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View Full Version : Does anybody know what these caltrop sort of burrs are that punctured my tires?


abcdefz
10-10-2006, 01:33 PM
...so I was riding across an unpaved area of a parking lot this weekend -- no signs were posted warning me not to -- and I got these sort-of-cement-sort-of burrs stuck in my tires. They did a beautiful job -- they held the inner tube just fine until I stopped at the corner and said "What's this?" and pulled the first one and heard this PFTsssssssssss as the air started leaking out.

The little thorns break off nicely, also, so even if you replace the inner tube, the embedded spikes will puncture the next tube as well unless you've carefully tweezed all the thorns out of the tire. Which I did.

This strikes me as kind of evil, but, you know, whatever. Still -- pretty crappy to spread these things out (they blend right in with the loose rock and gravel) but not post a sign warning people not to ride across or, worse, walk their barefooted children over.

Anyone know what the heck these things are called? "Caltrops," a friend suggested, and the idea is the same, but that's not what these were.

adam_f
10-10-2006, 01:35 PM
I call them Rutger Hauer.

Rock
10-10-2006, 01:37 PM
picture?

i bet it was a bunch of pranksters. did you stop and listen for nearby snickering?

abcdefz
10-10-2006, 01:45 PM
Sorry -- no photos. I can't find anything on the net, either.

I sort of assumed this was one of those things that struck me as brand new, but the rest of the world already knew about. But so far I can't find anyone else who knows what I'm talking about.

Mysterious.

DOC, DOC, YOU GOTTA BELIEVE ME

Helvete
10-10-2006, 09:54 PM
It was the guy from Jeepers Creepers, watch out! He's coming for you!

tracky
10-10-2006, 10:14 PM
You know what, when I was a kid I used to play this game called deathtrack, and it had caltrops in it. As kids will do, we made our own caltrops and scattered them across the road. sorry :(

Helvete
10-10-2006, 10:18 PM
I used to throw a box of thumb tacks into the road when I was a kid, didn't puncture the tires, but it was funny hearing the metal tapping on the road when a car drove past you at the end of the road.