Learn How To Brake Correctly

Your brakes are critical in motocross. The devil is in the details, as they say, and it's all those tiny details accumulating that can make you or break you. The strategy? Go hell-bent for leather on the straights and brake using the right technique when you're closing in on a crowded low-speed corner.

This is one of the big things that makes a pro a pro, and a weekend warrior a weekend warrior. The pros have fine-tuned their braking style to make it almost intuitive, like a surgeon applying just the right pressure with the scalpel; not a hair too little and not a hair too much. The moral? Don't be a meatball surgeon on your bike.

Use 'em or lose 'em. Like the old gun adage, "Don't aim until you intend to shoot," the same goes with your brakes. If you're going to use them, don't choke or waffle. Wait for your window and bear down hard.

Focus on your front brake. You've got two brakes but they're not the same. The rear brake only picks up thirty percent of the braking load. Here's your mantra – your front brake is for stopping in a hurry, the rear brake is a tool for controlling the bike. Use it to control slides and direction, and to keep your RPMs in the appropriate powerband.

Time your braking action. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the place to brake is in the corner, not feathering the brake on the approach. Butch up, Sally; time's a-wastin'. Besides, no one wants to get run over.

Take advantage of brake markers. That's what they're there for. No, not the kind on the tracks that pocket-rocket racers zoom around. That's a freely-given crutch that moto racers don't get. But why not make your own? Every course has things that are always there (that peculiar shaped rock, for example), and different things you pick up on the first lap on race day (the flagman in that shady spot, for instance). Most riders don't do this; let it be your ace in the hole.

What's under your tires really does matter. Adjust accordingly. You're not going to brake the same on the same run on the track on a muddy day as you are on a dry one. OK, that was a simplistic example, but you get the idea.

Pay attention to your surroundings carefully. Is it sandy? Muddy? What's the composition on that hill? Hills and jumps have multiple factors. Terrain and grade are just two of these.

Find your optimal brake lever adjustment and keep it there. For proper operation, there should be a bit of play on the front brake lever. About 3/16ths of an inch (0.474 centimeters) slack is the recommended number.

If your index knuckle first begins engaging the brake, you should really be bearing down by the time the next knuckle is bent.

Brake before you start to lean your bike into the turn. Since we've spoken about braking hard and fast, you know you want to have stable rubber in contact with the dirt. Don't

take a chance on skidding out of control, rather, pull through the turn at a speed that will set you up for the next challenge.

Beware of tight corners and hills that are off-camber. This is one place where using too much rear brake is a really bad idea. The physics are just setting you up for a "inconvenient landing."

The brake slide: learn it, love it, live it. This one technique, properly executed, it will cut real time off the lap. Not to mention, it looks really cool. When is it the most effective? Uphill corners are particularly good opportunities, as are hairpin turns.

What happens here, what makes it so fluid, is that while your front wheel is locked on the apex, your rear wheel is sliding around putting you in a winning position to jet onto the next straight.

Give due diligence to your clutch. Whenever you need to brake unexpectedly, or you're trying to jockey for position, the ability to get a quick grip on your clutch and run on momentum controlled by your brakes is essential.