Rear Brakes (and group rides)

[westtexas]

I had no idea that most people use their front brakes over the rear - I've always been paranoid of going over the front from braking too hard. I think I use my rear one almost exclusively, unless travelling at a high rate of speed down a hill, then I pulse between the front and back to control the freefall. Sometimes I have found I have actually forgotten to turn the clamp on the front brake back "on" after replacing the front wheel, but I never notice because I honestly rarely use it.

Pretty interesting stuff!

[OakLeaf]

Use it. Don't be so afraid of it that you don't. You need the stopping power, and most of it comes from the front brake. It's just physics. I got through I don't know how many miles in my lifetime, but over 40,000 miles for sure, using mostly front brake and believing that it wasn't possible to endo under braking, until I finally got caught out. Not being able to stop fast enough is a much more common situation, and you don't want to make that any more likely than it already is.

The only thing I'm working hard to change is not reaching for the front brake first, and being sure to shift my weight. It's important to use BOTH brakes.