I generally start to apply back-pressure a block before intersections on the steep downhill I hit on my way home every night. There's a freeway on/off ramp that is right in the middle of the hill that has a flat spot before it and I come up to that one at a pretty good clip, but I've back-pedaled at that intersection so hard I've skidded without meaning to a couple times. There's another intersection that's at the bottom of a bridge that crosses the railroad tracks, but I've got the timing down on that one so that I just trackstand at the top of the bridge then bomb it downhill. If someone ever blows that light I'll probably be toast. The problem with that hill is the tire-grooves a the bottom from auto traffic. There are impressions about 4 inches deep that, while they haven't caused me to wipe out, have given me a really bad headache from jarring my brain so much. So I just cut across all the lanes to the other side of the road where it's smoother. The worst of the bumps is right in the center of the bike lane. So, not only do I have to time the light, but make sure I can cut over too. Fun!