It was to be expected: My “Gravel Slicks” had performed remarkably well over all kinds of terrain and hundreds of kilometers so far. Now, climbing the Carretera de Tor I had felt the front wheel bump into smaller obstacles on several occasions, while I carefully navigated my way along the rutted and eroded dirt track, peppered with holes and rocks of all sizes. Eventually, one such bump was one too many, and the tire flatted. Of course, this had to be just about 500 meters from the top of the climb.
I had packed three Tubolito spare tubes (“normal” not the “S-“, quality: they weigh next to nothing anyway) and one spare tire of my preferred “Race D Evo 3” type from Panaracer. Changing the tube was quick, even though the night had turned pitch black by now.
Over the past years, my practice with tire repairs and only replacing tubes and rubber for that matter had suffered for the lack of punctures. OK, a substantial yearly mileage meant I had to perform the ritual once or twice a year, but little did I know how proficient I’d become within just a few hours of when these pictures were taken.
