Emergency braking while riding a motorcycle

The front brake is responsible for roughly 70% of the motorcycle’s braking power and because most of the weight during a brake will be on the front wheel, it is less likely to lock up and skid when pressed hard but if it does lock up and skid, the results may be disastrous. The rear brake on the other hand only attributes about 30% of the braking power, locks up much more easily but when the rear wheel skids, it is usually less critical.

Researches has shown that the average motorcycle rider can pay full attention and really control only one brake at a time – pressing it just hard enough but preventing it from locking up.

Therefore, the advice in emergency braking is to use both brakes, apply the rear one hard and forget about it and concentrate on the front brake. Press it as hard as possible up to the point before the front wheel starts to lock up and skid, if it does, lessen the press until it stops skidding. The rear wheel will probably be locked up (unless you are very experienced rider and can prevent it from locking up just by instinct) but this is manageable if you keep the bike straight. Don’t try to turn while your tires skid, you will most likely finish with the entire bike sliding on its side.

the best is to try and get both wheels to the point of just before locking.  this gives you the maximum braking power.  However - you have to be very experienced to do that - so it is best to focus your attention on the fornt brake to get the maximum breaking power, while applying the rear brake with your foot as best as you can (more of an on/off action).  

 To significantly improve your breaking, there are a couple of tricks that you should use.

1. ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS ride with one or two fingers on the front break lever.  This will improve your breaking distance considerably!

2. Review your body position while braking.  Your arms should be extended and body back - but not too far back (you need weight on the front wheel)

3.  Keep your eyes focus on a spot that is BEFORE the object that you may crash into.  Do not focus on the object in your path.  the same applies if you are practicing an avoidance manover (going around an obstacle in your path).  look to where you want to go, not at the obstacle.  The motorcycle will follow your eyes (it works wonders !!)

4. Use every ride as opportunity to practice emeregency braking.  When there is no traffic around, practice it by trying to stop very short at lights. 

never ever hit the front brake first. 40 years of riding and racing talking here. in an emergency stop on a motorcycle you should practice combining the rear brake always first and at the dame time shifting down

as fast as you can with releasing the clutch between every shift down

and applying the front brake at the same time. always grub the throttle withe only two fingers, the thumb and the fist finger and pull on the front brake with the remaining three fingers that will in able you to replicate the heel and toe that good racing drivers  are using to slow down rapidly without locking the wheels. remember the wheels do not stop the car or the motorcycle. the brakes are the device that stops the wheels and once you locked the wheel especially on a motorcycle you are going down