Some people say that they were nervous the first time they did it. That it was a painful experience. That they felt awkward and shy. Some say it came naturally. Others that it was easier than they thought it would be. One person I talked to said he was six years old when he did it for the first time, and that it was no big deal, just all hype. He said he did it three more times before he turned eight.
When people ask me to tell them about my first time, I’ll say something like this: It was an evening sky that would have extracted perfection from a poet’s pen, under which a painter’s brush would have hovered motionless above the canvass as the artist wept. The breeze was soft and warm from the north-west, and the pastel sun hung low over a Prairie sky. All was silent. Even the birds and insects waited breathlessly. Something important was about to happen. And there, on the side of the Trans-Canada highway, outside Virden, Manitoba, at the age of 54 – old, some might say, for such an important first experience – I did it for the first time.
I changed a flat tire.
I’m one of the guys who says it was easier than I thought it would be. I don’t know why it went flat, but yesterday I put in a new tube after first checking the rim and tire for abrasions. All went well. But then by mid-morning today, it was flat again. I pumped it up and that lasted about 45 minutes. Right now, I’m at a gas station. I’ve taken the wheel apart and cannot see why it has gone flat. There doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with the tire or the rim. There are no sharp or pointy spots on either.
I’m in the middle of nowhere, without a bike repair shop probably until Regina, which I should make by Friday if I can keep up this pace. I have one more tube left, but I’m loathe to use it. A brand new one just went flat. There must be a reason, so why risk my last tube, especially when the other wheel has a slow leak that I pump up twice per day now? Out of desperation, I bought some Puncture Seal, which is designed for cars. I’ve tried it on Kitty’s wheel and now I’m just staring at it, willing it to work.
And that Puncture Seal did work, so well in fact that I didn’t end up changing that tire tube for the rest of the trip.
