A Flat Tire results in a long day on the road....

Thursday June 13

Woke before 6AM with a feeling of dread....wondering if the URRV would make it back up the steep hill that it had negotiated down towards the Gunnison River campsite.

Broke camp, backed up the URRV to flatter ground to load up the motorcycle and noticed the right side outer dually tire was flat!  Dammit.

I broke out the air compressor and inflated it to 74 PSI and it seemed to be holding.

Got everything packed and loaded again and headed out.  Uma did fine on the steep hill by the way, but I don't think I'll be using this BLM site again, the road is too rough as will be explained later.

Headed through Montrose, the TPMS keep reporting steady 74 PSI on the questionable tire so I was hoping that it had been perhaps the air stem extender having worked loose in the rough terrain.

South of Montrose though as I approached Ridgway on Highway 550, the TPMS started showing steady loss of air from the tire, not great or fast, but enough to convince me to stop at Ridgway where luckily there was a mechanic who was available to work on the tire.

Af first we thought it was a faulty Schrader valve since the tire started leaking air soon as I removed the TPMS sensor.  The mechanic went ahead and pulled the tire to do a spray bottle with soapy water check and damn if the tire didn't have a hole!  It was greater than 1/4" in size so he said it wasn't safe to patch.

I had him put the spare tire on the dually and rack the damaged tire.  All this for only $20!

I messed up and thought the tire in question was one covered by road hazard warranty by Les Schwab, the folks who had recently replaced all my tires except for the two replaced on the road by Good Sam contractors by in October of last year.

Thinking then that I had Road Hazard coverage, I made the 250 mile road trip to Price, UT (the closest dealer).  Note to self: next time you buy tires, buy from someone that's nationwide, Les Schwab is strictly Colorado and one location in Utah!

So a long day driving, got to Price, UT with no issues and after about an hour they discovered the tire in question wasn't one of the ones covered by their road hazard warranty!  So, the cost went from $75 prorated coast to $332.  Dammit.

As they were finishing things though, it occurred belatedly to me to ask Good Sam if the tires in question that had been replaced on the side of the road had Road Hazard Coverage.

Turns out they came with a three year warranty!  They listened to my story, got confirmation from the Les Schwab technician and I should be receiving the cost of replacing the tire they supplied originally: $249.

So basically, I'll be out $82, not bad.  Too bad that I wasted all the time and gas to go to the Les Schwab though when there was a tire store in Montrose that could have gotten the job done just as well.  Lesson learned, know what you have in coverage dammit!

Tried several BLM spots as I rode back from Price, UT but failed to either find the entrance to one or the ones I did find had no usable cellular signal!  So ended up back at the North Klondike Bluffs BLM area near Moab, UT that I'd stayed at recently. 

Not exactly the primo spot but a good enough one to arrive at in the dark to setup and it has decent signal.  I'll keep a watch on the primo spot to snag it when the present occupant moves.  I plan to be here till past this weekend anyways as I don't have to be in Payson, AZ for two weeks yet!

Roughly close to 450 miles covered today, not much got accomplished except for the tire replacement so I once again have a working spare tire.

Notes re BLM sites checked. 

Price Recreation Area, no signal, not bad sites though most small.

Black Dragon Dispersed BLM, pull over to the shoulder when GPS says you're within 1/2 mile of the entrance as there's no signs.  There's also a gote so who knows if its open.  You miss that entrance and its over ten miles to the next exit to turn around.

Buck Horn BLM, off of exit 131, which turns out is also the exit I must have taken back when I went boondocking at Temple Mountain BLM.  Not great signal, 3G at best and I found it unusable.