this post was submitted on 22 Jul 2026
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[–] thedirtyknapkin@lemmy.world 3 points 34 minutes ago

I had a big ass hill at my childhood home. Right at the bottom of our driveway. I would hit crazy dangerous speeds on that thing just to see how fast i could get.

One time I aimed badly and was going into a ditch. I tell you, I pulled off a perfect sideways akira slide... right into that ditch. Unfortunately it's really hard to control or stop a slide. So for about .1 seconds I bet I looked really cool. Before I hobbled back home with a busted up bike an some good scrapes and bruises. It's a minor miracle that it wasn't worse. I had a speedometer on that bike and could break 30mph on that hill.

Point being, you can totally make it happen, just don't use the breaks and don't expect to stop like he did. Maybe after you eat shit and break your bike 1000 times you'll actually be able to nail it.

[–] LogicalDrivel@sopuli.xyz 6 points 1 hour ago

Was riding my bike with my friend to the mall when i was like 10. It was kind of wet out as it had just rained and we were going over an overpass. On the the way down the hill, there was some metal thing in the road and i tried to stop too quick. Ended up going over my handlebars head first and launching into my friends back wheel. We both crashed in the middle of the road with oncoming cars. Im pretty sure my life flashed, but luckily my friend was able to help me up in time and cars saw us.

[–] XeroxCool@lemmy.world 16 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 1 minute ago) (1 children)

[couple edits] One time, I pulled the front brake to see what would happen on ice. What happens is you suddenly learn that steering the front wheel is the only thing that keeps a bicycle balanced. Once it skids, you have no steer, and whatever tilting momentum you had at the time is now permanent. Sliding on the ice was actually quite nice [compared to grinding into pavement].

I didn't really understand it at the time, but it set the groundwork for a future understanding when I got into motorcycling. Having the front wash out and tipping into a "low side" crash is much more common on motorcycles, as it's much easier to get to the limits of grip. Same deal with balancing: you're constantly doing minor movements of the [bars] to keep you upright. It's not the gyroscopic effect, it's not your body moving; you're steering with tiny corrections on a mechanism with geometry that makes it work intuitively and with self-correcting steering.

Every time you want to go left, whether you know it or not, you start with a little motion of pushing the bars right. Even if you ride with no hands on the bars, your body shifts to force the bars the opposite way first. The bars and wheel go right, the tires roll to the right, the bike and body fall left, your arms and/or the geometry pull the wheel and bars left. Bam, you're now leaning and steering left while still in balance.

Every bicycle and motorcycle works like this. What makes it a skill worth honing is that once you decouple the "countersteer" motion from the entire turning process, it allows you to have much, much better control over the machine. In motorcycles, it's really valuable to be able to command more or less lean when you misjudge a turn. Something I try to explain to every new rider because bicycles and motorcycles just make it intuitive with the steering geometry, but motorcycles have much larger consequences without any real escalation in required skill beyond general road testing.

[–] MrShankles@lemmy.world 6 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

I never rode motorcycles (albeit once around a neighborhood for a few minutes), but I did ride a bmx-style bike for a lotta years, lotta miles. And I just (this year) learned about how countersteering is inevitable, or you fall

Point is β€” I used to cut my tire hard to the right, at slower speed, so that I could turn back into a very tight left circle. Never thought about it though, it just worked. I used to play with that to see how close I could get to a 180Β° turn (like pretending I was a circling buzzard or something)... it was fun. Never knew how cool the underlying physics were

Fast-forward to that one time I was on a motorcycle... I dropped it on it's side by the second lap of the cul-de-sac (at very low speed). Dunno what happened, but I do remeber cutting around a circle, and being amazed at how far you could lean into a circle at such a slow speed... as if you're riding the side-wall of the tires. And then I pulled out of the turn and lost balance, slowly dropping it on it's side

It was so freaking cool to me. But also... man, I couldn't control the bike with my hips(?) the way I could with a bicycle. It didn't exactly translate, cause the bike just had more power and weight. Or possibly because the power control was from my hand and not my feet?

On my bike, I used to be able to stand straight up on my pedals (off my seat) without touching the handlebars, and just cruise by steering with my legs/hips... pretty much all leaning for steering. I would stand up straight hands-free, smoking a cig, and steering with my lower body; just cruising lol (I know, I was super cool man). But it was fun. Always to cruise on a motorcycle, but fuck me, I just don't trust myself to not be dumb

C'est la vie

[–] XeroxCool@lemmy.world 1 points 6 minutes ago* (last edited 36 seconds ago)

Same. Can't say I did that exact combo, but I could stand on my mountain bike pedals and clench the seat between my thighs to steer without hands. I did briefly try smoking but a rushed ride to class made me reek of ash, "quit" on the spot (never really started).

But yeah, motorcycles are big and heavy and fast. The weight ratio is way off. I can do some antics, but nowhere near my bicycle level. Part skill, part strength, part knowing that fucking up on a motorcycle at road speeds carries far more consequence than a bicycle.

I do love a slow race. I practice at every red light! I beleive it's important for all aspects of riding by practicing how to wrangle the motorcycle to your will

[–] domusaltera@piefed.social 11 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago)

I still have a scar on my left hand from when I tried this when i was 10. The handbrake handle basically dug into my hand as I trebuchet'd myself across a carpark next to my house 🀣

[–] gedaliyah@lemmy.world 7 points 5 hours ago

Let the intrusive thoughts win.

[–] toynbee@piefed.social 29 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Once when I was a kid, I was an avid, if not particularly talented or intelligent, bike rider. During that timeframe, I saw some professional bike riders; I think they were racing, but I might be misremembering. The point is, I observed that many or all of them had their elbows on the handlebars. I did not notice that their bikes were designed to support this.

As such, the next time I went riding, I figured "hey, the pros probably know stuff I don't. I'll try their methods!" then placed my elbows on the handles.

I had just about long enough to think "now, how do I steer ... " before I crashed.

[–] Ilovethebomb@sh.itjust.works 5 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

That sounds like triathaletes, or possibly a time trial road race.

[–] toynbee@piefed.social 7 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

Unfortunately, I couldn't say. I just remember the visual and the event and, honestly, I didn't even remember those until this post sparked my memory.

[–] PlaidBaron@lemmy.world 13 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago)

I bought a little folding ebike. Wanted to get across a four way stop quickly so leaned forward to pedal hard instinctively. Went over the handlebars right in the middle of the intersection in front of everyone. Good times.

It was one of those situations where the bike was way too small for me. Lol. Head-over-handrails.

[–] saltesc@lemmy.world 19 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago) (2 children)

You always engaged the rear hard BEFORE even thinking of bringing the front in.

Should've learned the power of the front brake from doing stoppies.

[–] toynbee@piefed.social 1 points 8 hours ago

So did you ever see that movie Torque?

[–] boonhet@sopuli.xyz -2 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I mainly just braked with the front but I knew just how hard to brake without turning it into a stoppie

Rear brake is more useful for skids than braking lol

[–] grue@lemmy.world 9 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

I'm not sure you appreciate how literally technically correct you are.

The harder you brake in the front, the more the weight shifts forward. At the point you start to do a stoppie -- when the front brakes are applying maximum force to the road -- the weight on the rear wheel drops to zero and thus the stopping force it's applying drops to zero as well.

In other words, the rear brake gets less useful the harder you try to brake.

For maximum deceleration, the main thing you need to do isn't to try to use the rear brake more, but instead get out of the saddle and stick your butt as far back as you can, shifting the weight back and making it as hard to get to that point of rear wheel liftoff as possible.

See also: https://bike.bikegremlin.com/813/bicycle-braking-technique/

[–] XeroxCool@lemmy.world 5 points 5 hours ago

Instead of shifting back, my hard stop showboating method was to swing my leg over to the other side and crotch beside the frame. My head was level with the bars, my ass next to the rear wheel. It barely stoppied. Amusing to think my pain rubber rim brakes survived just fine

That same position snuck me under a parking lot gate so I didn't have to be obnoxious on a sidewalk

[–] chicken@lemmy.dbzer0.com 30 points 10 hours ago* (last edited 10 hours ago) (2 children)

When I was a kid I had a friend borrow my bike and watched him do this (slamming on the front brakes and being flipped over the handlebars), fortunately he wasn't injured, but I was mad because the front reflector broke off. In retrospect, it was worth it because I learned the easy way that you definitely should not do that.

Also that the default design of bike brakes is probably less safe for left handed people, since the front brakes are commonly on the left, but it's important to put more pressure sooner on the back brakes.

[–] whyNotSquirrel@sh.itjust.works 9 points 9 hours ago (1 children)

Also that the default design of bike brakes

In UK it's opposite I think

[–] palordrolap@fedia.io 7 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Pretty sure you're right. Except somehow the bike I learned on only had the one brake. Right hand, but back wheel, contrary to the default. Fairly sure it wasn't from outside the UK, but it had belonged to a relative so maybe they moved it?

When I got a bike with brakes for both wheels, my instincts nearly catapulted me over the handlebars more than once.

[–] lordbritishbusiness@lemmy.world 3 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

Except somehow the bike I learned on only had the one brake.

Common for BMX to only have the one, typically on the back for skids (and possibly for stopping kids firing themselves over the bars)

[–] palordrolap@fedia.io 2 points 3 hours ago

This wasn't a BMX. It was a child-sized Raleigh that was built like a tank and had solid rubber tyres.

A BMX would have been a lot cooler.

[–] daveywaveyboy@feddit.nl 1 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

In some countries bicycles and motorcycles have the front brake on the same side (right side). In Germany and USA I think it is not that way, but I change my bicycles to match my motorbikes - any other system may lead to unintended results. BTW - you should mostly be braking with your front brakes, I think you have have seen trouble from weight distribution shifting forwards.

[–] Ilovethebomb@sh.itjust.works 1 points 6 hours ago

The civilized world has the front brake on the right, front brake on the left is a north America thing.

[–] coolie4@lemmy.world 59 points 11 hours ago* (last edited 11 hours ago)
[–] spontaneoushumancombustion@lemmy.world 3 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

I did this on a BMX with the standard pedal brakes. Went face first onto the blacktop. Meat crayon status. Would not recommend.

[–] tal@lemmy.today 2 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

looks puzzled

I've definitely locked up my brakes on a BMX with a pedal brake many times. I remember, as a kid, going down a hill and trying to see who could leave the longest skid mark at the bottom. I was never thrown off the bike. It just ate up some tire.

It depends on the brake, rear brake at speed will only cause it to fishtail, maybe skid a bit, can be epic. Grabbing the front is triggering the trebuchet, a different kind of epic.

In the comic above the right hand is typically the front on motorcycles and bikes. (Some bikes in Europe reverse the layout and have the right brake as the rear, though.)

[–] raspberry_confetti@lemmy.ml 36 points 12 hours ago (1 children)

The timing on the bottom left panel was so flawless; it's reminiscent of standup comedy

[–] tetris11@feddit.uk 7 points 8 hours ago

fresh prince vibes

[–] GottaHaveFaith@fedia.io 5 points 8 hours ago

did something like this with a friend, not on purpose, we were going downhill and the road was a bit wet, we slammed the brakes before a curve (like we used to do) and we just slid over the asphalt on our asses like idiots.

We didn't get hurt, just some bruises, but if a car had been coming from the other side it could have been dangerous, the visibility was not good since it was a 90Β° curve with some high walls

[–] psx_crab@lemmy.zip 9 points 10 hours ago

Congratulation, kid, you just achieved the Akira Yeet.

[–] atopi@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 points 6 hours ago

Just jump off the bike

Thats what i did when going fast and needed to stop

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 4 points 9 hours ago

one time i was riding full blast then got distracted and slammed straight into the wall.

[–] Ilovethebomb@sh.itjust.works 1 points 8 hours ago

I've heard a few similar stories about the first time someone rode a bike with disc brakes.

@kersploosh A kid can stop like in that panel. But just tapping the brakes while upright, or moving fast, will send the rider flying.