Getting stranded with a mechanical 20 miles from home isn’t
something you expect to happen, but in the back of your mind, you know it, like
any other mishap, can happen.
Yep, it happened to me a few days ago!
I was on the way back home, about 31 miles into my ride
recently, pedaling hard at 20 mph past a slower rider when a rear wheel spoke
popped, throwing the wheel out of round. I knew right away it was the same
spoke I’d replaced after a similar break about a year earlier. That spoke broke
after being replaced by a spoke that was improperly trued when it replaced a
bent spoke. My right heel had caused the original bent spoke, when I reacted to
a squirrel running in front of my wheel. I missed the squirrel but the bent
spoke put the back wheel out of round. Then, there wasn’t a huge wobble in the
wheel and I was able to ride back all the way to the bike shop. Got a new spoke
but it popped about three rides later because it wasn’t trued correctly and was
overstressed. It broke right in the middle. Then I was stranded, and I called
my wife. Bless her heart, she drove out and picked me up.
The second spoke replacement was trued properly and held up
well, over thousands of miles of riding, so well that I forgot it was a
structurally weakened spoke compared to the others. It was the ongoing stress
at its hub anchoring spot, which had been already chewed up by some unwanted chain
throws on rides along the way, which finally made it snap.
This last time I felt the telltale wheel rub against the rear
frame as I rode, and stopped on the trail to figure out my next move. First
thing I did was release the rear brake to give the wheel-wobble more clearance.
Let’s see, AAA is out of the question (hey they should have
that service for stranded riders!), check, wife is out of town, check. Called
the bike shop I go to, to see if on the outside chance somebody there could hop
in a car and come pick me up, since, hey, I was going to bring them some more
business!
Fat chance! But the guy recommended I get to the nearest
light rail station to get back. I hadn’t thought of that, because it was a bit
of an added ride to get there, with a lot of traffic hassles. Still, I put it
on my mental list as a possible.
I called a rider buddy Pat, but he wasn’t picking up. Left a
message of my plight and then decided it was too far to walk to the next place
for car access, about three miles ahead. So I rode the almost flat trail slowly
and stayed off the rear brake figuring I’d need a new wheel set in the $700
range. Oh well…
When I got to the parking lot three miles ahead, I texted
another riding buddy, P.J., to see if he was around. If he wasn’t my plan was
to ask drivers leaving the parking lot if they could give me a ride the light
rail station. I was pretty sure that would work, since many riders use the lot
as their takeoff point. But before I could scan the lot for potential rides,
P.J. returned my text. Bingo!
I asked him the big favor, any way you can drive out and
pick me up? Whiskey and beer would result, I assured him.
Well, P.J. was a bro in need. He said he had to drop off his
kids and he’d pick up me and my crippled bike in a half hour. Wow, now that was
pretty lucky. I always put my hand on my dog Little Ricky’s back before leaving
the house on every ride, for good luck. It worked, because luck was with me.
P.J. works til noon, and this was about 1:30. Most people I
know are working at that time. He picked me up in his truck, offered me water,
and drove me the 20-minute freeway drive the bike shop. Found out at the shop
that my cassette had a lot of rounded teeth in a couple of the middle gears,
which of course had been skipping the chain on shifts to them. And my chain was
stretched to the replacement stage. My chain-measuring tool had been showing it
still had stretch left in it. But the mechanic showed me with a Shimano chain
measurer (the chain was a Shimano) that it was seriously stretched to replacement
time. So I found out I need a Shimano chain ruler too!
I bought a replacement Shimano Ultegra wheel set, as well as
a new cassette and chain. Expensive bill, but everything was needed, so it was
time to pay up.
So the bike is good to go again, and I guess the lesson I
learned was to have a go-to person you can call to get picked up if you get
stranded on a ride. I don’t have a back up for when my wife is out of town, so
I need one. Getting P.J. was just lucky.
Other than that, the phone saved me too. For worse
emergencies, I carry my driver license, a credit card, a medical insurance card
and a $5 bill. Hope I never need those.
The bike mechanic told me a trick that I wish he’d told me
on the phone when I was stranded. He said if the wheel is out of round and you
still need to ride it to get home, to take the wheel off and look for the bowed
part. Then, he said, to take the wheel and whack it on the pavement (on the
tire side) and that often straightens it up enough to ride. I wondered how the
hell that could work, since he said the wheel will need to be replaced for sure
if you do that. Anyway, when stranded, it may do the trick so it’s something to
keep in mind.
Here are some other ways to deal with a broken rear spoke
that can work if you have the right spoke tool with you. Somehow I think it's a little more difficult than this dude makes it seem, when this happens out in the middle of nowhere. Check it out…
Until next time, remember to strap on a helmet before every
ride and then make sure to keep the rubber side down. Ride safe and have fun.
-- Mark Eric Larson
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