Front Brakes Only? Really?
 

This is nothing new to the more advanced cyclist but for a newbie like me it was.... I was reading this website http://www.sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html and it says I should use my front brake 95% of the time. Man that scares me, being new to cycling and clipless pedals, the idea of braking with my front brake terrifies me. If I have to stop at once I am sure I will tip over because of my pedals, then again tipping over is far better than hitting something in front of you.

Still, front braking scares me.

it wont scare you after you wipe out when your rear slides around beside you. It's very easy to lock up the back wheel.

The theory behind this is that when braking, your weight shifts to the front and unloads the rear wheel, so the rear wheel isn't able to do much braking at all if the front is applied anyway. So even when you think you're using both brakes equally, you're really only stopping because of the front brake. Go down a hill and use only the rear brake for a moment and you will see how little it does compared with the front.

That being said, I still brake with both hands most of the time just out of habit. It is true, though, that when you panic and squeeze the life out of both levers, your rear tire skids and you start moving sideways.

edit: Mountain biking is a different animal, though, so don't apply these theories there.

when braking, keep a FIRM grip on the handlebars and try not to let your arms fold.

the leading cause of going over the bars is because the rider crashes into their now stopped bike.
You really do need to get your entire weight over the front wheel, or rear, to make it pickup the other.

i was told rear brake for speed control, front or front + rear to stop

practice emergency braking when there is no emergency. You'll figure it out pretty quick. If anything starts going wrong, just let go of the brakes.

Look at a motorcycle's brakes. What does the front vs rear look like?

Same reasoning for the size/power difference applies to the bicycle. I never use my rear brake on the motorcycle except when I am in a parking lot or slow moving. On a bicycle I usually use both just because of the lack of strength of the brakes, but when I need to do a panic situation, I apply full front.

Practice going at speed and doing panic stops, or slow downs using the front only. Learn where to put your body weight so you don't go flying over the handlebars. It's really not as terrifying as you are making it seem.

Picture for emphasis (assuming you meant to look at the size of the rotors)
http://www.whitegadget.com/attachmen...sport-bike.jpg

It's almost impossible to flip a bike over without doing it on purpose. As someone else said, almost all cases are actually caused by people not pushing back with their arms and flying over the handlebars, rather than the bike itself flipping over. Practice using both and you will notice that the rear brake is almost useless compared to the front. It may seem adequate if you've gone your entire life afraid to touch the front brake, but it will always be much weaker. It's simply too easy to skid the rear tire because of the weight transfer that occurs during stopping.

Is it possible for your front tire to skid? And ideally you only squeeze the front brake when stopping, no dual brake action?

I never used to use my front brake. Then one day while descending a large hill, I used my rear brake. Next thing I remember is my friend waking me up and my helmet broken in two.

Holy ****! Looks like someone rammed a pipe in her spokes!

And look closely at the video. It wasn't the stop that caused the bike to flip. The rear tire stays firmly planted on the ground until her stomach hits the handlebars.

Get yourself over the front wheel and hammer the front brake and this is what happens...

Uh, I don't think so. I'm coming from motorcycles, so very chary of the short wheelbase and high CG of my road bike. I've already gotten the rear wheel *way* up in the air during some hard stops. This is with weight as low and to the rear as I can get it. I have absolutely no doubt that I can endo this thing with no problem - I'm extremely conservative with downhill braking.

KeS

You can't tell a damned thing from that. The two frames are 8 feet or more apart.

KeS

I apply both brakes but rely mainly on the front.. i definately don't recommend a deathgrip though.

yeah, it's possible.
but it's damn hard or impossible to pull off if the road surface is clean.

the brakes on a bicycle are appalling in comparison to motorcycles.
that and you don't want to put the weight low, you want it to go as far back as possible.

I've only ever did a stoppie on a bike while going down hill. I've never managed to pull it off on flat ground. How are you doing it? :-/

You should be terrified:

#91;/url]
Just kidding. Keep your weight back.

In the first film, I think the rider tried to do a "super skid" (bike festival type) but grabbed the wrong brake. Riding "front brake only" on an MTB will be the most educational day of riding you will ever do. Proper braking is an art. I front flatted a motorcycle at over 70 and survived. I was really frightened however.

That's a CRAZY video... I'm amazed he kept it up during the wheel rub, wow. I don't think I could've.

It's also a good illustration about why you shouldn't use aero bars in a paceline.

and half wheel at 34 mph.

also not sure if it helps but I tend to lock up the rear wheel during fast stops.