Originally Posted by onetwentyeight
I think most people who ride brakeless have learned how to stop by jamming their shoe into their tire. If you don't know how to do that, go practice. You'll thank me some day. I've slipped out of my pedals going 20 down a really steep hill, ran 3 red lights and didn't go down. Part of that is luck, but part of it is just being ready for that sort of situation. I think riding brakeless makes you ride smarter because you know there is no bailing out. I wouldn't say its safer, but it's a different mentality and style of riding. If you can do it, do it. If you don't feel comfortable, don't. Simple as that. My worst crash was on a fixed conversion with brakes, and right after that I switched to brakeless and haven't looked back.
Riding smarter and being ready for anything would mean riding with a front brake.
I have a front brake; I race through traffic, obstacles and red lights almost daily in the interest of keeping consistent speed. I will not argue that it is smart, because it is not, but I will say that I'm still here typing while looking forward to riding tonight in good health. That makes me confident enough in my practice of fluidity.
My style is single gear, fixed, and I love it. My front brake just makes my bike a better piece of equipment for street use. Stuff happens, especially if you ride your bike for everything. Chains snap, tires pop or you may be too tired heading to work or drunk heading home after some alleycat games and allow your feet to come off the pedals on a hill; or just maybe you actually need to stop because of the miraculous actions of some yuppy driving an H2. A brake can be very convenient in these situations. I have no concern of the weight and wind drag on my brake holding me back when I am racing through city streets either.
My equipment does not define the mentality of my riding, I do.