So a couple of days ago I was JRA (just riding along) when I heard a loud bang from the back of my mountain bike.  

That’s what you tell the guy at the bike shop anyway.

Actually, I was bombing down a gravel road coming out of the mountains. There were all sorts of noises coming from the bike as rocks and gravel were bouncing off the wheels and frame.  The noise I heard didn’t seem that different from everything else I was hearing. The bike seemed fine so I paid it no mind and kept going.

Then yesterday as I was giving the bike its routine post-ride cleaning and checkup, I noticed this. 

I had broken a spoke on the rear wheel.  Given the large scrape and bend at the break it looks like the spoke took a direct hit from a large rock.  

I’ve broken a fair number of spokes in my day. Usually when they go there’s a distinct metallic “sproing!” followed by the click-click-click of one of the broken ends flopping against the frame. Not to mention a noticeably wobbly wheel.  In the worst cases the wheel gets so wobbly that it rubs against the frame and you’re looking at a walk home.  I road this thing at least another 16 miles and never noticed any clicking or wobbling.  

Replacing broken spokes is normally no big deal but these wheels were hand built by the shop I used to race for in Houston.  Industry Nine hubs and straight-pull spokes laced to Stans rims.  Beautiful wheels.  But somewhat proprietary.  Unlike traditional spokes which thread through the hub and screw into nipples on the rim, these are reversed.  They thread through holes in the rim and screw into flanges on the hub.  Oh, and they’re 14 years old.  The shop, Bikesport, is long gone and besides, I now live in Colorado.   

I figured with the power of the Internet I could probably find some spokes that would work but it was going to take some searching and some time. First, though, I thought I’d rummage through the old toolbox to see if I already had anything that could work. Low and behold I found these.  

A set of spare Industry Nine spokes taped together in a bundle.  Apparently given to me 14 years ago by the guy who built my wheels at Bikesport, long since forgotten by me.  Now that’s a thoughtful mechanic.

So rather than having to search all over for a spoke that would kinda sorta work and most likely wouldn’t match, I had an exact replacement.  I removed the busted spoke, replaced it with one of the spares, and re-trued the wheel.  Here’s the new spoke (the one with the tape flag) in line with its fellow bespoke spokes.

A good bike mechanic is worth his/her weight in gold. Scott, if you’re out there, a very belated thank you for your foresight 14 years ago that made my life so much easier today.