The Nail Magnet

Just in case anyone reading is in the market for a new car, I have some advice for you.  When I bought my car, I didn't pay too much attention to the options.  There were a few things I cared about, and a bunch of other stuff in the "sport package." 

Well, read the fine print.  I think one of the options I must have selected for my car was something called a nail magnet for my tires.

Seriously, I get more flats than anyone I've ever heard of.  And since I'm not great at changing a tire (I suppose I would attempt it if I were truly stranded somewhere remote), it sucks. 

Somehow, I got through 2010 with only two flat tires.  First, after a 15k in the summer.  Then again in October.  

At this rate, 2011 is going to be a record-breaker.  I didn't even finish January without getting one.  A few days ago, one of my tires seemed low, so we put air in it, but didn't see a nail or anything.  Well, yesterday I had a meeting in the late afternoon and when it wrapped up and I got out to my car at about 5:00, it was flat. 

I started carrying a can of the "fix-a-flat" stuff in my trunk because of my bad luck.  Since hubby wasn't going to be able to come deal with the tire for a couple hours, and since roadside assistance takes fo-ev-ah, I decided to try using the spray.

Note to self:  put on the emergency latex gloves before using next time.  That spray is sticky!

I emptied the can into the tire, and it seemed to inflate some, so I drove to my favorite tire store.

Surprise, I'd picked up a nail.  And just like always, I had to get a new tire.  Usually I need a new tire because the nail goes into the sidewall or something else random.  Well, this tire could have been patched, but when you use the spray, the tire can't be repaired. 

Oh well.  So my third new tire in less than 6 months.  Sigh.  I definitely should have asked that they remove the nail magnet from the sport package.  It sucks. 

In more interesting news, I was a little nervous about having my second high-mileage week in a row this week, but all my worries were for naught. 

There was a big winter storm that came in last night.  Early yesterday, the director of the big running program cancelled classes.  I was kind of excited about a rest day, but then 10 minutes later, the director of our smaller advanced group vetoed the cancellation for our group.  He said he'd make a determination in the morning.

So I had to set the alarm for 4:48 and then check my email -- class cancelled!  So my choices were to brave the roads and try to crank out 10 on a treadmill -- ugh! -- or to just call it a rest day -- yeah!  My mileage probably will be down to the mid-30s this week, which sounds much more manageable.