Emergency repair tips
/ Gear check list
If you buckle one of your wheels
you can still ride home slowly. But if it rubs against the frame and you don’t have a spoke tool don’t be afraid to use brute force to make a temporary repair. Jump on the wheel or straighten it against a tree.A chink, chink sound
or slipping gears is often caused by a stiff link in your chain. Flex the stiff link to loosen it.If your rear derailleur is ripped off
and you have a hardtail use a chain tool to cut your chain down and turn it into a single speed.If your chain runs dry
and you have no chain oil, use sunblock instead.If you have a puncture
and have no spare tubes or patches try this. Take off your tyre and stuff it with as much leaves and grass as possible compacting it down as you go.[you may have to stop a few times to add more grass and leaves]A well maintained chain should not break
but a miss-shift or too much torque onto the drive train can. If you have a chain tool, spare links and pins [costs about $25] you can make your chain as good as new. Otherwise all you can do is walk home.If you break a spoke
and have no spare ones, remove the broken spoke and ride home slowly not doing any jumps which can break more causing your rim to buckle. Once I broke a spoke and continued riding normally only to break 3 more spokes.A broken brake cable
means no brakes [unless you are carrying a spare] so all you can do is ride home very, very slowly or not at all. If it’s the rear brake be very careful not to jam on the front brake while riding home. Remember the front brake is the most important.A broken gear cable
means the derailleur spring will move the chain to the standard resting position. Remove the broken cable and ride home.A skreeching metal on metal sound
when you apply the brakes means you've worn your brake pads out. Take spare brake pads on long rides. A squealing sound from your brakes means the back of the brake block is touching the rim first or the pads/rims are dirty.