“Uh-oh,” said Henry, just after they left the second water stop.
“Are we lost?” asked Benny. “I know how to get back to the water stop.”
“We’re not lost,” said Henry, pulling the tandem to a stop. “We have a flat tire.”
He got off. Benny got off. They squatted down to look at the tire. It was very flat. “Looks like we picked up a piece of glass,” said Henry. He got out the tire-changing kit and went to work.
“Can I help you?” Nan asked, slowing her own bike down.
“Hmmm,” said Henry, prying the tire off the wheel. He pulled the tube out from the inside. If he replaced the tube inside the tire, the tire wouldn’t be flat. The tube was what held the air in the tire, and the tire protected the thin tube.
“Why don’t you try to patch that tube and I’ll put the new tube in for you to save time,” Nan said.
“Thanks,” said Henry.
“No problem,” Nan answered. “I’ve changed about a million tires.”
As Benny watched, Henry patched the old tube and folded it into the tire patch kit he carried strapped under the back of the bicycle seat. Nan finished putting the tube and tire back on and jumped up. “Keep your tire pressure low,” she said. “That’ll help avoid flats.”
“Will do,” said Henry. “Thanks again.”
“Glad I could help,” Nan said. She swung her leg over her bike and pedaled away.
As Henry got back on his bike, Violet and Soo Lee rode up. “Is everything okay?” Violet asked.
“We’re fine. Just a flat tire,” said Henry.
They rode on, enjoying the sunshine and the farms and woods they passed. The bike riders wandered on back roads through hills and fields. But today, since they weren’t as anxious and excited as they had been on the first day of the race, they had time to notice more.
Many people had turned out to cheer them on. Children stood at the foot of their driveways waving. The bicyclists saw signs tied to trees and mailboxes. They passed a three-person family band in front of one house: a boy playing the trumpet, a girl playing the drums, and a very little boy banging on a saucepan with a spoon.
The Aldens waved and smiled and shouted hello as they rode by. None of them wanted to stop any more than they had to. They wanted to be sure they made it into camp in time that night.
Shortly after lunch, Henry slowed to a stop.
“What’s wrong?” asked Jessie.
“Flat tire,” Henry said. “Again.” He made a disgusted face.
He and Benny stopped the tandem. “I’m getting good at this.”
He took out the tube. It looked as if it had gotten pinched between the rim of the wheel and the tire. Henry shook his head. “It’s a nasty hole,” he said. “I think I’ll wait to fix it until tonight to save time and put my patched spare on now.”
“Yes. Let’s hurry. I don’t want to ride the sweep wagon,” Benny agreed. He looked nervously around. But they were a long way ahead of the sweep wagon.
Henry smiled at his younger brother. “Don’t worry,” he said.
He went to work on the flat and soon he and Benny were back on the road again.
But not for long. They pedaled up a hill and slowed as they reached an intersection. A sign in the intersection said, ROAD CLOSED. DETOUR.
Henry was about to turn down the road when he felt a familiar bump, bump, bump.
“Oh, no!” he cried. “We have another flat.”
“You have a bad-luck tire,” said Benny.
“I think you’re right/’ Henry said.
“I’m doing everything Nan told me,” Henry said. “I don’t have any spare tubes. I just hope I can ...” His voice trailed off as he saw the tube. It had caught between the wheel and the tire, just like the last time. The hole in the tube was a big one.
“Oh, no,” said Henry under his breath.
A bike pulled to a stop beside him.
“Can I help?” came a voice Henry knew. He looked up in surprise.
It was Al.
“A flat tire,” he said. “It’s pretty bad.”
Al looked at the tube. “Yeah, those snake bites can be nasty.”
“Snake bites?” asked Benny, alarmed.
“That’s what cyclists call it when the tube gets caught between the tire and the wheel rim. It usually happens when you don’t put enough air in the tube.”
“Oh,” said Henry.
“Fortunately I have a spare tube,” Al said. “You can have it.”
“Thank you,” said Benny. He sounded amazed.
ATs cheeks reddened slightly. “I guess you wouldn’t know that, with an old bike like you had. I mean, those tires had a different kind of tube in them and—”
Henry got very still. “How would you know that?” he asked.
Al’s cheeks grew redder. “Just a guess,” he said.
Henry looked steadily at Al. Al wouldn’t look at Henry.
Then Henry said quietly, “You’re the one who wrecked my bike, aren’t you?”
Staring hard at the tube he was fitting into the tire, Al said, “Yes.”
Benny jumped up. “That was mean!” he shouted. “And ... and really, really bad.”
“I know,” Al said. Now his ears were red. “I’m sorry. I know it was a horrible thing to do. I didn’t mean to wreck the bike. I ran into a tree. I was just going to leave it in the woods until the race was over. It was stupid and wrong.”
“And you let the water out of the jugs, and you changed all the signs and made the tents fall, and—”
“No!” Al raised his head. “No!” he shouted. “I didn’t do any of those things. I’ve been trying to be better. I don’t want to be a bad sport. After I heard what Nan said at the start of the race, I realized what an awful thing I’d done. I’m sorry.”
That stopped Benny. He folded his arms. “Well,” he said. “You should be.”
“Anyway, I’m going to pay for fixing it. Or to replace it, if it can’t be fixed,” Al went on. He gave Henry a hopeful look. “Will you let me?”
“Yes,” said Henry. “Thanks.”
“Thank you,” said Al, jumping up. “And your tire is fixed. Just remember to keep a lot of air in that tube, and you shouldn’t have any more snake bites.”
He fastened his helmet and was about to ride away when a police car pulled up. An officer got out, shaking her head. “Kids,” she said. She looked over at the three boys. “Did you move this detour sign?” she asked.
“No!” said Henry Al, and Benny in unison.
“Well, I’m moving it back down the road where it belongs. And if you know who did this, tell them it’s not funny,” she snapped. Lifting the sign, she tossed it in the trunk of her car and drove away.
“That’s the wrong way, then,” said Al.
“I guess so,” said Henry.
“I wonder how many riders ahead of us went in that direction,” Al said.
“Someone changed the signs, just like yesterday,” said Benny.
Al said, “I’m going to ride to the next water stop and let them know. They can send some of the crew to catch up with any riders who might have gone the wrong way.”
“Good idea,” said Henry.
Without another word, Al jumped on his bike and pedaled off—in the right direction.
Henry and Benny followed. As they reached the rest stop, they saw Ms. Whatney’s car pulling out. It turned and went back in the direction from which they had just come.
“I wonder where they’re going,” Benny said.
Henry wondered, too. But he didn’t talk much for the rest of the afternoon. He was too busy thinking about who could have changed the sign—and who was really behind all the bad luck that kept threatening to ruin the ride.
Not until they were almost at the camp did Henry speak. “Benny,” he said. “Al wrecked my bike, but he didn’t do any of those other things.”
“I know,” said Benny. “Wait until we tell everyone.”
“I have something else to tell everyone,” said Henry.
“What?” asked Benny.
“I think I know who’s behind everything that has gone wrong with the great bike race,” said Henry. |