First Flat

[emptysea]

I'm in Erie, PA this week for a series of meetings with Erie Insurance. Tuesday's event (building a home for Habitat for Humanity) was canceled which left me with a free day to explore the shores of Lake Erie. I headed out around 9:30 am after having breakfast with a friend of mine from the Chicago area who just happened to be staying in the same hotel and who also had meeting with Erie this week. He's an actuary, though, so he had nerdy, intellectual, meetings probably of much greater import than my meetings. My planned route was supposed to take me east into New York where I would wander around for a couple hundred miles before returning for a 4:00 cocktail reception and dinner.

Route 5 clings fairly tightly to the lake shore all through Pennsylvania and it's a delightful 2-lane motorcycle road. Direct, but not straight. Light traffic (except through Erie) and nice views of Lake Erie on one side and vineyards on the other. If you're traveling through the area, I recommend it over the interstate or other US highways that bypass the city.



About 20 miles out from "home", I spotted a guy and his ST1300 on the side of the road. I slowed and he signaled that he was 'OK'. I continued on into New York State.



I came upon a blue Dodge minivan of the 1990s variety putzing along at below the posted speed limit of 55 and well below my internal speed limit of 65. As luck would have it, I came upon him at speed and at a perfect place to pass safely. Naturally, I accelerated into the opposing lane to execute the pass and it was then that the rear tire slid out. Not much, thankfully, but enough to startle me. It felt a little like a patch of ice but there was no ice and, an ice patch, I couldn't ride away from it. Telling the story takes much longer than the actual event. I was too far into the pass to let up, so I finished it then pulled immediately on to the shoulder. I'm sure the driver in the minivan thought I was a jerk.

I had noticed odd handling earlier in the ride, but I thought I had just squared off my aging Michelins on the mostly flat trip from Chicago. I knew before my bike had stopped that the rear tire was flat, though. I have never had a flat on the road before. I think my dealer found a screw in my stock tire once when they were replacing it with the PR3s, but I hadn't noticed it and it was still holding air. This was going to be an adventure, I thought. I'm 600 miles from home in a town about which I know nothing really. I have tire repair kit so I figured I was going to learn how to use it.

Just about the time I had unloaded the bike, Curt stopped his ST1300 in front of my bike and offered his assistance. He's from the area and was riding around on his day off. My luck under the circumstances could not have been better. Not only did he have experience fixing a flat, but he had a friend who owns a campground about 1/2 mile from us who had a compressor to fill the tire to proper pressure. Then, after getting me back to riding condition, he suggested that I ride to Forest Park Honda in Erie to have it patched correctly or replaced if needed. I agreed and asked him for directions, but he insisted on riding with me the 25 miles in the opposite direction to the dealer to make sure I arrived safely and to introduce me to John the service guy.








John was working on the front end of an ATV, but stopped to look at the damage, give me the usual warnings that it's probably better to get a new tire, but that he doesn't have one stocked and that it would take an hour or so and $100 to patch. I agreed to his terms. Curt, who was late for lunch with his wife, said goodbye and refused my repeated offers to buy him and his wife lunch in exchange for his help.

I went to a new BBQ place for lunch ("new" because John said he hadn't been there yet). I returned to a repaired bike and John's confident assurance that the patch would hold up to 100mph and to ride as normal provided, of course, that my "normal" was less than 100mph.







The acid test will be tomorrow's ride home. So far, though, I could not have scripted a better first flat tire experience.

P.S. As I don't think PR3s are available anymore, what should I use as replacements?

[Lord Popgun]

My Honda dealer will not repair a tire. Liability, they said, is too great.

[emptysea]

I guess I’ll find out if I’m lucky or ill-fated that this dealer did the patch. Not suing him either way, though.

[suhawk305]

MTC, we New Yorkers throw nails and screws on the roads in an effort to make out-of-State drivers slow down!

Seriously, I’m glad you maintained control of your bike and a Good Samaritan led you to the solution.

[the Ferret]

Man the number of flats I've had on the road over the years. Always carry a tire plugging kit when on the road. Usually throw a plug in it and go on. If it's holding air a day later I keep running on the plug. I've put 9,000 miles on a plugged tire.

Glad you got it taken care of without too much drama Sea.

[emptysea]

LOL, suhawk. I think I had the nail in the tire since the night before, though. My bike has been so problem-free over the years that I got complacent and did not check the tires that morning. My mistake and it won't happen again. I ride in Chicago so nails and screws are the least of my worries.
Ferret, My plugging job was not very good - I was down a pound by the time I got to the dealer. I’m comfortable with the patch job he did, but my PR3s are within about 1000 miles of replacement anyway, so I’ll just look to replace them once I get home.

[the Ferret]

Just an FYI Sea, in case it happens again, they can always put a tube in it to get you home. Makes financial sense, especially if it's a new tire.

[LongRanger_imp]

Sorry your day got derailed but you couldn't have scripted a better outcome.

[emptysea]

Great tip.

[Offroad]

Glad you're okay sounds like that was a scary feeling.

Makes me want to get the little compressor patch kit I've been looking at.

What are people using to replace those PR 3s mine will be due soon?