Callistus Valerius wrote:
Dani, try this... Go out and find a big hill, get going really fast
and grab your front brake, hard as you can like you would in an
emergency situation. When you get out of the hospital, write back
and let us know how it works.
Thanks,
Ray


what foolishness, everyone knows it's both brakes.

The argument I have heard is thus:

Since the center of gravity of the human-bike system is higher than the
wheel-road interface (which provides the braking force) the human-bike
system has the tendency to pitch forward with braking, causing weight
transfer to the front wheel.
Hence the theoretical scenario for maximal braking would be that the braking
is sufficient to transfer all weight to the front wheel, leaving the rear
wheel with zero force on the ground. At this point any increase in braking
force of the front wheel would cause the rear wheel to lose contact with the
ground, and braking on the rear wheel would cause the it to skid and
increase the chances of the rider losing control.

This assumes that the front wheel has sufficient friction with the road (in
order to not skid) and brake blocks (in order to receive the necessary
braking force).

As for the experiment, I've already carried it out -- steep downhill, amber
light, car in front stops. I managed to stop about a meter behind said car,
with my rear wheel off the ground and trying to overtake me. I think that
was because I was out of the saddle and didn't sit down on it properly as I
was braking. Ideally I would have sat down and shifted my weight back to
keep the rear wheel on the ground and increase my stability.

What do you think?

Dani