# Tips on Emergency Braking



## HLaB (28 Oct 2007)

Hi has anybody tips on emergency braking? other than avoiding having to do it. The reason I'm asking is this afternoon whilst freewheeling down a rural 'A' Road @ 22mph, just after a wee place called Kinnesswood and just north of Scotlandwell. On a sweeping right hand bend a car came up behind and decided to overtake unfortunately there was a car coming the other way, so they swerved back in on me. To avoid making contact I had to brake hard unfortunately in doing so I locked up and had to bail into a ditch. Apart from being a little shaken up both the bike and I are OK and the driver got a conscience and came back a couple of minutes later to see if I was OK and make her apologies.


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## Smokin Joe (28 Oct 2007)

Front brake first, use the rear only gently if at all, and be ready to momenteraly release the brake if the front wheel locks. Shifting your weight towards the back of the bike helps prevent the rear wheel lifting.


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## HLaB (28 Oct 2007)

Cheers, Ive been braking gently with the rear and then throwing on the front. I guess in my panic  I braked too hard with both and didn't release momentarily to stop lock up.


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## yenrod (28 Oct 2007)

How to emergency brake is: throw the bike forward (do this 1st) so your over the back wheel, as the saddle is moving in front of the crotch apply the brakes pretty dam quick !

This process slows you down and makes sure you DONT fly over the bars!!


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## mickle (28 Oct 2007)

This occurance sounds like a candidate for primary position. Ride towards the middle of the road on blind corners, it stops them making stupid moves like the one you described.


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## HLaB (28 Oct 2007)

It didn't stop this stupid driver I was in the primary but that doesn't matter what I'm interested in is effective braking techniques.


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## col (29 Oct 2007)

When you brake hard on the front brake,slip back like has been mentioned,but go a little further so your stomach is nearly on the saddle,as long as there is enough clearance over the back tyre for your nads


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## pjm (29 Oct 2007)

HLaB said:


> Cheers, Ive been braking gently with the rear and then throwing on the front. I guess in my panic  I braked too hard with both and didn't release momentarily to stop lock up.



Obviously locking up the back won't do you too much harm, except it will reduce the amount of braking grip. Its the front you need to worry about, and the front is the one that is going to give you the most stopping power too.
When you slow down, momentum means that your weight shifts forward. The front wheel therefore has the most weight on it when braking. This in turn means that the front brake brake is most effective in slowing you down. To illustrate, imagine a pencil with a rubber on the end; stand the pencil upright with the rubber in contact with the table; iit takes a tiny amount of effort to move the pencil - i.e. make it lose grip; now push the pencil down hard into the table, it takes much more effort to move it. So more weight on the tyre means more grip. You'll notice that cars and motorbikes all have much bigger front brakes for this reason. In fact, if you take your motorcycle driving test, the 'emergency stop' part of the test doesn't even require that you use the rear brake at all, so ineffective is it relative to the front.
So first thing is to focus on your front brake. Grab a handful of rear by all means, but concentrate on the front. The most effective way to maximise braking at the front is to be as progressive as possible. Imagine the pencil again, push it down into the table and try to dislodge it by pressing smoothly and slowly - it takes a bit of effort; now flick it instead - it moves with far less effort. If you brake suddenly, then all your weight is transferred onto the front wheel very quickly, and this sudden change will cause the tyre to lock up quite easily. Apply the brake more smoothly and you can build up much more grip and decelerative force.

One other point which has been mentioned previoulsy is moving your weight backwards. If you slow down really hard, then the weight transfer forwards can be enough to thrown you over the bars (if your tyres have enough grip not to lock up first!), so shifting your weight back reduces this risk. It also puts more weight over the back tyre, so this will also become more effective for braking.


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## Elmer Fudd (29 Oct 2007)

Emergency braking ? EMERGENCY BRAKING ?
This sounds like garlic bread. Has no place in the real world.
You should cycle (drive) in a manner applicable to the conditions and situation you are in, being observant of all moving vehicles in your immediate vicinity / ahead of you, and be able to anticipate any "hazards" that may be imminently wending your way and thus brake smoothly and correctly.

 Driving instructors head now put back in box


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## andygates (29 Oct 2007)

Arse off the back and scream like a girl.

You go where you're looking. In a near-collision, DO NOT LOOK AT THE CAR, look at the CLEAR ROAD where you want to be. You'd be *amazed* how the magnets in your eyes can draw you into peril otherwise.


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## gbb (29 Oct 2007)

Elmer Fudd said:


> Emergency braking ? EMERGENCY BRAKING ?
> This sounds like garlic bread. Has no place in the real world.
> You should cycle (drive) in a manner applicable to the conditions and situation you are in, being observant of all moving vehicles in your immediate vicinity / ahead of you, and be able to anticipate any "hazards" that may be imminently wending your way and thus brake smoothly and correctly.
> 
> Driving instructors head now put back in box



Of course, you are technically correct...but, in reality, the myriad of circumstances in front of you make that impossible to achieve every time.

For instance...riding one night last winter. Making good progress slightly downhill. A car is oncoming and indicating to turn right, which means he will cross my lane. I am aware of the potential danger in the dark, so begin to slow slightly...watching, watching, watching the car as it approaches the junction. He slowed, hes nearly stopped...yes, he must have seen me..... FCUK  the tw@ts pulled across RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME 

Slammed on the brakes.....and dont anyone tell me in the milliseconds i had, there was a correct way to do it.....rear wheel locked, slewed round, and i am broadsiding millimetres past his car. 
I still dont understand what possessed him to go, how i didnt he didnt hit me, or how i stayed on the bike.

I approached with caution, despite having 'right of way', looked looked looked...and still the fcukwit pulled across me impossibly late.

Unfortunately, in some emergencies, you wont have time to 'brake correctly'...you will just hammer on the anchors for all youre worth.

That said, reading this makes me realise..i did have the opportunity to prepare myself for a potential emergency....but i failed to use it.

As they say in the trade, preparation, preparation, preparation.


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## Jacomus-rides-Gen (30 Oct 2007)

pjm said:


> Obviously *locking up the back won't do you too much harm, except it will reduce the amount of braking grip.* Its the front you need to worry about, and the front is the one that is going to give you the most stopping power too.
> <snip>



 Locking the rear wheel can do much harm - aside from the obvious tyre damage it stops the rear of the bike tracking properly and can cause it to slide out in an extreme case.



> *Elmer Fudd*
> Emergency braking ? EMERGENCY BRAKING ?
> This sounds like garlic bread. *Has no place in the real world.*
> You should cycle (drive) in a manner applicable to the conditions and situation you are in, being observant of all moving vehicles in your immediate vicinity / ahead of you, and be able to anticipate any "hazards" that may be imminently wending your way and thus brake smoothly and correctly.
> ...



Oooooo-kaaaaaaay. This is totally incorrect, emergency braking is an essential skill for operating a vehicle safely. Its real world application is to allow a person to reduce or avoid an impact in the event of an unpredictable incident, that occurs beyond the realm of reasonable prediction. 

If you don't know how to emergency stop whatever vehicle you are using, you are seriously neglecting an important, and not to mention examined (in the driving test) skill. 

*Emergency braking technique*

Practice emergency stops, its the only way to learn and will make you safer as a result. 

Don't grab the front brake, squeeze it on and brace your arms, but keep the elbows bent. Make it a smooth, but firm application. Slide back a little in the saddle and feather the rear brake until you come to a stop. Keep practicing until you can stop so hard that your rear wheel is skipping, and your rear brake is virtually useless. 

An emergency stop in the wet is a different kettle of fish, and I am assuming here that you have rim brakes.

Again squeeze the front brake on firmly and smoothly, arms braced, but in the wet also squeeze the rear brake lever at the same time, but only put about 30% of the front lever's squeeze through it. Remember that your wheels will need to complete one or two revolutions before the pads properly bite the rims, so don't go all out as you can in the dry. Again keep your weight slightly back in the saddle.

*Important points to remember*


When approaching a situation which may require emergency braking, cover the brakes as this reduces the time it takes to start braking by about 0.4seconds and reduces the temptation to "panic pull" and grab a dirty handfull of brakes and upset the bike.
If you realise that you are going to hit whatever you are tying to avoid, at the last second remove your hands from the bars entirely. This is to reduce the chances of broken wrists and dislocated shoulders when the bike suddenly stops but your body doesn't.
Another option if you realise you won't stop in time is to lock the rear wheel and unclip a foot, lean the bike over onto the unclipped side and slither to the ground. It is unlikely you will stop before impact, but it could well prevent you sustaining very nasty facial/upper spinal injuries associated with being catapulted face first into the side of a car.
Remember that the smoother you are with your application of the brakes and more controlled your braking, the faster you will stop and the more safely you will do it.
You don't have to bring the bike to a dead stop, sometimes a period of emergency braking should be followed by releasnig the brakes and swerving. The more you practice emergency braking, the easier it will be to be in control and to do something like this.
Practice, practice, practice - it may just save your life one day.


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## Elmer Fudd (30 Oct 2007)

Elmer Fudd said:


> Emergency braking ? EMERGENCY BRAKING ?
> This sounds like garlic bread. Has no place in the real world.
> You should cycle (drive) in a manner applicable to the conditions and situation you are in, being observant of all moving vehicles in your immediate vicinity / ahead of you, and be able to anticipate any "hazards" that may be imminently wending your way and thus brake smoothly and correctly.
> 
> .Driving instructors head now put back in box



Please Sir !!

Can I just say that this post had a certain element of  in cheek ? Although it has prompted some good responsive answers.
Thought the bit now high-lighted in red may have given the game away !


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## KitsuneAndy (30 Oct 2007)

Elmer Fudd said:


> Emergency braking ? EMERGENCY BRAKING ?
> This sounds like garlic bread. Has no place in the real world.
> You should cycle (drive) in a manner applicable to the conditions and situation you are in, being observant of all moving vehicles in your immediate vicinity / ahead of you, and be able to anticipate any "hazards" that may be imminently wending your way and thus brake smoothly and correctly.
> 
> Driving instructors head now put back in box




If that's the case why do we get tested on emergency stops in a driving test? 

I find braking hard a bit weird now that I'm riding a bike with front suspension as you get the same 'nosedive' that you do on motorbikes as the weight shifts onto the front wheel and compresses it.


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## Elmer Fudd (30 Oct 2007)

As has been mentioned, shift your centre of gravity (arse) back.
Although when I took my driving test (car 1st, bike 2nd) my driving instructor told me you should treat your passengers like royalty and look after them, so when you brake (even emergency brake) they shouldn't rock back and forth in their seat. Easy peasy when you know how !!
But I will say again (and I know there are some total numpties driving cars, m/bikes, bikes out there) you should always be aware of what is going on around you and anticipate (i.e. what if a kid runs out between those 2 parked cars), hence I voted NO to listening to headphone music when cycling. No objection to a couple of speakers wired up to your mp3 though.


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## pjm (30 Oct 2007)

Jacomus-rides-Gen said:


> Locking the rear wheel can do much harm - aside from the obvious tyre damage it stops the rear of the bike tracking properly and can cause it to slide out in an extreme case.



OK sure, but relatively speaking the rear losing traction isn't such a big deal as the front losing it. If you were to say lock the front wheel in the wet, the bike can slide away from underneath you and you'll be on the floor in an instant, whereas the same thing happens on the rear and its most likely not to be a big deal. Having both tyres on the cusp of losing grip is optimal, but if I had to focus my concentration on one, it would be the front.


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## purpleR (30 Oct 2007)

I know that stretch of road really well - grew up in the area. It's quite nasty with lots of blind summits combined with sharp bends. 

I'm learning to drive at the moment and have had a few frights along there - overtaking on bends (with, of course, a car coming around the bend at us Eeek) and I got tailgated really closely going through Scotlandwell & Kinesswood in the thick fog last week.  Maybe there are just a lot of idiot drivers around there??

No wisdom from me on braking techniques - having crashed my bike a couple of weeks ago I reckon it's time for me to learn some emergency techniques too...


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## Fab Foodie (30 Oct 2007)

Whether wise or not, I have my Giant set up with Koolstop Salmon (soft and grippy) blocks on the front and the slightly harder black compound on the rear. The idea being that the when grabbing handfulls of brake I hope not to lock-up the rear wheel as I probably would with soft compound blocks back and front.

...mind you, after standard Ultegra pads anythings got to be better...


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## Joe24 (30 Oct 2007)

I tend to pull the back break hard, and the front one not as hard. If it back wheel locks then i release the break, then pull it on again quick.
I dont pull the front one as hard, because i'm sure i read something about you can keep the bike under controlle is the back wheel skids, and it is much harder with the front wheel. Although leaning forward slightly helps not to lock the front wheel up because of the extra weight, but also moving your arse back helps to keep the back wheel from lifting.


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## Jacomus-rides-Gen (31 Oct 2007)

Joe24 I sincerely hope you never have to do an emergency stop if you use that technique!

A little over 70% of a bikes total braking force is supplied by the front wheel. If you are primarily using you rear brake to stop, you are seriously underusing your available braking capacity.

I hold the opinion that people become worried about the front locking up or being thrown over the bars if the front brake is pulled too hard because of either a childhood incident where they grabbed a handful of front brake and went flying, or that they have been essentially 'scared off' by other inexperienced cyclists. 

It is nigh on impossible to lock the front wheel of a bike in the dry, excessive braking on the front will cause the rear wheel to rise, but that still requires massive braking force (or a ridiculously powerful brake as is fitted to my mtb)

Even if the rear wheel does rise into the air, the rider should be in enough control to modulate the braking force and either keep the rear wheel in the air i.e. pulling a stoppie, or to modulate the force just enough to get it to settle back down onto the black stuff.

Braking until a wheel locks then releasing and trying again is a rather sketchy technique, it is much more effective to slightly release pressure until the wheel is rotating again than to jam the brake back on again.

As with all aspects of riding - the smoother you are, the more in control you are and the faster you can perform whatever operation you are trying to do, be that cornering, braking, climbing etc.

Check out what Sir Sheldon has to say about braking http://sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html


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## BentMikey (31 Oct 2007)

Good post there Jacomus! Practice is key, I like to do a hard stop at least once a week when there's no-one near me and it's safe to practice.

One bit I like about riding fixed is that you can use the rear brake + pedals to "measure" how hard you're braking and how much traction you have.

The 'bent is awesome for stopping power in the dry. I can stop maybe twice as quickly as anyone on an upright bike because my centre of gravity is so low. Literally cheek-elongating deceleration.


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## Joe24 (31 Oct 2007)

Jacomus-rides-Gen said:


> Joe24 I sincerely hope you never have to do an emergency stop if you use that technique!
> 
> A little over 70% of a bikes total braking force is supplied by the front wheel. If you are primarily using you rear brake to stop, you are seriously underusing your available braking capacity.
> 
> ...



I have done a few stops like this, and only once has the back wheel locked, and it was in the wet. It seems to work, but i will try putting more pressure on the front break when i'm stopping. Although the breaks on my folder are pretty pants, the techinique i use always works. I probably have described it wrong. I do pull the front break, but just not as much as the rear one. Should i be pulling the front one the same, or more then the rear break? On my BMX, it used to be lots of back break, and only small amounts of the front break when i wanted to do a stoppie or make the front wheel skid on grass. So this is probably why i dont use the front break as much.
I will go on a quiet road and practice my emergency breaking today on my ride, and pay more attention to what i'm doing.
My emergency breaking cant be that bad, it has stopped me quickly alot of times.
Another question, is why put so much weight over the back wheel, and not as much on the front wheel. What an equal amount of weight, help the bike to stop?


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## Tynan (31 Oct 2007)

brake

please, that repeated typo is making my eyes hurt

I usuallu yank it all on full blast, it is an emergency after all, but be quick to ease off when/if the wheel locks

and of course it's very handy to know what happens when you do go for it

I went over the handlebars twice on ten minutes one evening after having new blocks fitted, I suspect the shop had done something to the rims


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## Jacomus-rides-Gen (31 Oct 2007)

Joe24 said:


> I have done a few stops like this, and only once has the back wheel locked, and it was in the wet. It seems to work, but i will try putting more pressure on the front break when i'm stopping. Although the breaks on my folder are pretty pants, the techinique i use always works. I probably have described it wrong. I do pull the front break, but just not as much as the rear one. Should i be pulling the front one the same, or more then the rear break? On my BMX, it used to be lots of back break, and only small amounts of the front break when i wanted to do a stoppie or make the front wheel skid on grass. So this is probably why i dont use the front break as much.
> I will go on a quiet road and practice my emergency breaking today on my ride, and pay more attention to what i'm doing.
> My emergency breaking cant be that bad, it has stopped me quickly alot of times.
> Another question, is why put so much weight over the back wheel, and not as much on the front wheel. What an equal amount of weight, help the bike to stop?



I've got a pretty comprehensive document I'll pop on here tomorrow, I wrote it a little while ago but only have the paper copy D'oh! So am having to type it all out again


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## cyclebum (31 Oct 2007)

I have been reading this thread with horror (quite appropriate for halloween) as for a while now I hardly use my front break but mostly use my rear, have I got this so horribly wrong??!!!


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## bonj2 (1 Nov 2007)

Jacomus-rides-Gen said:


> I hold the opinion that people become worried about the front locking up or being thrown over the bars if the front brake is pulled too hard because of either *a childhood incident where they grabbed a handful of front brake and went flying*, or that they have been essentially 'scared off' by other inexperienced cyclists.



my bro did that when he first got a mtb with cantis after being used to a bmx with shoot U-brakes (i think), he knocked his front teeth in half. Still remember it, was nasty.


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## bonj2 (1 Nov 2007)

isn't emergency braking hard on a drop-handlebar bike if you haven't got your hands on the drops at the time?


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## Jacomus-rides-Gen (1 Nov 2007)

Yes! Which is why you should be very careful when moving your hands away from the brake levers, either to hold the tops or the bottom.

Something else to remember is that reaching for a brake lever from a closed hand position takes about 0.4s, so covering the brakes when approaching hazardous situations can be of real value.

A cyclist travelling at 20mph is covernig 30ft (9.1m) every second. Based on an average reaction time of 1 second, covering your brakes can save you 12ft (3.7m)


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## Fab Foodie (1 Nov 2007)

cyclebum said:


> I have been reading this thread with horror (quite appropriate for halloween) as for a while now I hardly use my front break but mostly use my rear, have I got this so horribly wrong??!!!



Short answer I'm afraid is yes. 
When it really matters the bake brake is next to useless, the front does the majority of the stopping. That's why on powered vehicles the front has the heftiest brakes, the rear only helps to keep thing in a straight line. Watch motorcycle racing, on the brakes you can see the back wheel is actually skipping along the road, the front brake is doing all the work
Emergency braking is worthy practising. As I said earlier it is quite amazing how hard you can brake on a bicycle with a bit of practice.


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## bonj2 (1 Nov 2007)

Jacomus-rides-Gen said:


> Yes! Which is why you should be very careful when moving your hands away from the brake levers, either to hold the tops or the bottom.
> 
> Something else to remember is that reaching for a brake lever from a closed hand position takes about 0.4s, so covering the brakes when approaching hazardous situations can be of real value.
> 
> A cyclist travelling at 20mph is covernig 30ft (9.1m) every second. Based on an average reaction time of 1 second, covering your brakes can save you 12ft (3.7m)



Hmm...yes, I've always known since I was taught to drive that covering the brakes is a good idea, and have applied it to cycling aswell.
Just another q though, can you actually do a reasonable emergency stop when holding the 'hoods'? Is it not tricky - I would have thought you end up having to leave only your thumb on the actual top of the hoods? since you presumably need more than one finger to pull the brakes hard enough?


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## Jacomus-rides-Gen (1 Nov 2007)

Practicing emergency stops on the hoods has shown me that I can't stop as fast as if I'm in the drops, (which is why I always take to the drops when filtering, etc). But that said I can still stop very hard on the hoods, my hand position is a kind of handshake of the hood, where it is comfortable and natural to rest my first 2 fingers on the brake lever, two fingers on the brake produces the best stopping power.

Having said that I can't stop as fast on the hoods because I can't generate the same force by squeezing closer to the pivot as I can further away from the pivot in the drops, I have remembered that I managed to get my roadbike up on the front wheel from the hoods when a girl ran infront of the car I was following - so with a good dose of oh-f*ck-I'm-a-gonner to strengthen the fingers I managed a full stop. Still, I'd rather have been in the drops!


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## gbb (1 Nov 2007)

bonj said:


> Hmm...yes, I've always known since I was taught to drive that covering the brakes is a good idea, and have applied it to cycling aswell.
> Just another q though, can you actually do a reasonable emergency stop when holding the 'hoods'? Is it not tricky - I would have thought you end up having to leave only your thumb on the actual top of the hoods? since you presumably need more than one finger to pull the brakes hard enough?[/QUOTE]
> 
> In short, yes.
> ...


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## buddha (2 Nov 2007)

I'm grateful to have read this thread earlier and picked up a few tips.

As I have just managed to miss hitting the boot of a police car by two inches!
Four bobbies, squashed like sardines in a Metro, chatting amongst themselves. And the driver decides to hit the brakes hard on the exit of a fast roundabout for no apparent reason. The driver behind me had to swerve to avoid hitting me.

Although the driver of the police car did pop his head out of the window and apologise. I waved back and (muttered) "Be more careful next time". And made my escape.


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## Cycling Naturalist (2 Nov 2007)

col said:


> ,as long as there is enough clearance over the back tyre for your nads



I'm glad you're not suggesting pressing them down firmly on the wheel and using them as brake blocks.


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## BentMikey (2 Nov 2007)

Locking the rear up is not hard, and is no test of braking ability. For emergency braking you need to be able to brake to the point of lifting the rear wheel in the dry. I'm also a fan of being able to slide the rear wheel around under control when necessary. Not that I'm very good at it, but it's saved me and kept me upright a few times when something has gone wrong.


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