E-Stop *fail* - advice?

[Horse]

A few days ago, someone sent me this mesage:

I had my first emergency stop fail a couple of days ago. I was on the first bike i've been on without ABS... locked the front wheel and squish - there I was like a beetle trapped under the bike.

So, any tips on how not to lock the front wheel and fall over?

Rather than reply with only my ideas, I thought it worth posting here, so others can chip in.

Perhaps, for e-stops, 'get it up on the rear wheel', 'gan it reet over', and 'Panigale' can be discounted?

[Horse]

Perhaps start with a point about ABS. For most bikes, the exceptions being those equipped with cornering ABS, you will still need to be doing your firmest braking with the bike straight and upright.

Which leads to "what does 'firm braking' mean? Specifically to how much braking you can achieve without locking the wheels.

Which leads to another important point: brakes stop the wheels, tyre grip stops the bike.

And yet another important point: how you apply the brakes makes a massive difference to how much braking can be achieved.

Ever seen pictures of bikes being wheelied and stoppied? These demonstrate extremes of altering the bike's weight distribution all over the rear or front wheels. If you're just riding along in a straight line at a steady speed, the bike's (and your) weight will be distributed over both wheels, and so tyres on the road.

Weight = grip (with caveats for poor surfaces, e.g. ice as a worst case)

If you 'grab' the front brake lever and apply maximum pressure, there's a fair chance that the brake will stop the wheel but the front tyre's grip will be overcome, you'll keep going forwards. For a while.

'Squeezing' the brake (I saw Hopp Rider Training use shaking someone's hand as an explanation of how it difersfrom 'grab'), is more gentle application. It allows the tyre to begin to slow you. As that slowing happens, the weight distribution will alter towards the front. You may feel this as pressure in your elbows. When that happens, you can squeeze harder.

How much is too much? Realistically, you won't  - can't  - know how much grip is available from the road and your tyres until you exceed it. With a lot of experience and awareness you may be able to identify the 'threshold' where maximum braking is achieved. Which is about where ABS modulates pressure.

Pointers:

- Posture; arms relaxed, shoulders down, bend at the elbows, grip the tank with your knees (if there is one)
- Head and eyes up, keep looking forward. What US trainers call 'visual directional control'
- If you're stopping alongside something, only look at it when you stop (see above - where you look is where you go)
- Use both brakes, gently at first. Increase pressure on the front, keep the rear steady (remember the weight - and so grip - is reducing for the rear wheel)

Practice
- Open, clear, well-surfaced area
- Walk around, clear any 'FOD' - basically anything you wouldn't want to ride over or be stuck in your tyres
- Initially, just practice gentle braking
- Eyes up
- Squeeze
- Then firmer braking
- Clutch in just before you stop (NB opinions vary, pros and cons)


Mentally, you are likely to have the little nagging voice saying "you crashed doing this!" Give it something to do, like listing the points above to 'coach' you through.

Finesse
- Taper braking: squeeze-firm-ease. In an e-stop you will need to stop as quickly as possible. For normal braking, ease off just before stopping, ease off that weight on the front to allow the forks to rebound.

Corners
- Lean = less grip for braking
- Start gradual braking when leant over, bring the bike upright, gradually increase
- Firm braking when upright and in a straight line

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

The only advice I'd give is practice on a small, light bike that you don't mind damaging, possibly on a loose surface as the wheel will lock easier, at a lower speed and dirt is more forgiving than tarmac.

[iansoady]

I think I commented some time ago that it's all very well people passing their test on ABS bikes but as soon as they get on something not so equipped they may be heading for a fall - literally.

[The Spin Doctor]

I think I commented some time ago that it's all very well people passing their test on ABS bikes but as soon as they get on something not so equipped they may be heading for a fall - literally.

Yep!

You need to be able to control a locked wheel.

Mind you, the vast majority of the bikes that new riders take CBT on (and ride out on the road on L plates) will only have CBT, not anti-lock... so they'll probably be used to locked wheels.

[The Spin Doctor]

Two things:

1) If we aren't leaning on the bars (posture - knees against the tank, braced back, loose arms) and the bike is upright and not on the outside of the camber where it slopes away, a motorcycle with a locked front wheel will continue to slide upright long enough to think "oo-err" and release the front brake. Front wheel slides don't have to be instant crash.

2) Setting up the brain BEFORE we need to brake usually takes away the SURPRISE! element which causes us to grab a big handful - something I talked about on Saturday in my regular SKILLS on SATURDAY piece... SoS Aug 26 Setting up the brakes also sets up the brain
https://ko-fi.com/post/SoS-Aug-26-Setti ... -R6R5OME4S

[Horse]

Mind you, the vast majority of the bikes that new riders take CBT on ... will only have CBT, not anti-lock.

CBS = Combined Braking System?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_braking_system

[tricol]

I find that mountain biking in slippy conditions help my mindset with this

[1913]

Drum your fingers until it becomes muscle memory, overcoming the grab reaction, thereby applying the brake progressively.

[Horse]

Drum your fingers until it becomes muscle memory, overcoming the grab reaction, thereby applying the brake progressively.

Mentally preparing for various things is a good plan.

Like expecting obstructions around blind bends, or for cars to emerge from side roads.

For braking, being ready to release if a wheel locks may speed the action needed. And release and reapply if you grab.

[The Spin Doctor]

I find that mountain biking in slippy conditions help my mindset with this

Oddly enough, it worked the other way for me... having crashed too many times with a locked front brake (early 80s Kawasakis had much better brakes than tyres) I learned to control a front wheel slide. When I started mountain biking I found that a really useful skill.