on this Board is quite valuable....not sure I want to be sending out even more checks though as they might start bouncing! My rear tire with the hole has about 6500 miles on it since July so when I get a new rear in the next few days I will save it and begin practice plugging. Have a friend coming over to make a day of it. Thanks to all for your insight (and humor) as well as your concern for my boy. He's still quite sore, but is going to be OK. Link to comment
algover Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 .... I keep thinking to myself though, how in the hell does one forget their wallet when about to embark on a 375 mile ride? ..... How about a 1500 mi. ride?! We got 1 1/2 hours out on our trip to the Un at Gunnison when I realized I didn't have my wallet. Had to turn around an go back. At the end of the day, we'd put in a full day of riding and only got as far as Fallon, NV! Link to comment
Carnadero Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 We got 1 1/2 hours out on our trip to the Un at Gunnison when I realized I didn't have my wallet. Had to turn around an go back. Hour and a half....hmmmm. Did you make it over the crest of the Sierra before you decided to turn around? Link to comment
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