After a 25 mile cab ride to the capital city of Olympia we found a great bike shop. The mechanic opined that he believed nothing was broken in the hub. Instead he concluded that the freehub mechanism inside the hub had become loose but he told us to get lunch so he could confer with the head mechanic who would return shortly. After lunch he handed the wheel back to me and said no charge. The head mechanic assured me he had tightened everything and I should be fine. He even showed me how to tighten the mechanism on the road in case it came loose again - it just requires two 5 mm hex keys. Just finished putting on the back wheel, adjusting the index shifting and taking a test ride. Everything seems to be working. Of course, I will be nervous going on the 1st big hill because the torque on the rear hub is maximized at that point so that is the most likely time for a problem to arise with the wheel. Now we have the rest of the day free to relax in the motel AC in downtown Centralia, WA. Total bike mileage today = .25 mile test ride. Total mileage by cab = 50 miles.
