Steps to Better Braking...

[Busy Little Whiner]

Even with 44 years of riding and racing I still find it worth while to review
steps to better braking... if there is one constant in motorcycling is that
the more you know the less mistakes you make...    

 Step 1
 Sort your bike out... check tire pressures and condition, suspension
 settings, brake condition, then find a smooth, straight, clean bit of road
 without too much camber. Do a few runs braking fairly hard to warm the
 tires and get a feel for how it handles. As you line up for your first hard
 stop, you need to be relaxed... If you find yourself pitching forward, grip
 the tank with your knees to hold your weight off the bars...
 
 Step 2
 The initial phase is important because how you first apply the brakes
 determines how the bike reacts. Your brakes are not an on/off switch.
 You're looking for a smooth initial application that transfers weight on to
 the front tire without suddenly compressing the suspension. If you just
 grab on the lever, the suspension bottoms out, and then it can't absorb
 any more movement. Something has to give and it's usually the tire which
 may begin to break traction... So be smooth and be firm... that's the key...
 
 Step 3
 Having transferred the weight onto the front tire, you've given yourself
 bags of extra grip. To use it, you need to increase the pressure on the
 lever progressively. On any modern Sportsbike and most all Standards you
 should be able brake hard enough for the rear wheel to lift off the ground.
 If it starts hopping that's because the engine is locking it up... clutch in or
 slipped and it should stop...
 This is hard as you can brake in normal conditions. At this point, the rear
 brake's no use to you at all. This is not a stoppie, by the way, that's a
 separate stunt...
 
 Step 4
 Once you're up to full braking effort, you still have to assess what's going
 in you path. If you're about to cross a patch of oil or cross a patch of dirt,
 you'll want to release the lever pressure  slightly, then increase it again as
 the extra risk is passed. You need to be relaxed enough so that if you feel
 the wheel locking, you can let lever off until it spins again, then get back
 up to braking pressure. The only way to make this an instinctive reaction is
 to practise deliberately locking and releasing the brake... if you don't wish
 to risk your prize then Keith Code has a special bike built just for you called
 the Panic Brake Trainer...
 
 
 Step 5
 As you come almost to the point of stopping, you'll obviously need to
 actuate the clutch lever in to avoid stalling you can do this as soon as you
 start to brake, but why not use the engine braking  for it will help you keep
 control. Secondly, slightly slightly release the braking pressure at the very
 last moment. This gives the suspension a chance to return to normal
 otherwise you come to a halt, and the forks bounce up from full travel,
 which can unbalance you as try to put your foot down and stop... mercy
 you don't want to avoid an accident and then drop the bike like a
 beginner...
 
 How about your BIKE???
 I trust it's in good shape, well-adjusted, and with plenty of life left in brake
 pads and tires. Wrong tires pressures or worn tires can destroy braking feel
 and performance
 
 HANDS???
 Some people use all four fingers on the brake lever, and some prefer two or three. One finger is
possible with the latest race brakes but I find that the less fingers used the harder to get the
fine control I need on the track... so I alternate between two on the street and four on the
track... no one is going to criticize the number of fingers as long as you can brake in the
shortest distance possible listed in the owners manual...
 
 SURFACE???
 Constantly changing... after all... it's the perverted highway... so you need
 to keep changing your braking pressure, and be prepared to let the brakes
 off altogether over really slippery bits...
 
 ARMS
 Don't lock them straight... for you'll lose feel and control. Brace your body
 weight by taking weight through the foot pegs and gripping the tank dents
 between your knees...
 
 CLUTCH
 Leave it engaged until the very last moment it should help you stop quicker
 and more in control if you use the engine braking. If the engine starts to
 lock the back wheel up, slip the clutch slightly exactly as you would when
 you pull away... now if your prize sports a slipper clutch then it will limit the
 engine braking automatically for you...
 
 BRAIN
 Thinking to itself, "Do I need to stop? Couldn't I just bleed off a little speed
 and ride round the problem? Where are my escape routes?" If you plan
 well enough ahead then you should hardly ever need to do an emergency
 stop. You should always be aware of your position in relation to the
 perverted traffic full of cagers out slaughtering the fine art of driving...
 
 EYES
 Constantly looking for another way out of trouble... don't look at the
 problem or you'll ride straight towards it... rather focus on your escape route...

[county]

Well, you could do that, or, you could trade your bike in for one with ABS

[pushrod]

Nicely done, Larry. Nicely done.

[Nny]

In the MSF course I took, the instructor said that engine braking actually *increases* stopping distance because of the inertia of the engine (the engine resists the movement either slower or faster than it's going when the clutch is engaged).

Whether or not that would change anything a large amount I don't know, but what do you guys think?

[Thor]

In the MSF course I took, the instructor said that engine braking actually *increases* stopping distance because of the inertia of the engine (the engine resists the movement either slower or faster than it's going when the clutch is engaged).

Whether or not that would change anything a large amount I don't know, but what do you guys think?

It's not that simple.  It depends on engine speed and bike speed.  A little common sense will give you the answer.  If you roll off the throttle, the bike slows...to a point, then the engine wants to keep pulling.  This happens when you are going about 10-20MPH in a high gear at low RPMs.

The practical application is that during a quick stop many new riders (and many seasoned riders) don't pull in the clutch and end up stalling the bike or fighting a bucking motorcycle as the come to a stop.  This is dangerous for a number of reasons.  The bike could buck those few feet too far into the intersection, or you could tip over or lose control and not be able to get out of the way of a vehicle.

I take the approach that when slowing or stopping a motorcycle, I want to be in a position to be able to immediately accelerate at full throttle or accelerate and turn.  This means making sure I am in the appropriate gear for my speed.  I pull in the clutch, but I am also banging down gears as quickly as needed, and, depending on the bike, letting out the clutch to aid in the shifting.

That said, in a true emergency stop I always pull in the clutch and worry about the gears when I have the mental and physical energy to do so.  And I mean IMMEDIATELY after I get my wits about me again.  The bike can stop so quickly that by the time you think about pulling in the clutch, it's too late and your fighting the engine.

I have seen MANY, MANY, MANY people - including racers on the track - dump their bikes or get in trouble because they didn't pull the clutch in as they came to a stop in a panic situation.

I don't think the way your instructor was making his point was very effective.  

If I had to chose a habit to develop, it would be pulling in the clutch to stop, particular for a newer rider.

[Nny]

So what you're saying is for emergency stops just grab clutch and downshift, but for slowing quickly in other situations let the clutch out between downshifts?

[Thor]

So what you're saying is for emergency stops just grab clutch and downshift, but for slowing quickly in other situations let the clutch out between downshifts?

For regular slowing I like to keep the engine engaged as much as possible so if I need power to get out of a situation, I have it.

Some bikes won't drop to the next gear without a letting the clutch out a little between downshifts.  I have also found that letting the clutch out (and rev matching - a whole new discussion) keeps me from dropping more gears than I intended and not being aware of it.

It is not that different than a car.  You come up to a corner in 4th gear, you let off the gas and maybe apply some brake, and then you downshift to 3rd, do it again and drop to 2nd.  Now you are in the proper gear for the corner.

Quick stops reduce speed so quickly that their really isn't much time to be letting the clutch out between gears.  The ability to rattle through the gears during a quick stop is a skill that most riders never develop.  If you are going to do track days or race, you will need to get down the gear box quickly while braking, but that really isn't the same as a quick stop.

At this point in my riding, I'm lucky to get down one gear in a quick stop (most cars that pull out in front of me seem to do it when I am going between 30-50mph.)  I find myself banging down the gears either right before I come to a complete stop or after I come to a complete stop.

The key is to always keep your bike in the correct gear for your speed.  When you quick stop imagine an 18 wheeler with a one eyed meth head blasting Skynard coming at you from behind at 100mph.

My quick stops consist of stopping, pulling in my elbows so I can see what is behind me, and banging down the gears.  I also habitually hit the horn.  I don't know where I got that since I seldomly use my horn, but it has been ingrained in my riding habits.

The whole point of this is to practice it.  If you don't practice, your ability to keep from being overwhelmed in an emergency situation will be low.  If you become overwhelmed, you panic.  If you panic you just squeeze as hard as you can and crash.

Get out there and practice.  Find out what works best for you and your bike.

[Nny]

Now that my rear brake is working that's a good idea..