Burton Speaks

So this post is mostly just a reminder to my reader(s) to occasionally check the air in your car's spare tire. While most readers are, I'm sure, aware of the importance of tire pressure in vehicle performance, safety, and economy, I know that for most of us the spare tire gets neglected.

Astute readers might recall my beach trip back in July, where I packed a bunch of friends into my car and headed to Lincoln City. What I didn't mention at the time was the fact that, since I was driving, I wanted to make sure my car was as ready as could be for the trip. Among other tasks, this involved checking the tire pressure. While I was at it, I remembered that I'd never actually checked the pressure in the spare tire and thought it might be a good idea to do so. Lo and behold, while the pressure in my donut was supposed to be 60 PSI, it actually measured out at closer to 12 - basically the tire was about to fall off the rim! I was mighty proud of myself at the time for catching this and remedying it. The trip, of course, was fine and the spare tire was unneeded.


Fast forward to this past weekend. Nothing can put a damper on an otherwise festive evening like getting in the car, driving a few blocks, and having that conversation that goes something like, "Hmm, something doesn't feel right." Pull over, inspect the tires, and - you guessed it - one of them is flat.

Rather than calling AAA, which I won't do because I'm a) broke and can't afford it, and b) manly, I determined to change the tire myself. Thankfully, the spare tire was well-inflated and quite capable of supporting the weight of the car, which wouldn't have been possible had I not attended to it in the summer. Just think of how inconvenient it would have been had the spare tire been flat, too! Anyway, since everything worked we were on our way in under 25 minutes with a spare on the car and a fun story to tell.

Let this be a lesson to all of you: Check your spare!