Big Shot

Billy Joel said so well, "You can cry in your coffee, but don't come cryin' to me." I'm not cryin', but I'm warnin'!

I just wanted to leave a reminder that preventative maintenance and general tune-ups on a bike are wonderful things to remember. I passed a fellow this morning who was pumping up his tire enough to limp to work without having to change it on the roadside. I don't know his maintenance schedule, but I know mine's been deficient recently.

Half way home last night I started getting this strange skipping sensation in the drivetrain. It was incredibly regular. I couldn't shift away from it. I will tell you that it is incredibly annoying to have your pedal stroke interrupted every 2nd or 3rd rotation with a sudden skip. My first thought was that the rear derailleur had slipped out of alignment and was jumping between gears, although there had been nothing to cause that. Once I got home, I got the bike up on my repair stand. (And may I insert here that if you're going to spend any time at all working on a bike, that a repair stand is almost a necessity.) As I started spinning the pedals, I could feel the tick. So, I looked at the rear derailleur, from whence the sound came. I could see the chain not mating up well with the cogs, but couldn't tell which direction it was off. Turns out that the problem was a seized chain link. I could see some signs of rust on the outside of the chain pins, but the chain wear is still within limits. There is just one link that does not flex properly. I lubed the entire chain — something I should have done before the first ride of the year — and it is working well except for that one link.

Now, I usually listen for squeaking from the chain to indicate the need to lubrication, but I hadn't thought to give the bike a once over after it sat for the long winter (and most of last summer). Had I done that, the chain would have been better prepared for the rain I drove through both to and from the St. George ride last month.

This morning, after the service work last night, the chain skipped less, but that link is still not bending smoothly. I still had some skipping. So now, instead of a preventative lube in February, I'm looking at removing a chain link and hoping to still have adequate length on the chain, or replacing a chain entirely.