Originally Posted by somnambulant
Exact same comments I got when I questioned the logic of someone running just a front brake on a winter-only beater. People, the problem isn't going over the bars, it's locking up the front wheel and having it side-slip out from under you. It sucks, and it happens fairly easily on snow/ice. It's the same sort of problem you can have riding off road -- you have to really take it easy on the front brakes in loose downhill corners.
Have you ever hit the rear brake hard on snow/ice? You slip off the bike just as fast as if it were the front brake....
You lock up the front or rear wheel in snow or ice or slippery conditions and you are screwed, regardless if this was from a front brake, rear brake, or rear wheel skid on a fixie.