Studs on the Bike, Finally!

Put my studded tires on the bike tonight, finally! There was swearing in the garage this eve.

We really haven't had much snow in Anchorage so far this winter, but in the last week we've got enough to convince me that it's time to get the studded tires on.

My winter tires are SO tight for my wheels. It is literally painful to put them on. Imagine me on the ground in a UFC-style battle with these things - screams, things thrown, tire levers flying at rapid speed towards my eyes. Good grief! Anyway, I don't know what you were taught when you were a kid about getting tires back on after fixing a flat, but so hard is my heart towards these things that for that last stubborn eight inches, I press the edge of my shoe against the tire bead (literally standing on the tire) and ratchet the wheel towards the ground, prying the thing around the rim. Yeah, not very gentle, but whatever - it gets the job done.