Height of rear brake and shifter

Robgvx wrote:

WHY YOUR REAR BRAKE PEDAL ADJUSTMENT IS PREVENTING YOU FROM RIDING FASTER. When I wander through the pits at any local race I am surprised (or...

WHY YOUR REAR BRAKE PEDAL ADJUSTMENT IS PREVENTING YOU FROM RIDING FASTER.

When I wander through the pits at any local race I am surprised (or actually, not) at the number of bikes with incorrectly-set rear brake pedals.  Now, you might say, “That’s all a matter of personal preference”. Well, I disagree, as something as simple as brake pedal height can destroy any chance you have of riding correctly.

So, first, a quick riding lesson, courtesy of some simple physics.

When braking hard the weight is thrown forwards onto the front tyre. Simultaneously, the rear tyre becomes light (that’s how you do a ‘stoppie’ or ‘nose wheelie’, after all).  How much traction does the unweighted rear tyre have at this point?  Not much. So how effective is your braking with an unweighted rear wheel? Poor.  

So, when braking, the correct riding technique is to stand up with your weight over the back of the seat/rear fender; ideally as far back as you can.

The reasons for this technique are:

A) This puts weight back onto the rear wheel to improve braking traction. 

B ) Standing up towards the back of the bike allows you to better absorb the braking bumps and prevent the bike kicking.  

C) It allows you to brace strongly against the deceleration forces.

D) It gives the bike more straight line stability by triangulating between your butt at the back of the bike and the handlebars.

95% of all braking should be carried out like this: stood up, with your weight to the back. Only in occasional, rare circumstances - like mid-corner, or a long sweeping turn - should you ever be braking sat down.

It doesn’t matter if you ride a four stroke or a two stroke, old school or new school, Supercross, Enduro, 65cc, 450cc, it’s still the same. Physics doesn’t care...

Now, let’s get back to brake pedals. If you are correctly standing up with your weight over the back of the bike what happens to your foot when you’re in that position? Your toes tilt upwards. Hence you now need your brake pedal set higher so that you can still operate it with your now-elevated toe.

If your brake pedal is set too low, you can’t reach it when you’re stood up over the back of the bike. The only way you can operate it is to bring your knee forward to tilt your toes down. This moves your weight forward on the bike, and into your old, but incorrect body positioning.

So, something as simple as having your brake set too low makes it IMPOSSIBLE to ride with correct technique when braking. I see it all the time.

Set your brake pedal so that you can lock the back wheel when stood up over the back of the seat, without moving your knee forward. As a guide it shouldn’t be any lower than the foot peg. You’ll need to not only adjust the pedal height but also, critically, the amount of play and hence the pedal height when the brake is on rather than off.

https://theinsidelinebook.com/

Jerome Olimpiada wrote:

Agree 100%!  Hard to point your toes downward, in boots, leaning back. I have always run my rear brake higher than the footpeg.  Now, curious to...

Agree 100%!  Hard to point your toes downward, in boots, leaning back. I have always run my rear brake higher than the footpeg. 

Now, curious to know what your thoughts are on the shifter….??  I run mine just 1 notch above the footpeg to allow my boot under while shifting standing/jumping.