My understanding is a bike braked only on the rear wheel will always be les s capable of braking than a bike with both wheels braked, particularly the front as weight transfer renders the rear brake less and less effective as the rate of deceleration increases. Motorcycle road racers in fact hardly use their rear brakes at all for this reason and the vehicle dynamics are similar. If there's enough weight on the rear contact patch to provide muc h braking torque, you aren't stopping as fast as you could I'd reckon.
Kurt Sperry Bellingham WA USA
On 12/7/06, ternst <ternst1@cox.net> wrote:
>
> My turn, guys and gals.
> Track bikes ie. fixed gear machines are designed to ride on the velodrome
,
> or flatter ground criteriums like we did before multi speed bikes were
> used
> in our country's racing.
> Years ago Even the road races were fixed gear, and most of the courses
> were
> flatter terrain for obvious reasons.
> Guys who ride track bikes in hilly areas are not using the bike to it's
> best
> efficiency.
> Too low a gear and you spin your foolhead off or your hip joint separates
.
> Too big a gear and you brake your legs getting uphill and end up with
> knots
> in your legs trying to stop on the down hill.
> Plus the safety factor in today's traffic.
> However, when used properly on flat / or small undulating ground, a rider
> who know hows to ride correctly is able to stop a track bike just as fast
> as
> a road bike.
> We used to try it against each other and it was always fun to see the roa
d
> bike guys's mouths drop open when they saw how fast a good track bike
> could
> stop when ridden by a real track bike rider, which we all were in back in
> the '40's to '60's.
> Keep in mind that not only did guys like me learn on fixed gears, but the
n
> as the road and multi speed bikes came in, we started riding those too,
> and
> so we could ride track and road races alternatingly in the same week.
> That "apprenticeship" was invaluble as riding went on, because we could
> take
> whatever the season threw at us without hesitation.
> So, start practicing , or else!
> Ted Ernst
> Palos Verdes Estates
> CA USA
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jerome & Elizabeth Moos" <jerrymoos@sbcglobal.net>
> To: "gabriel l romeu" <romeug@comcast.net>
> Cc: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Thursday, December 07, 2006 6:46 PM
> Subject: Re: [CR] Surprising ending to Cinelli Pista frameset auction
>
>
> > Why I hope they get ridden? Or why one needs a front brake? I just
> think
> > bikes are made to be ridden. And without a brake, it is often
> impossible
> > to stop quickly enough in traffic. In fact, this is precisely why
> brakes
> > are forbidden on the velodrome. Since fixed gear bikes cannot be
> stopped
> > quickly without brakes, allowing one rider to have a brake on the
> > velodrome would create the danger of him stopping suddenly and others
> > piling into him.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Jerry Moos
> >
> > gabriel l romeu <romeug@comcast.net> wrote:
> >
> >> I hope the buyers at least ride them occasionally on the road,
> >> although that often requires drilling the fork for a front brake to
> >> do so safely.
> >
> > I am not so sure I understand this. why?
> > --
> > gabriel l romeu
> > chesterfield nj usa
> > ± http://studiofurniture.com Ø http://journalphoto.org ±