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The size of your pump should be...
in direct relationship to the size of the swarm of midgies at ground level when you're fixing a puncture.
So you can eff off as quickly as possible.
No more dinky weight weenie pumps for me.
A discovery I have just made. 🙂
I was inspecting a bridge in achnasheen lovely day no midges until i stepped off thr ballast onto squelchy moss tthen holy bitey things
Quick inspection techniques evolve quickly 😂
The size of your pump should be…
...CO2 in the back pocket and you should be back on your bike before the chap with the pump is still working out how to attach it to the valve on the tyre 🙂
Midges can't keep up with me when I'm actually moving!
CO2 you pay for every time, pump is free once you've bought it. 🙂
Thought of another thing - always carry a buff if you're bald. The wee illegitimates were coming through the vents on my helmet. Actually make that a balaclava. 🙂
CO2 you pay for every time, pump is free once you’ve bought it.
Modern tubeless makes that much less of an issue.
Escaping midge attack or hypothermia is worth it.
The size of a backpack! I carry CO2 & spare tube for a quick fix, but also a pump and a repair kit "just in case". I got stranded once before mobile phones were invented - was a long walk home. Now I go full MacGyver.
mikewsmith
...Modern tubeless makes that much less of an issue.
When we actually have modern tubeless instead of the current bodge, I'll be in it. 🙂
ie when we can fit a tyre, inflate it with a hand pump without having to add some sort of slimy sludge, then we will have modern tubeless.
CO2 you pay for every time, pump is free once you’ve bought it.
Agree generally, and I don't use CO2, but if I lived in Midgeland I bloody well would!
When we actually have modern tubeless instead of the current bodge, I’ll be in it.
Well. It works for me, what's not working for you?
mikewsmith
...It works for me, what’s not working for you?
I'm not interested in mucking around with magic potions.
I’m not interested in mucking around with magic potions.
I’m not interested in mucking around being eaten by midges 🙂
Your idea of proper tubeless would be very heavy
current bodge
What, the one that's been around for a good 10 years and works brilliantly? Yeah, stupid tubeless. 😆
ie when we can fit a tyre, inflate it with a hand pump without having to add some sort of slimy sludge, then we will have modern tubeless
Sounds exactly like my UST setups from years back before all the tubeless compatible nonsense ruined things. I still tended to use goo for puncture protection but it was completely optional and everything i tried at least, just worked.
dangeourbrain
Sounds exactly like my UST setups from years back before all the tubeless compatible nonsense ruined things.
Yup, a bit more development and it would be spot on. Shame it got sidelined.
That was the idea of original UST - no sealant and (heavy) fully sealed tyres and rims. Trouble is, it only seemed to work well in laboratory (or Californian) conditions. As soon as you burped a tyre or got a hole in it and had to fit a tube (along with loads of trailside grit) it never really sealed properly again...
As soon as you burped a tyre or got a hole in it and had to fit a tube (along with loads of trailside grit) it never really sealed properly again…
On the up side though my fancy plastic rims have a stans monster inside them which I'm at a loss to get out short of cutting the rim and it sounds like one of those rainstick things. Never would have happened without sealant, and in honesty I'd trade the irritation of a handful of punctures for the noise gladly.
Yup, a bit more development and it would be spot on. Shame it got sidelined.
It did we added sealant to stop holes ruining your day, dropped the weight of the tyres dramatically and made it less restricted on rim choice.
Win win really.
Yeah, exactly... I had UST Crossmax with no sealant back in 2007 - did an cx race and punctured on the first lap, had to quit. Now we have sealant, the tyres are better, and I think I’ve had one puncture that I had to fix (with a quick plug) in the past 4 years.
A few more than that on the road (including this morning,coincidentally) but not once have I had to put a tube in, or fix the puncture, sealant has worked every time. Can’t imagine anything working better really.
(xc race, not cx)