I do a little of both. There's some steep descents on my commute to work and I pump the brake as I put tension against the pedals.ssmike said:Mainly concerning road riding, but off-roaders are welcome to pipe up.
When descending, are you a brake-dragger or a back-pedaler? I've been a brake-dragger, but on my way home yesterday, I made the commitment that I wasn't going to use the brakes and, well, it worked out. Had to concentrate on easing up as I crested a hill so I would'nt start the descent already spun out. As long as I eased into the descent, I could use back pedal force to control my speed. Otherwise, the descent is steep enough that by the time you get to the bottom, you could easily be spun out at 35-40mph (that's the speed on my geared road bike).
depends on the hill. on shorter hills i resist or just spin out, but on longer hills i usually hit the brakes a few times on the way down to keep my speed in check.ssmike said:Mainly concerning road riding, but off-roaders are welcome to pipe up.
When descending, are you a brake-dragger or a back-pedaler? I've been a brake-dragger, but on my way home yesterday, I made the commitment that I wasn't going to use the brakes and, well, it worked out. Had to concentrate on easing up as I crested a hill so I would'nt start the descent already spun out. As long as I eased into the descent, I could use back pedal force to control my speed. Otherwise, the descent is steep enough that by the time you get to the bottom, you could easily be spun out at 35-40mph (that's the speed on my geared road bike).
I'm pretty sure your legs would come apart at the knees before this.ssmike said:you could easily be spun out at 35-40mph
Unless you are a track pro. But then those guys are changing their gearing all the time so they can be on top of the right gear.Fast Eddy said:I'm pretty sure your legs would come apart at the knees before this.
I don't really ride down anything bigger than an overpass, but you're right. If I'm careful to control my speed from the top, I can usually get by without using the brakes.
Steep grades aren't a problem - as long as I'm all over the brakes. And, hey, didn't I see somewhere here that you're some 20 year old kid? My old knees got almost a quarter century on yours - jeez that sounds like a long durn time.ito said:There is a 7.5 mile climb that I do once a week or so. You gain around 2000 feet and it has some steep moments. It took me a while, but after climbing it I can descend the whole thing without using a brake. Unless I need to stop really quickly or the grade is over 10% I don't really use the brake. If I do it's a short tap, never anything sustained, just to get the speed in check.
It takes some time to work up to, but you can do most grades without a front brake. However I would not suggest getting rid of the front brake if you are using the bike for road training. There are some 18% grades I've gone down that I think I would die on without a front brake to help me, at the most I would have some very inflamed knees.
The Ito aka back pedaler
