Not so new bike!!!

Nice0ne

Hi,

I bought a new 125cc motorbike two weeks ago. It's my first motorbike after having a moped for two years.

I've now slid it twice as I keep forgetting to use the back/foot brake when I have to stop quickly. The damage is not bad but it has taken the shine off my nice new bike.

The main problem is when I have to think quickly I automatically go for the the clutch and front brake. This makes me loose control of the bike and locks up the front wheel. How did other people get around this learning curve? I'd like to fix it before I have a more serious crash.

NiceOne

Garibaldi

By taking lessons.

Kinetic^

Garibaldi wrote:

By taking lessons.

Basically this is the solution. Give the irish school of motoring on Dorset street a call. Guys down there will break everything down for you.

Nice0ne

The problem isn't riding the bike though, it's the emergency breaking and going for the 'moped' breaks. Under normal breaking conditions I get everything right ...

Garibaldi

Decent lessons will go a long way towards helping you break the braking habit.

Pigeon Reaper

Lots of practice and lessons will get you out of the habit. Everytime you break, use the front and back break to build up the habit. You might find yourself locking the back brake once in a while but this does happen. I've never managed to lock the front break. Are you breaking progressively or are you just grabbing a handlefull of lever? One other thing is how are you getting into these situations?
Training is your best bet plus it'll get you driving faster and smoother.

seamus

Nice0ne wrote:

The problem isn't riding the bike though, it's the emergency breaking and going for the 'moped' breaks. Under normal breaking conditions I get everything right ...

That's a problem with the way you're riding though. In theory, the automatics reaction should be the correct one, and lessons really are the way to sort this. Don't go with ISM, they're pants. Get a proper IRTA instructor.

When I panic brake, I tend to stamp on the rear brake (probably a combination of driving a car before a bike, and spending years on mountain bikes/BMX's which had only rear brakes). I still slide from time to time , but when the back wheel locks up, you have much more control.

murphaph

seamus wrote:

When I panic brake, I tend to stamp on the rear brake (probably a combination of driving a car before a bike, and spending years on mountain bikes/BMX's which had only rear brakes). I still slide from time to time , but when the back wheel locks up, you have much more control.

Totally agree with this. I defaulted to the rear brake having come to bikes from cars and being used to using one's foot to stop! I have gradually built up my dependence on the front brake but am still very wary of it in the wet. I had a surprise a few weeks ago when I came tearing around a corner to find a stationary queue of traffic on both sides of the road. Locked the rear wheel but managed to staty upright and go between the vehicles along the white line. Do that with the front brake and you're gone.

Nice0ne

Thanks for the advice.

I'll try using just the back break for a while to try and become dependent on it. Hopefully then it'll become natural to use, even during emergency braking.

Should also be getting some lessons too over the coming months, to sort out any remaining bad habits before my test.


NiceOne

Krusty_Clown

Nice0ne wrote:

Thanks for the advice.
I'll try using just the back break for a while to try and become dependent on it. Hopefully then it'll become natural to use, even during emergency braking.

I wouldn't be in a rush to become uniquely dependant on the rear brake, if I were you.. The front brake provides most of your stopping power.

As the saying goes: Learn to brake, then learn to ride. Another vote for the IRTA crowd..

batman_oh

think what u shud be worryin about is why you are 'panic' breaking so much
id be more concerned about this
also dont practice usin the rear brake instead of the front as you will never learn to drive a bike correctly then. rear brakes are fairly rubbish relative to the front, useful for providing small amounts of stopping power and for stability in ice and rain conditions(and the odd slide)
pratice usin your front brake progressively, thats the one you really need

zapata

It seems that you are doing a lot of 'emergency braking'. This is not a good sign. Take your time and practice on braking on a quiet road or car park.
Try braking 60% front and 40% rear dry road (50\50 on wet road) and just before coming to a complete stop release the front and come to a halt on the rear. Brake in plenty of time and not at the last second.

Handy links:
http://www.ehow.com/how_5251_brake-properly-motorcycle.html

http://www.flamesonmytank.co.za/ride.htm

DO NOT go to the Irish school of motoring (ISM) for bike lessons - i made that mistake.... Try any of the other schools.

Nice0ne

Both slides happened on very wet surfaces, the first one happened real slow and was my own fault. Then yesterday a van tried pulling across the lane I was driving down, I was doing no more that 30Kmph and could see myself going into the side of the van as it didn't appear that he was gonna stop. But I got the braking wrong and went for a slide.

That flamesonymtank website is very good, thanks for the link. What bike school is best at focusing on what you want to learn and not what is in their 'half-day' manual? I'd really like to go learn braking techniques while under instruction.

ANTO D10 DUB

Nice0ne wrote:

Hi,

I bought a new 125cc motorbike two weeks ago. It's my first motorbike after having a moped for two years.

I've now slid it twice as I keep forgetting to use the back/foot brake when I have to stop quickly. The damage is not bad but it has taken the shine off my nice new bike.

The main problem is when I have to think quickly I automatically go for the the clutch and front brake. This makes me loose control of the bike and locks up the front wheel. How did other people get around this learning curve? I'd like to fix it before I have a more serious crash.

NiceOne

that cluch grabbing is a big no no , but it's a habit worth using if you want to pratice knocking it down a gear while braking using the front only . the engine braking will help you slow fairly quick while if need be you accelerate out of trouble you'll allready be in a lower gear.
the back brake is there primarily for stability and not emergencies .

to be honest i dont often use it myself just engine braking on the gear's .

another thing i'v noticed over the year's is that some single disc braked bike's tend to pull to one side under heavy braking so that's worth considering .

hope this help's best of luck to ye be safe:cool:

Prenderb

Another thing to consider, quite apart from getting lessons is why you are having to stop so quickly so often.

Are you leaving enough room between you and the vehicle in front? Are you giving yourself enough time to react smoothly rather than rashly grabbing a whole load of brake in "emergency" braking?

My point is that You have to work on observation and planning as well as braking.

(check out the Irish Rider Training Association - i have a name of a great trainer that did lessons with me, and do the Star Rider course at Fingal co. co. - can't recommend highly enough, I did it last year and it's excellent.)

Cheers, and be safe!

Prenderb.