Extreme practice

[Monsterlover]

Something I read in the "to cover or not cover your levers" thread I wanted to comment on and I thought it deserved its own thread.

From that thread-

Same for me. I've done some emergency braking on the 1098 and it had huge initial bite in the front mono block Brembos. Even locked the front up during training to experience the feeling. Covering the leavers has not caused me any issues.

locked up the front during training!?! you're far more brave than I am!

I think it's your duty as a rider to fully understand the capabilities of your bike.

If you've never been on the brakes hard enough to lock the front you have no idea really how much brake you have available to you. Knowing that limit could be the difference between stopping and riding home on your own or getting a ride from the EMT's.

I recommend an empty parking lot and working up to it. That exercise alone will make you more comfortable during hard braking. There's no substitute for repetition in a controlled environment.

I've been riding for probably 10 years and I still do this a couple times a season.

Being fully aware of just how hard I can pull that brake lever leaves me more mental power/capacity to put into keeping the bike up and avoiding a hazard. There are only so many things you have time to think about in a panic situation before you're overwhelmed and experience "brain lock." 

If you make it second nature it's no big deal!

[DucRS]

Funny you mention this. I was on my Multi last week practicing this exact  act until I noticed Ohlin's juice flinging on my leathers.  Seems my Forks will be needing a tune up now.  Still, an important practice.

[dufukincati]

If you ride at speeds of 100+ mph, you need to practice stopping from those speeds also.

[Monsterlover]

True.

[pesto]

I've seen my ABS light come on, does that count

[Monsterlover]

Yes

[Duc796canada]

Everyone needs a mini bike or full dirtbike. Feel the weight transfer and how to lock your legs onto the bike during! I think this is waft scares most people, just like wheeling, it feels worse than it really is!!!

[Monsterlover]

I would agree with this!

[ab]

Last season as my tyre was wearing off, I started lots of rear break only slamming n holding it and sliding a bit and marking my territory :-) Need to do more and get the feeling of the chain loosening and understanding that feeling and yet stay in control.  N it's fun too. Lots fun :-)
I always practice few times a season just slamming the front brake from diff speeds at empty parking lots.  A must exercise.  It's funny some passer by's stop by to see thinking I would wheelie etc but alas I ain't got the skills excerpt for tiny wheelies

[bdub]

So during extreme practice do ya'll pull in the clutch lever or just brake ?  I know when I have really hit my brakes
I didn't use my clutch at all. Which is the proper way ? Buying an 848 evo and the front brakes have a HUGE initial
bite. Since I'm not used to that I don't want to learn wrong and would like to learn the correct way on my monster also.

Thanks
bdub

[Monsterlover]

If you stop hard enough for long enough you'll stall the engine.

I cover the clutch under heavy braking as a matter of habit, I don't even think to do it.

Hard stop?  Pull the clutch to keep it running. After a panic or hard brake incident you may need your engine running to allow you to throttle away from something that possess a danger to you.

Along with this, you'll also need to train yourself to click down two or three gears before letting the clutch out. 5th gear doesn't work so well at 5-10mph

[bdub]

If you ride at speeds of 100+ mph, you need to practice stopping from those speeds also.

I read last night that traction loss from twenty was the same as traction loss from 100. I think is was on an Aussie moto braking test. Not sure what that means
as the bike would behave differently, I would think. Anyway, the initial bite on the evo is waaaaay more than on my monster, I will need to learn that.
In regards to the clutch, there was no definitive answer that I could find. Another concern rises here. My monster is gp shift, evo is not (yet) is it "better" to have
standard shift so in an emergency you can just bang down gears ?

[Monsterlover]

I don't think it matters as long as your brain is trained to operate the shifter correctly without you having to think about it.

[bdub]

Well ok, that makes sense. I will need to practice more.
In the past I don't think I have down shifted but doing so makes sense.

I like that !! "Train the brain"

[NAKID]

With as much stop and go traffic I see on my daily commute, and the traffic that goes from 70-0 instantly, I've gotten used to not only braking hard but downshifting as well. I don't just pull in the clutch and drop several gears, I clutch in, downshift, engage, clutch in, downshift, engage, etc.

Is that bad?