The Duct Tape Hack That Could Save Your Life (And Your Bike)

If duct tape hasn't yet saved the day at least once in your life, you might need to start mountain biking. The strong, sticky tape can absolutely save a ride, and potentially save a life. Mountain biking injuries include dislocations, broken bones, and skull and spinal injuries, along with scrapes, lacerations, and blisters. If a tumble results in some of these common injuries, a bit of duct tape can help immobilize an injury, make a sling, cover a dressing, or hold a splint together. A little improvising with duct tape can be handy in getting out of the woods as painlessly as possible.

While rare, a rider thrown from their bike can get impaled by a tree limb, fence post or even their own brake lever, resulting in an open pneumothorax, or sucking chest wound. It's a potentially life-threatening injury, especially in remote areas where proper medical care is miles away. Call for help immediately. You may need to cover the wound with plastic and temporarily seal three sides: Duct tape will do the job. This set-up helps prevent air from entering the chest cavity and can be removed to allow trapped air to escape, depending on the symptoms. Beware, this hack is not professional medical advice. It's always best to take a course in wilderness first aid if you spend a lot of time getting sporty in remote areas. But just as both duct tape and a first aid kit are essential for hikers in an emergency, a biker should be equally prepared.

Even if you never need makeshift bandages, at the very least, duct tape can save you from a bummer walk back to your rig. A Slim Jim-sized roll of duct tape is every hiker's secret weapon, given how utilitarian, low cost, and low weight it is. Wrap 6–8 tight layers of duct tape around your mini pump, your frame, or even around itself and toss the mini-roll in your repair or first aid kit. The advantage of wrapping it around your pump is that it takes up dead space while making the pump handle a little more comfortable.

Duct tape can temporarily seal torn sidewalls on tires, stand in for rim tape, patch torn saddles, contain loose or fraying cables and housing, or hold together a torn backpack, shoe, and even shorts. Riders also use it to secure a broken spoke to its neighbors or onto the wheel. That way, the spoke doesn't catch the frame or shred a tire on the way back to your car. 

As a mountain biker myself, I once secured the visor of my full-face helmet with duct tape after a screw worked itself loose. Three seasons later, it's still holding. If you ride technical, remote terrain, those makeshift duct tape repairs can be the difference between being able to limp out in the saddle or walking out in the dark. Whether you're on a long, remote path or on one of the many scenic, popular bike trails in the U.S., it's best to treat every ride like a backcountry hike and carry this ready-for-anything tool.