Cursed day...

I was supposed to do a team ride this morning at 9:30, most importantly, a tandem ride with Z. We seem to be having all sorts of trouble hooking up lately. Last weeked we were supposed to ride but I woke up with a horrible cold and wasn't sure if I'd make it. Another teammate's tandem partner bailed on him so him and Z ended up riding together. As it turns out, I did the ride, so we missed an opportunity there.

This morning I had everything set to go and pulled out of my condo around 9am. As soon as I got a block away I remembered setting my cell phone down in the kitchen to grab my bagel and never picking it back up. I figured oh well, I didn't really need it on the bike anyway, so I headed out. Big mistake. If I had turned around and gotten that damn thing it would have probably changed the entire day.

As I was cruising across I-90 this truck carrying all sorts of crap pulled over in front of me to exit. As soon as they got in front of me this big metal thing jumped right out of the back and I nailed it. I had zero time to react and it's good I didn't since cars were beside me in either lane. Less than a mile down the road I knew I had a problem and pulled over on the shoulder. My front passenger tire was gashed and totally flat. Great. The only thing I could think of was my cell phone sitting in the kitchen. F***ing fantastic.

I've changed a tire before but it's been ages so I skipped that whole drama and just sat there for a few to see if anyone would stop. A Mercer Island cop even cruised right by but no luck. I decided just to walk back to Island Crest Way and call VW Roadside Assistance. By the time I got there it was nearly 10 and I figured Z and everyone else were probably thinking I had bailed on them. Unfortunately I had no numbers since they were in my cell phone. Duh.

I called VW and they said they would be there in 30-45 minutes, so I grabbed a coffee and walked back to the car. They actually got there a tad early, which was a nice surprise. The guy started to remove the tire but couldn't get it off due to a jammed lug nut. We both worked on it and after another 30-40 mins got the spare on. At this point I was thinking maybe I should have just done it myself, but I'm not sure I would have gotten that lug nut loose.

Close to 11 at this point, so I got back in the car and drove to the nearest Les Schwab where I got to drop $100 on a new tire. That was an awesome urban adventure this morning. I called Z and left him this "Well....you're never going to believe this" message. He probably won't. What a nightmare.