I read the below after writing my experience in the previous post...
Yes, road conditions have to be right to use the combination as I did. I could
hear the rear wheel squealing, because I was mashing down hard on the front,
using more engine on the back than brake pedal.
Had the road been wet, I would have been going slower (was going about 35 mph,
the limit), and would have approached the intersection more slowly, but who can
say if that would have been enough, had the same thing happened?
I believe that part of riding is learning to anticipate dynamically. I started
out with bicycles and first rode a step-thru 50 in Phoenix traffic, then my 160
in Seattle traffic, which was worse.
I like to keep plenty of space between me and other machines on the road.
Stanley
________________________________
From: Dennis McCarten <djmccar...@gmail.com>
To: nighthawk_lovers@googlegroups.com
Sent: Fri, October 9, 2009 9:42:03 AM
Subject: [Nighthawk Lovers] Re: braking
Dennis,
That was a great comment! Thanks. Having laid a bike down when the rear wheel
locked in first gear, I can attest to the value of experience. When it
happens, it's something you'll only do once. Thanks again.
Dennis
On Fri, Oct 9, 2009 at 1:09 AM, Dennis Hammerl <blues...@yahoo.com> wrote:
It's a very good question. The best answer to which would be to direct you to a
training facility. I prefer to give the answer that there is no hard, fast
rule. There is no substitute for experience. The surface must figure into any
scenario. Wet, dry, gravel, leaves,,,,
>Straight line or cornering ? There is no rule. Better to be educated on proper
>riding and gather the experience. So many people have really dumb ideas about
>braking. Let's look at a modern motorcycle; Two big disc brakes in front and
>maybe one on the back. Still see drum brakes in back of some. What does this
>tell you ? Yeah, you could really haul it down on the front brakes. However, I
>have inspected many a Gold Wing with no wear on the front pads and deep
>grooves cut in the rear rotor. Why ? The owner doesn't use the front brakes !
>The owner has deprived himself of about 80% of the bike's capability to stop.
>Honda recognized this years ago and has employed a system that applies one of
>the front brakes with any application of the rear one. Pitiful but better than
>rear only. Me ? I use my back brake to hold my bike at a light. Not much good
>for anything else. I consider the rear brake to be a stabilizer... That's just
>me, I use front brakes really hard. Would I do this on a wet street or gravel
>road ? No. That's when you use a little finis to slow down.
>Down shifting ? Another can of worms. Dropping down a gear (or two) and
>letting the clutch out can be a thrill on a wet or loose surface. Can you say
>"swap ends" ? Causing the rear wheel to slip / stop suddenly is ... not good.
>With some skill applied, it becomes another tool in riding survival. Again, no
>substitute for a lot of seat time. Riding in traffic sometimes doesn't allow
>enough time for such fancy practices. The name of the game is get it
>stopped...NOW !
>Another story before I let this rest. Few riders know this and most techs
>don't either (or don't understand it) The VT family of Honda's (V twin 700,
>750, 1100 and such) use a familiar seven plate clutch system to drive the
>bike. However, when letting off (roll off, down shift, etc) a clever device
>uncouples four of the plate pairs. SO, the clutch actually slips a bit. Better
>than eating the handle bars or dropping the bike due to rear wheel lock-up.
>Believe me, without it, it can get violent...quick.
>SO, if you consider that under hard braking the weight shifts hard to the
>front wheel, giving it a lot of traction and the rear gets really light...
>what makes sense to do ? Use lots of front brake and down shift one gear at a
>time (if time allows) The whole thing is a dynamic and what you do is (should)
>be based on your immediate need to stop / slow and what the surface is like.
>Unless your name is Valentino, you never stop learning how to ride. I used to
>like to watch Carl Fogarty ride at 110%... scary. I'm like the pilot that said
>any landing you walk away from is a good one. I thank God every day for a
>good, safe ride. You still have to do your part.
>
>--- On Thu, 10/8/09, Dapper Dan <dapperd...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>>From: Dapper Dan <dapperd...@gmail.com>
>>Subject: [Nighthawk Lovers] braking
>>To: nighthawk_lovers@googlegroups.com
>>Date: Thursday, October 8, 2009, 1:15 PM
>>
>>
>>a quick question i have always been curious about: is it better to use a
>>combination of downshifting and braking to slow your bike or is it better to
>>use just your brakes? pros and cons?
>>
>>thanx
>>dan
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
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