diff --git a/stats.go b/stats.go
index 03457c8..071c887 100644
--- a/stats.go
+++ b/stats.go
@@ -325,6 +325,8 @@ type timer interface {
 	GetValue(int) float64
 	ValueCount() int
 	SampleRate() float64
+	Lock()
+	Unlock()
 	Reset()
 }
 
@@ -362,6 +364,12 @@ func (t *standardTimer) SampleRate() float64 {
 	return 1.0 // metrics which are not sampled have an implicit sample rate 1.0
 }
 
+// no support or need for concurrency
+func (t *standardTimer) Lock() {}
+
+// no support or need for concurrency
+func (t *standardTimer) Unlock() {}
+
 // nothing to persisted in memroy for this timer
 func (t *standardTimer) Reset() {}
 
@@ -369,8 +377,8 @@ type reservoirTimer struct {
 	mu       sync.Mutex
 	base     time.Duration
 	name     string
-	ringSize uint64 // just used so that we don't have to re-evaluate capacity of values
-	ringMask uint64
+	ringSize uint64 // this value shouldn't change, just used so that we don't have to re-evaluate capacity of values
+	ringMask uint64 // this value shouldn't change
 	values   []float64
 	count    uint64
 }
@@ -387,7 +395,6 @@ func (t *reservoirTimer) AddValue(value float64) {
 	t.mu.Lock()
 	defer t.mu.Unlock()
 
-	// t.ringMask isn't ever changed so the access to should fine
 	t.values[atomic.LoadUint64(&t.count)&t.ringMask] = value
 	atomic.AddUint64(&t.count, 1)
 }
@@ -397,15 +404,12 @@ func (t *reservoirTimer) AllocateSpan() Timespan {
 }
 
 func (t *reservoirTimer) GetValue(index int) float64 {
-	t.mu.Lock()
-	defer t.mu.Unlock()
-
 	return t.values[index]
 }
 
 func (t *reservoirTimer) ValueCount() int {
 	count := atomic.LoadUint64(&t.count)
-	ringSize := atomic.LoadUint64(&t.ringSize)
+	ringSize := t.ringSize
 
 	if count > ringSize {
 		return int(ringSize)
@@ -415,7 +419,7 @@ func (t *reservoirTimer) ValueCount() int {
 
 func (t *reservoirTimer) SampleRate() float64 {
 	count := atomic.LoadUint64(&t.count)
-	ringSize := atomic.LoadUint64(&t.ringSize)
+	ringSize := t.ringSize
 
 	if count <= ringSize {
 		return 1.0
@@ -423,6 +427,14 @@ func (t *reservoirTimer) SampleRate() float64 {
 	return float64(ringSize) / float64(count)
 }
 
+func (t *reservoirTimer) Lock() {
+	t.mu.Lock()
+}
+
+func (t *reservoirTimer) Unlock() {
+	t.mu.Unlock()
+}
+
 func (t *reservoirTimer) Reset() {
 	atomic.StoreUint64(&t.count, 0)
 }
@@ -504,6 +516,11 @@ func (s *statStore) Flush() {
 
 	s.timers.Range(func(key, v interface{}) bool {
 		if timer, ok := v.(*reservoirTimer); ok {
+			// lock while flushing to:
+			// 1. provide correct sample rate
+			// 2. allow for exit despite continuous writes
+			// 3. reduce metric loss from writes after flush and before reset
+			timer.Lock()
 			sampleRate := timer.SampleRate()
 
 			// since the map memory is reused only process what we accumulated in the current processing itteration
@@ -512,6 +529,7 @@ func (s *statStore) Flush() {
 			}
 
 			timer.Reset()
+			timer.Unlock()
 		}
 
 		return true