I think I have bad luck when it comes to tires. Three punctures last year from living near a friggin' construction site. That excuse must have sounded pretty lame to my boss, who was likely wondering why I didn't choose a better reason to be late. Today, as I entered the bridge (the one with no curb lane and no exit for almost a mile in which people drive like it's the autobon) I felt the "flap flap flap" as my rear tire slipped. I can't recall the exact profanities which left my mouth, but it was something like "Oh, Jesus, no, no, no, no. Shit, Damn. Not on the bridge!!!" I pulled right, but there is no curb lane. Exiting was not an option. Fortunately, a 4x4 pulled up behind me, slowing down traffic. He offered up a little inflater, but upon inserting it into my driver's side rear tire, I noticed I had actually torn the damn thing. Thanks to my lovely insurance company's roadside assistance programme: we'll call the company "Shmeico".
A) I waited on hold for an operator whilst the cars whizzed by, unable to leave my vehicle for fear of being hit.
B) They offered a tow truck who could come in 2 hours, and later offered another company that could make it there in 90 minutes.
The Seattle police kindly offered to call their own guy (and get me off this arterial way) who promptly arrived in under 20 minutes, and offered to fix the spare and save me the tow charge. $70.71 later, I was on my way to the repair shop. And "Shmeico" offered to reimburse me for the costs incurred on the road. What the hell is emergency roadside assistance for, again???
So, I took it to my normal repair shop where I more or less trust the guys. Ever replace just 1 of your 4 tires? But of course not. $220 later...they've just called and it's ready to collect. It's been an expensive morning, but I've got to say that the Seattle police were extremely kind and helpful in addition to prompt. My apologies to you W. Seattle commuters this morning. Thank you for not flipping me the bird.
