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    Is this done completely?


    Context: I am bikepacking with a heavy load (maybe 35kg ±), it is actually the 100th day sadly and I am only missing 3-4 days until finish (about 200km). Wheels are Mavic crossride for mountain bikes. Unfortunately today had very very bad roads full of potholes (official Euro velo 1 road in Portugal) because it's a detour from a bridge under construction… There are some more cracks on other spokes but none of them are big yet.

    Should this be replaced completely?

    by namir0

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    24 Comments

    2. Antpitta on

      Very, yes.

      If you are near a bike shop you can look for a wheel to get you finished.

      If you aren’t near a bike shop, since it is the rear wheel you can keep riding, slowly and with care, until it breaks more, which it will. It may well leave you stranded though. I wouldn’t want to ride with any speed on a front wheel that looked like that.

      You can almost certainly find SOME wheel to get the job done for like 100€ or less if you are anywhere near a city/town.

    3. xc51 on

      Looks done to me. I don’t think it’s repairable. You may get by with limping it along for a bit, but needs to be replaced.

    6. kubatyszko on

      I’ve ridden on my Mavic Crossride for 70km after a crash, in my case the spoke literally got ripped out of the hub’s flange (front wheel). I re-trued the wheel on the spot so that it’s not too wobbly and continued riding.
      200km isn’t impossible, especially that it seems that you plan on riding 50-70km per day (not a terribly fast pace which is a good thing). Another good thing is that it’s a rear wheel, less risk of completely losing control if this were a front wheel.
      Any advice you’re going to get here will be to replace it, but if you decide to continue riding, make sure to retension the wheel so that it doesn’t wobble too much.

    7. lrbikeworks on

      Yeah that toast. If you’re in love with the wheel, a shop may be able to rebuild it with a new rim, but it won’t be cheap.

    10. DopeZebra33 on

      Yep. Had the same thing happen to me. You definitely need a new wheel before the buckles.

    13. Wiwwil on

      If there’s only a spoke like this, and a few that are cracked slightly, I’d try to finish the trip considering you’re close to the end, the tension would be redistributed to the other spokes. I’d adapt my speed as well.

      I bought a second hand bike and the dude had been cycling for quite some time with 2 missing spokes, or so he told me.

      Change once you’re home though.

    14. Lazar4Mayor on

      Yes, it needs to be replaced with a new rim. If there isn’t a shop nearby who can sell you a replacement wheel or rebuild your wheel with a new rim, you can probably finish your route if you’re careful. In effect, this is similar to a regular broken spoke. You *can* ride it, usually without much issue, but it isn’t recommended especially in the long term.

    17. uiterlix on

      Mavic wheels are about the least durable I’ve ever owned. Rims break easily, either on impact or when aging.

    18. Dry_Location_2025 on

      Nah obviously just scotch tape it and it’s fine to descent at 50kmph with like 70kg load on ……

    19. toot_suite on

      Crazy how much people will try to ignore reality because they feel a ways about what they’re doing.

      Like you can’t seriously be asking this?

      If you weren’t in the middle of bikepacking, what would you say in response to seeing this post as potential solutions, OP?

    22. umgrybab on

      With only 200k to go I would be inclined to try some JB Weld or mighty putty or something similar to nurse it over the line. Obviously travelling at a reduced rate and being sure to avoid all potholes.

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