Tire woes are an unfortunate part of being a cyclist.

After work today, I wanted to ride the hybrid over to the drug store. Before starting out, I decided to pump up its tires. For whatever reason, I gave the front tire a little squeeze before starting to pump; and it seemed soft.

When I attached the pump\’s nozzle to the front tire valve, the gauge on the pump didn\’t budge, as it normally does. That seemed very odd. When I began pumping, the gauge didn\’t rise in the usual way.

Then air began to rush out, even though the pump nozzle was still attached to the tire\’s valve. I knew then that I\’d be walking to the drug store! Not for the first time, I saw how much I take my bicycles for granted.

Maybe the valve tore loose from the tube. Or did I roll over something last Saturday that caused a puncture? Either way, that front tire needs work.

Unfortunately I don\’t dare try to do it myself. Since before last Christmas, I\’ve had tendonitis in my left thumb. I\’m sure it won\’t take kindly to the strain of getting a bicycle tire off of the rim.

Tomorrow I\’ll call the bike shop. Tire woes aren\’t my only reason for going there. I bought a new chest strap for my Garmin a few months ago; and I still haven\’t figured out how to enter my heart rate zones into my laptop so that I can use the sensor during my rides! So I have to ask the guys at the bike shop for help with that as well.

I sometimes feel like a helpless infant in the face of all this computerization. Did high-wheel enthusiasts feel like that about the newfangled safety bicycle?