Originally Posted by
TimothyH
OK. Thank you. This makes sense and it probably wasn't what I thought at all.
As a side note, I rode my gravel bike on singletrack last night, went into a turn too hot, hit the front brake and the front tire started to wash out. I had to straighten the bar and let off the brake to keep from going down. By then it was too late to correct and I went way off into the weeds, which was better than going down.
I laughed at myself, called myself a bad name and thought of this thread as I rode on.
Really hoping that you and your buddy make a full and speedy recovery.
-Tim-
I think you are making too much out of front brake usage. Yes, using the front brake can cause the front wheel to wash out but so can a loose surface. Going into a loose surface with too much speed can slow the wheel enough as it digs in to act like the front brake is being applied. The smoother the tire, the more it digs in rather than floats over the surface. As the tire digs in, the wheel turns more than it should and the bike’s equilibrium is upset and down it goes. The rider usually can’t shift the center of mass to get on top of the tire to give it more traction.
I’ve crashed many times on ice and slick surfaces without every touching the brakes. Sometimes the simple act of pedaling which causes side-to-side movement can cause crashes on slick surfaces.