Last week I wrote a piece asking whether the writing was really on the wall for the bike rider’s most diabolical foe, the puncture.
Advances in materials and a complete overhaul in the way we fit rubber to our wheels means that many of us will count ourselves unlucky if we get more than one flat a year.
“I stopped using tubes 10 years ago – no punctures since,” reported Madley Madley in Cycling Weekly‘s comments section. And they were not alone in being a tubeless convert.
“Not one puncture since I switched to tubeless in… 2015,” revealed the (possibly remarkably lucky) Igam Ogam.
They added: “The [tubeless] plusses are (for me) no flats, better ride, more grip and only needing child’s-play maintenance every couple of years – not rocket science.”
However, plenty of others voiced their scepticism of going sans tubes, whether because of the potential mess involved or the availability of useful alternatives.
“No mention of the value and advantages of TPU tubes,” points out Uptitus, “which for many of us, nicely eliminates the mess and fuss of the tubeless system, is way lighter than butyl, and has a claimed better puncture resistance than butyl.”
LeicesterLad1960 extols the virtues of slime-filled inner tubes, sharing that he has only had a single flat in three years on his performance road set-up using 25mm rubber.
“I would never use just air tyres as to much ‘muck’ on the roads. 65 now & still loving it!” he adds.
For others, going tubeless had been a decided, um, let-down (sincerest apologies there), and encounters with wayward sealant and merciless road debris had quickly lost their attraction.
“Tubeless is fine for out in the country,” opined Aelazenby. “However, in my part of the city there is way too much glass on the road. Plugs were not staying the gashes and I got tired of getting sprayed in the face with sealant. The commuter is back to slow-rolling bomb proof tires and tubes.”
For Vacyclist – a hardcore commuter pedalling 23 miles each way, their current “flat every few weeks’ status remains preferable to the mess of tubeless.
“I want to switch to tubeless but the mess dealing with tire rotation and tire swap-out after 90-100 days scares me,” they said.
While Kevinr24 added: “I’ve today ditched my tubeless Panaracer Agilest Duro tyres after two punctures that wouldn’t seal and ended the ride.”
As to ideas of a post-puncture reality, while some commenters – such as Madley Madley and Igam Ogam above – may feel as though they’re almost there, others were far more sceptical.
“The answer is categorically no. So [the piece] is overly optimistic,” said Kevinr24, while GravelIsNothingNew’s tongue in cheek response was: ‘Post-puncture world’? …it just means you’ve fixed it.”
So, the wheels keep on rolling, and – at least for now – punctures are still a reality. But who says we can’t dare to dream?
