There are various situations when we need to apply breaks and each situation needs different types of pressure on front and back and in some rare cases only one, either the front or the back should be applied.
Below situations are applicable for Pulsar 220 soft compound tires or any of the bikes with double disk breaks and good tires (more grip than compared to the normal tires).
Emergency Brakes
If you apply the rear alone then there is of no use, but first apply the rear break and lock the rear wheel, a quarter second later apply the front with the maximum pressure without locking the front wheel. If front wheel is locked then there could be a chance of rear wheel lifting off the road (depending on the speed you travel). When its real emergency lock the front wheel too but a little late.
Finally in some real emergencies when we feel that accident gonna happen anyways then also follow the same procedure, and if your bike does not stop then remembering an accident when the bike was in your control avoids you from taking a very big hit. If tires are locked then every thing is out of your control. (My personal thought: do not ride the bike in a speed that your can’t control it in emergencies).
In this emergency case pull the clutch because engine brakes are very less when compared to the brakes that you apply, forget about gears shifting etc. remember only brakes. By the way engine brakes helps you reduce the speed but it does not make you come down to zero so forget about engine brakes.
Normal Braking While Excessive Speeding
Some time if you stop the acceleration, situation comes under control; if not then give a try with the rear brake (wheel need not be locked because its not emergency).
If the situation is still not under control because when you apply the rear brake then the weight of the bike shifts to the front – so you may feel that the speed is not in control, so in that case touch the front brake for a better control.
The words like EXCESSIVE SPEEDING and SPEEDING mean different for different people, it purely depends on individual capabilities. similarly the pressure on the brakes that we apply from individual to individual.
Suppose a guy follows my way of applying the brakes, and soon after applying the front if the rear wheel lifts off the road – then how is he gonna control the situation?
Is it still good if the rear wheel is lifted of?. What if the rider is thrown to the front? There were many cases of this kind when Bajaj first launched the disc brakes on Pulsar.
Till now what all mentioned above is a clear case where the road is expected to be like a runway and tires and brakes are considered as brand new ones. In real life these things does not remain the same everyday and its all by practice.
Braking in hi-speed, corners, off road, everything is different from each other.
Braking in Corners
Now I like to mention about braking in corners but I should tell you about a road with a perfect angle of banking or a normal four road junction where we don’t turn the handle to take a turn but incline a little to pass the junction.
When we talk about such topics physics come into picture in terms of Grip, friction, angle of banking, Pressure (on wheels/brakes), weight vs brake pressure is another case. when overloaded, brake pressure is different….. OK… when I typed in the word pressure I remembered of something important.
Know the idle pressure of air to be filled in the tires of your bike, because it matters a lot in terms of your bike’s stability. more air pressure makes the tire expand a little and causes instability of the bike especially when you apply emergency brakes (correct me if I am wrong).
Maintain your bike correctly in all aspects to get the best out of it. People say you get more mileage when air pressure is little high because the wheel is swollen and reduces the grip, but they are forgetting that they are loosing the stability of the bike in emergencies.
SO braking is a topic one should know by their own experience. Practice braking in various conditions to know more about the bike.
If I ride someone else’s bike, the first thing I practice is how to apply the brake. Because braking varies from bike to bike and system to system.
Learn how to brake and have fun. Ride Safe. Wear a helmet – Always. Leave your comments…
Regards,
Venkata Deepak
