Learning how to brake
 

I am new to cycling, and I have a DiamondBack Outlook '05. I was told that in very steep downhill, I should brake mostly with my rear brake. When I use my rear brake alone without the front brake, my rear wheel skids. is that normal? and Also, my front brake is making a strange noise while braking. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

The idea is to not skid. It damages the trail as well as makes you lose control over your bike. To avoid skidding, you need to modulate the effort on the levers, and realize that using front brake, in moderation, is the best. Use "body english", which is just locating your body on the bike to cancel out the movements of the bike under you. If you skid a tire, you aren't in control (with a small stipulation of wet rocks, sometimes there is no way to avoid it). It just takes practice.

I tend to do the opposite. I use my front brake for stopping and my rear brake for control. As previously stated by trekkie body english is key and the idea is not to skid.

Skidding = teh suck. Your front brake provides ~70% of your braking power, so learn how to use it to your advantage. Keeping your weight waaaaaaay back will help a lot. The person who told you to primarily use your rear brake on downhills is wrong. Please disabuse them of that notion.

It depends on your situation & ground, I use the rear for hanging turns but it takes a lot of practice & feel to properly apply the right amount of brake for a given speed .One can wind up on the ground or off the trail VERY quickly.you can also swing turns using your front brake bringing your' rear end off the ground & swinging it around the apex on really sharp turns. YOu can also use the terrain itself for knocking off speed.
Who ever told you that left out the part for "steering purposes" :) .Wheel locking can be a good thing if controlled. Front braking combined properly with rear along with using the ground is your best stopping power.
As far as your brake noises go try cleaning your rims off with some alcohol & a piece of scotchbrite,
& cleaning pads then toeing in your pads. :)
Edit: I am speaking of a Nimble cc bike (not a tank) travelling with substantial velocity down hill.

whoever told you to use the rear brake on dh is a flat out wrong. the only time you use the rear brake on dh is for cornering. any other time on dh you use the front. once you start going downhill it TRIPLES the stopping power of the front brake. the slightest pull on the rear is going to lock it up, and make you skid/ruin your trails.

I've carved some of the sharpest turns locking up the back wheel :eek:

So i guess you don't ever drive your tires into the dirt while in apex (offroad)?
you never did a turn with you remaining upright & you driving the bike down under you (OFF pavement)?
Watch BMX pro racers they are nothing but smooth & most of the techniques can fall into MTB excellently with precision execution.

I swing my inside knee out all the time(with cleats) & it does help :p .

As others have said, whoever told you that you should use your rear brake on steep downhills is wrong; it won't slow you down, will trash the trail, and can make the back end come around.

So let's talk about things you SHOULD do on a downhill:

1. If it's REALLY steep, move your butt backwards off the seat, so the seat is under your stomach. It's just about impossible to endo this way, and you can apply all of the front brake you need, no matter how steep the DH. Today I was riding on a trail set with a really steep downhill, with runoff "levees" to direct the water - in other words, the perfect thing to kick the back wheel up. No problem even at speed if you're back far enough.

2. Don't hit the front brake so hard that it locks up, front wheel skids are not much fun. Over time you'll learn when the front wheel is starting to break traction, and will know to let off a bit.

3. As others have said, the rear brake IS good for changing direction on loose trails. We were training at race speed today, and for downhills with lots of gravelly turns, rear brake pressure was the only way to keep the bike on the trail. Just a little trailing brake makes the back wheel break loose first, allowing you to oversteer into corners. Again tho, this is an advanced technique and is very different from the "lock up the back wheel and skid concept".

Good luck!

Same thing happens to me too. I never use the rear brake unless im makin a cool skid-turn8)

I would prefer to call it sliding not SKIDDING :mad: :p

Alot of this "trashing the trail" terminology i am reading is a bunch of horse poop :rolleyes:
It's like ride with your little panties on your tip toes,yeah right
I carve my own trails,thank you very much.
Just follow the beer cans & empty candy wrappers....

are You callin me a moron? :mad: is that what you are trying to say :mad: ? Keep at it bud work harder i toss an empty beer can your way (congrats) :beer: Bolt cutters= okie fit'em all key. Got mud?

I Raiyn on your parade & give you something to do on the trails. If it wasn't for PPL like us you wouldn't have anything to do on the trail. oink,oink oink

Ps. i dont wear shoes.

Okay folks. Let's keep it civil. And if you're out there trashing public trails then at least have the courtesy to go fix your damage.

I do what i do you do what you do. Simple as that :p

As an explanation for what just transpired, consult my sig.

I would be pleased if you tried it. that's the "differance" being okie.
If i wanna slide corners, i am going to DO IT & none of your wanna be strategic horse c**p is going to stop me their jr.
ooooooo & i'm telling...