Well explained, O Socrates! -- the main point being that there are types of riding on a freewheel bike, and not encountered on a fixed bike, that require, or at least benefit from, a rear brake, and that mere stopping distance is not the only factor to consider.
You know, It's been so long since I did long, fast downhills on a bike that I've forgotten many skills and equipment requirements for these skills. I've largely concluded that *if* (1) you don't do fast downhills with corners, and (2) you keep your equipment (notably the cable and its attachment) in top form, and (3) you are not towing a trailer, and (4) you are using calipers and not cantis or disks, then you'd be fine with just a front and a freewheel. Of course, I am so timid on fast downhills that I could *probably* get away with this, but there is always that very unexpected decreasing radius or reverse cambered corner that may relegate all this theoretical justification to the trash can. On Fri, Jan 15, 2016 at 10:23 AM, Bill Lindsay <tapebu...@gmail.com> wrote: > Devout Socratic that you are, let's answer Patrick Moore's questions with > questions: > > Most fixed riders I know have a rear brake. That mechanism that allows > the rider to slow down through the rear wheel is the fixed drivetrain. In > other words, you always had a rear brake. Did you ever use it? If yes, > you have removed your rear brake. Do you feel you've downgraded the > braking ability of your bike? Do you want to make up the difference? If > yes, put on a rear brake. If no, leave it off. > > The reason I would never remove my rear brake is that sometimes I brake > while cornering. I've learned about the circle of traction, and know that > the combination of braking and turning forces can cause a skid. Rear wheel > skids are scary but recoverable. Front skids almost always result in sever > DOG Syndrome (Down On Ground). If I knew for a fact that I would never be > simultaneously braking and cornering, OR if I knew that I had absurdly high > front traction that could never be overcome, then I would indeed toss my > rear brake for the simplicity and purity of it all. > > Bill Nine-weeks-in-recovery-from-DOG-Syndrome-caused-by-front-skid Lindsay > El Cerrito, CA > > On Thursday, January 14, 2016 at 9:44:51 PM UTC-8, Patrick Moore wrote: > >> I just reinstalled the rear brake on the '03 Curt, because I wanted to >> use the 18 t (66") freewheel on the flip side of the rear hub. This is >> annoying, to me, because I have become so used to the ease of fender >> installation and wheel installation and removal that you have without a >> rear caliper messing things up (damned modern complications). >> >> I'm very used to having only a front brake (operated with a right-side >> lever, of course; what else would you use???) and only install a rear with >> a freewheel, since I've been told I shall *die* if I don't have a backup >> brake. >> >> So, is the principal use of a rear brake merely as a backup should your >> front one fail? Are there other uses? I guess if one is accustomed to >> taking corners at the fastest speed possible, a rear brake for small, >> precise speed adjustments without unduly loading the front tire, might make >> sense; but does this make sense in fact? >> >> My first bike had a freewheel and no brake except my right Ked shoved >> onto the front tire between the fork blades -- and I rode this thing on >> steep, winding downhills and in heavy urban traffic. (OK, I was 15.) So a >> good, solid front brake seems -- dare I say it? -- sufficient. Tell me why >> I am wrong. >> >> -- >> Resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, and letters that get interviews. >> By-the-hour resume and LinkedIn coaching. >> Other professional writing services. >> http://www.resumespecialties.com/ >> www.linkedin.com/in/patrickmooreresumespec/ >> Patrick Moore >> Alburquerque, Nouvelle Mexique, Vereinigte Staaten >> ************************************* >> *************************************************** >> *The point which is the pivot of the norm is the motionless center of a >> circumference on which all conditions, distinctions, and individualities >> revolve. *Chuang Tzu >> >> *Stat crux dum volvitur orbis.* *(The cross stands motionless while the >> world revolves.) *Carthusian motto >> >> *It is *we *who change; *He* remains the same.* Eckhart >> >> *Kinei hos eromenon.* (*It moves [all things] as the beloved.) *Aristotle >> >> >> -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- Resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, and letters that get interviews. By-the-hour resume and LinkedIn coaching. Other professional writing services. http://www.resumespecialties.com/ www.linkedin.com/in/patrickmooreresumespec/ Patrick Moore Alburquerque, Nouvelle Mexique, Vereinigte Staaten ************************************************************************** ************** *The point which is the pivot of the norm is the motionless center of a circumference on which all conditions, distinctions, and individualities revolve. *Chuang Tzu *Stat crux dum volvitur orbis.* *(The cross stands motionless while the world revolves.) *Carthusian motto *It is *we *who change; *He* remains the same.* Eckhart *Kinei hos eromenon.* (*It moves [all things] as the beloved.) *Aristotle -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
