My cycling route home has a short segment where I cross the Interstate on a six-lane highway, which (as you may guess) I try to do as quickly as possible. Today, I managed to hit the depressed area of lane where a manhole cover was at the same time as I was pedaling hard trying to accelerate, felt a snap, and realized my bike wasn't quite working right anymore. I limped the bike home (luckily, only about a mile, and mostly downhill), and here's what I found...
It turns out that my freewheel sheared itself apart, and when I took the wheel off the bike the ball bearings fell out. Does it look like I need a whole new wheel (and maybe other stuff), or can I get away with just replacing the freewheel? If the latter, where do I find a replacement part? And how do I get the remains of the old one off?
(If it helps to know, the bike in question is a circa-1991 Specialized Hard Rock 21-speed, 26" mountain bike.)