Today i had a very eventful journey home.
It all started as soon as we left school and started home.
Smatt, who i cycle with (usually at quite a pace), dropped back almost immediately. I took it that he was tired or having gear problems, and that he would catch me up at the following junction. So i looked ahead, got across the zebra croosing that links the two parts of school, then noticed some kids ( i say this meaning people in year 10 or below) on mountain bikes and BMX’s on the pavement. One of them, on a mountain bike which is too big for him and who smatt has had problems with before, drops down onto the road and starts going around a parked car. I say starts because it took him ages as he was going at pedestrian pace (Literally the same speed as the pedestrians). I stop to almost a hault, deliberatly putting my back brake which ,id tweaked the night before , on heavily causing a bit of noise. This was deliberat as i dont have a horn and as it has worked in the past. ANYWAY, this prat didnt hear it and slowed down even more as he turned back in towards the pavement at almost 45 degrees. I go to go around him, but mis judge his slowness and rm his back wheel, with my front wheel riding up and over his back. Some how i managed to fall of either the side or back of my bike, landing on my feet. Took two steps, then was back on the bike and powering tomards the upcoming junction, which i went straight throught, as there was no traffic, then kept going till i got to a turning by a pub where smatt and i usually stop for a quick break.
This is where the second, more longer and tiring event started.
I waited for a couple of minuets, and saw no sign of smatt, so decided to go back.
I got to by the afore mentioned junction and smatt appeared carrying his bike.
So i pulled in and we went onto a piece of grass near by.He had come off his bike right by school. I know you are probably thinking, hes only come off his bike, however the reason why i am blogging about it, uther than the fact that i need something to blog about , is the way that he came off and the repurcussions.
To start with when we got to school this morning his wheel was a bit soft. However before we left for home this afternoon we both fogot to check it. (here comes the bit i was told by smatt) When we left school his bike felt strange, the back end kept going up and down.so he decided to pull in, however before he could do so he was almost throwen off his bike. This was because he was ridding it on the rim and the inner tube had come out and had jammed in his brakes.
So we pulled the innertube out of his brake and put it back into the rubber, put the rubber back into the rim and tryed to pump it up, however the valve was at an angle and we could sort it out. So we spent 10 minuets trying to get the valve so i could pump it up. With no succes. As smatt had a dentist appointment in 45 minuets we decided that he would ride my bike, the apollo, home and i would wheel his home.
However 1 minuet after smatt had set off on my bike the back wheel on his bike, which i was pushing as it was still flat decided to make the journey even harder. The rubber decided to come away from the rim, this i couldnt sort out as it kept coming back out. So i had to carry it. This would have been fine with my Yukon or even my apollo, but smatts shockwave weighs a ton and a half.
Luckily when i was half way home i managed i got a lift home. I then spent the following hour taking the tire on and off several times, fiddeling with brakes and fixing a puncture.
At the end of this my hands were as black as coal, and i know which that i had the stuff that mechanics use to get the oil and general creasy much off of them.
Plus i know think that i might find that i have a puncture tomorrow morning, in the words of Uncle Wozzer, fun fun fun!!
Thats all for today, maybe more soon.
Benni