Vulcanized Angels

Maybe it was the excellent service rendered to me by local family-business mechanics in Harpursville for almost a decade, who also had a pretty relaxed attitude about worn parts. Maybe it was my suspicion that chain/franchise tire shops just want to sell tires. But I was skeptical when the mechanic at Firestone told me, "A few more minutes and you'll have cable sticking out of your tire. You need a new set."

If true, that's a little scary. I'm not a fan of tires blowing out under me.

So that you can judge for yourself, here's what my tires looked like:

See that bald strip on the inside? Close to the cables coming out?

I decided to bet on the rest of the tread and wait a little bit before getting new tires. So I drove it from New Hampshire to western Colorado: about 2200 miles. No flat tires, no blowouts, no cables sticking out.

Thank you Lord of vulcanized angels, keeping us safe on the road!

Now that we're here in Colorado to stay, I bought four new all-seasons. Chains for the mountain passes: coming soon!

~ emrys