Originally Posted by CBBaron
I don't know which is better front or rear ( I always use rear because it is easier) but I will disagree with this quote. The pivot point for a pitch-over when braking hard is the ground contact with the front tire not the axle. Low rider panniers do reduce the angular momentum compared to say a handlebar bag but it is still worse than a rear mounted load.
Now if you are talking about hitting log or hole off-road that stops your wheel without braking then the pivot point will be the axle and your statement will be true.
Craig
The axle has to be the center of the pivot point since the axle is the center of the angular momentum. The contact patch is on a shorter arm from the pivot point then the rest of the bicycle load. If you stop the wheel dead while moving forward (which is the only time that you can have pitch-over), the load on the bike wants to pivot around the center of the axle which is the center of the angular momentum. That's why the panniers don't contribute to the risk of pitch-over. They are at the center of angular momentum where they contribution would be near zero.