On a more serious note, today I had quite a frightening tube failure. I was descending and riding with someone not as comfortable going down so I was on my brakes more often. Right as I let off the brakes and leaned into a turn I hear a pop and my front wheel is instantly flat. Of course at this same moment there is a car coming in the opposite direction as I swerve a bit to get my bike under control.

The failure happened near the valve stem at the seam (on the rim side and my rimtape is clean). I've read that latex has some issues with descending but this is the first time I have an issue. I'm usually very precise with my braking so today maybe I had more heat buildup than usual. I don't want to go back to butyl, but if it's a safety thing I don't have much of a choice. The remainder of the ride with a regular tube just did not feel as good.
Anyways I have added some pictures, Seems like even the tire around the valve stem was melted! I rode on it for maybe 50 yards finding a suitable place to stop. The rest of the sidewall looks ok but the spot right next to the valve stem was really sticky when i pealed that tube off. The tube has been used for quite some time, it may just also have been it's time.


