Emergency Braking

[kickingzebra]

Well, I just picked up my GSXR 600 last week, and just beginning to really ride it. So today, I am riding down state highway one in Hamilton, two lanes on both sides of the road, and a cager is just waiting to pull out. I have cleared a good gap in front of the cars I came off the roundabout with. He sees Gap. He doesn't see me.

Bugger.

I survived that one because I thought, He will see me, but I have to get around him before he hits me.

Accelerated like a mad dog, swerved well into the Centre strip, and lived to tell the tale, with no adverse marks on the bike or me.

The moral of the story, after that I realised I had absolutley no idea how quickly Tokicos up front can pull me up, or what heavy usage feel is like, or perish the thought, how much grip the D208 up front gives.

Remember to feel out the most important things on your bike first! take it to a carpark, practice Braking, emergency handling etc (and stoppies and Wheelies!!)
Because if you don't know what the emergency handling of the bike is like in a normal situation, it aint just gonna happen some other time!

Still to chicken to stoppy telefonibike!! crap!! But I know how to stop it now!

[sAsLEX]

I often find in urban situations that handfuls of throttle are better than brake to get out of trouble, the tires arent near their limit if you gas up and piss off out of the way, but its hard to catch a locked front low side!

Had a car turn right in front of the car in front of me today, heading in to town outside the Central Cop shop (it happens every day I go through there), and they both stop mid intersection wondering wtf to do next, I just gave it some gas and treated them like a chicane

[kickingzebra]

It was quite nice, I had a huge grace period where no one tried to kill me, from getting back on a bike, commuting for 6 weeks, Snells Beach to Glenfield, down to hamilton and 3 months of riding, Then they bring out the big guns! Some barstard tried to run me off the road when I was on the zzr one day (in pre race monster trim) he was in a GT legacy, so i didn't have much show of leaving him for dead past third gear, Had to brake that time too!! Barstard that one was, shoulda kicked his door in on the way.

[XP@]

I often find in urban situations that handfuls of throttle are better than brake to get out of trouble, the tires arent near their limit if you gas up and piss off out of the way, but its hard to catch a locked front low side!

That is all well and good, but if you throttle-on then find yourself hitting something you have just made the situation worse. Admittedly sometimes it is the best course but in most cases you will be able to stop, especially if you are planning ahead.

If you try and swerve and throttle on to avoid an emergency then you may try and do things a little quicker than you are used to this could well use the traction you really need.

Breaking without practice, then yup, you may find your front end tucking under. With practice a maximum effort stop is the inbuilt response that will save your life.

If you progressively apply the breaks then feeling the point before front locks and modulating the pressure around that point is not really that hard. But you do need to practice, don't expect to be able to pull a fast stop out of the hat if you have not ingrained it in your riding by a few hours practice a year.

[sAsLEX]

That is all well and good,.......... especially if you are planning ahead.

yip just take your back up path out of there, and especially if there is a crash you are not held up, had bits of glass and blinker flying around me once after a nose tail on the bridge as I got out of there through lane 3A

[Streetwise]

Yes i agree, apply your brakes with a gentle force to take up the slack in your suspension, Once the slack has been taken out of the front forks, squeeze to add more pressure to the front and rear brakes, Where only talking a second or so before the brakes are really on and slowing you down,
This allows the front and rear tyre to grip the road surface before you really apply to much pressure, As long as you are looking ahead and planning what may happen you should have time to react to most situations, If not Bugger.
Also very important is look where you want to go,

[Gremlin]

I survived that one because I thought, He will see me, but I have to get around him before he hits me.

There is your mistake. You assumed he saw you. Assume they will never see you. Like a small truck that casually pulls right out in front of you at a roundabout.

Practice emergency braking, yes. But ultimately, in my opinion, you should never need it. You should notice situations ahead of time, and make the adjustments necessary. If proven correct (that they don't see you) you only have to make some additional minor adjustments.

That said, when the shit hits the fan unpredictably, you do need to know the capabilities of your bike. But don't practise on the best tar you can find, as it will give you false impressions as to the bikes ability. (For example, I could bring my bike up in two car lengths from 50kph, but its only really grippy concrete. I could not bring it up in two car lengths in the wet)

[Krusti]

The down side of getting your braking on a bike sussed is that rarely will a following car be able to do the same!

I tend to brake while pulling to the side, have had cars locked up flying past me then shunting the car I braked for!

Just something to keep in mind.

[SwanTiger]

That said, when the shit hits the fan unpredictably, you do need to know the capabilities of your bike. But don't practise on the best tar you can find, as it will give you false impressions as to the bikes ability. (For example, I could bring my bike up in two car lengths from 50kph, but its only really grippy concrete. I could not bring it up in two car lengths in the wet)

Nah fuck emergency braking, with your whale of a bike when you find yourself in trouble call Green Peace, they'll save yah

Seriously speaking. Gremlin has a bit in regards to foresight of situations. It is my opinion that this is the best measure against accidents involving other motorist as more often than not they don't see you so it pays to assume this under all circumstances. Occasionally you can feel surprised when another motorist does see you and pays due care.

[terbang]

I survived that one because I thought, He will see me, but I have to get around him before he hits me.

If you are thinking that they WILL see then you are better off thinking that they also may not see you.! Prevention is the answer which requires us to look and plan ahead. Once a possible threat is identified, Initially either shift (in your lane) or slow down (or both) to put yourself in a better place for an escape route or a stop. If its looking a bit dodgey (blind driver looking other way and perhaps oncoming traffic ir whatever) then, if required, "Setup your brakes" which is that gentle touch that will take the slack out of your suspension and also give those behind a brake light thus warning a pending stop. If Mr Magoo makes his move to your space or other things change the situation, then you are now in the best possible position to make an emergency stop if it becomes your only option.
Remember If unsure or your safety zone is intvaded: Shift position, Slow down & Setup your brakes.

[Krusti]

Allways look for an escape route prior to committing to all out braking

[Nicksta]

Nah fuck emergency braking, with your whale of a bike when you find yourself in trouble call Green Peace, they'll save yah

ROFL.....

I agree.. sometimes accellerating out is better than breaking hard....

[Motoracer]

Stoppies teach you how to brake in the most efficient possible way and that's no bullshit myth. I've tried it my self and I'm speaking from experience.

[moko]

Presume nothing and be constantly aware of what`s going on around you.The brit driving and riding test now has "hazard perception" as part of it,trainees have to watch a video and point out potential hazardous situations,not perfect but at least an effort.If I`m riding,wherever it is, I`m concentrating totally on what`s around me,get used to it and you`ll find yourself being a lot more observant than most in every part of life,it`ll become second nature.Also very important to know your bike,when I change mine I spend some time in an empty car park locking up the wheels,getting the feel of the brakes and clutch e.t.c.,better than having to grab a handful one day to avoid something and chucking your bike down the road because you didn`t realise how powerful they are.Good tip as well is to always watch the driver of the car in front,I`ve seen them looking at their passenger for stupid lengths of time while they chat totally oblivious to everything else,playing with kids,using mobiles and all sorts of stupid shit,at least if you know they`re not paying attention you know extra care is needed on your part,if they`re not looking ahed at least 99% of the time,if they`re looking right then not going to be so much of a suprise when they swing across is it? Just gives you more of a chance and for me at least the concentration and observation is enjoyable,riding a bike is a skill and you`ll find all the heroes on here that brag about how quick they are on the roads are the ones that bin their bikes,there`s as much skill involved in safely getting around a city as there is getting your knee down out in the sticks somewhere,in fact that`s not skillful it`s dumb,that`s what race tracks are for.If you`re a good rider you`ll become a quicker one if that`s what you want and quick and safe not just a hospital case waiting to happen,observation,anticipation and know your machine`s limits and your own.

[Bob]

There was a similar discussion went on ages back... which turned into an article on the subject of Hazard Awareness.

I called it The Sixth Sense, as it really does seem to non-bikers that we have this almost mystic ability to spot and avoid hazards, seemingly before they even appear.

Hopefully the above link will provide some helpful hints.