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The ABC's of Traction - Braking (Page 5 of 8)

Given that the road conditions have not changed and nothing drastic has happened to our tires, we still have the same total amount of traction available to us. But now some is being used by cornering force so we have to do something differently. One is to be less aggressive with our brakes. By gradually applying our brakes our bike will begin to slow. As it does, our lean angle decreases which reduces the amount of cornering force providing more traction for braking. This allows us to apply the brakes a little more firmly again reducing our lean and increasing the traction available for braking. This cycle enables us to apply progressively harder pressure on our brakes as our motorcycle straightens up bringing us to a smooth, controlled stop.

Straighten - Then Brake

Another technique for stopping quickly while cornering involves changing our path of travel. If something is blocking our path, we must find a way to rapidly stop our motorcycle. Because there is an obstacle, perhaps a stalled vehicle, in our way, we must alter our direction anyway. By pressing on our outside handgrip, we can quickly straighten our bike up eliminating any cornering force. This makes all traction available for braking. Now using our straight line braking techniques allows us to stop in the shortest possible distance and avoid whatever is blocking the curve.

 

              

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