Punctures don’t happen that often, but they are the most common form of breakdown so it’s worth learning how to mend them.

To mend a puncture:

1 Release brake calipers and remove the wheel.

2 Use tyre levers, available from bike shops, toremove the tyre.

3 Carefully run your fingers around the inside of the tyre to check for sharp objects, such as nails, splinters of glass or thorns. Remove the cause of the puncture and check that there are no more spikes in the tyre.

4 Find the hole in the tube, either by pumping it up and holding it underwater to look for bubbles, or by feeling for escaping air.

5 Mark the hole with pen or chalk. Use sandpaper or the scratcher from the puncture
repair kit to scuff the area around the hole to help secure the glue to the tube.

6 Spread glue thinly and evenly over and around the hole and wait for the glue to dry until it feels tacky to touch. Place a patch over the marked hole and apply pressure. (A faster alternative is to use the new glueless patches.)

7 Lightly pump up the tube. Place one edge of the tyre around the wheel rim and push the tube’s valve into the rim’s hole. Starting from the valve, push the rest of the tube into the tyre. Ensure the valve stem is perpendicular to the rim and that the tube isn’t twisted. Once the tube is inside the tyre, begin to place the second edge of the tyre onto the rim. About 75% of the tyre will go on easily, the rest will need strong fingers or tyre levers to coax it onto the rim. Take care not to pinch and damage the tube. When complete, pump a little more air into the tube and check that the tube isn’t caught between the rim and the tyre.

8 Slide the wheel back into place on the bike and tighten the bolts gradually, ensuring that the wheel remains aligned straight to the frame. Reconnect the brakes.

9 If you are happy with it, fully pump up the tyre. Take the bike on a short ride, and test that the brakes are still set up correctly

Further information
Some bike shops, cycle groups and local authorities run courses on bicycle maintenance. Alternatively, you can teach yourself using a good book.

Recommended are:
The Bike Book by Fred Milson (Haynes) ISBN 1-85960-
323-8 Includes step-by-step guidance on all aspects
of bike care.
Richards 21st Century Bike Book by Richard
Ballantine (Pan) ISBN 0-33037717-5 A definitive
guide to all aspects of cycling.

Sometimes, I find myself faced with crises of purpose. What am I doing here? Why can’t I figure out what I want to do with my life? Will I ever find something that satisfies me? It’s enough to really get me down sometimes. It’s a good thing I’ve got the boneheadedness of the bicycle industry to set me right again.

I suppose it was only a matter of time until some high-watt decided to apply the word carbon to drivetrains, and it’s a good thing the folks at Carbon Drive Systems did just that - otherwise I would have mistaken their innovation for a glorified fan belt. Anyway, it’s about time someone beefed up those flimsy polyurethane straps - they last a mere 60,000 miles while running in my car. With the glut of other unsuccessful belt-drive bicycles out there, it’s clear to see the addition of carbon fiber must do something to make this product newsworthy - perhaps by making it laterally stiff yet vertically compliant!

And really, isn’t a revamping of the single-speed drivetrain long overdue? I mean, it’s just so hard to maintain that single cog, single chain ring and chain. Sure, when it gives you 20, or even 30 gearing options, a chain drive is worth the painstaking process of applying a coat of lubricant, turning the crank a couple times, then wiping it clean. But when you’ve only got one gear, the reliability, adaptability and near-perfect efficiency of a chain drive simply can’t make up for the extra weight and apparent mud shedding issues.

One of the nice things about attending a college with an engineering school is that you get to dissuade people from pursuing a lot of really silly ideas. Occasionally, you you get to see something cool (though that’s not really how bike balance works) but for the most part, you just shoot down bad ideas. Overlooking than the general sensation of pedaling through sand, the belt-driven protoype I rode slipped under power at low revs, and derailed entirely at the cog around 100 RPM. Good thing none of these will ever be an issue on a singlespeed MTB.