heel toe downshifting...but on a bike

[warmseth]

i am a swell car driver. i have riden bikes for a few years but never as aggressively as i do my cars. i am ready to step up to the plate, so to speak, on the bike. in a car i do a good deal of heel/toe downshifting to slow down quickly. i want to do the same sort of thing on the bike. but front braking while twisting the throttle to match rpms is tricky shit. i instictively let go of the brake when i rev the throttle. i use my index and middle fingers to work the front brake. any tricks or does it just take practice?

Practice, practice, practice.
At least you understand the rev matching concept to begin with :thumbsup

[warmseth]

yeah rev matching on it's own is monkey work. it's doing that
AND pressing the brake that's tough. feels like i'm moving my hand in a very unnatural way.

ps- not making cracks about my hand moving in an unnatural way would be appreciated

try moving your front brake lever i click closer to the bar i had same probs till i did that

Warmseth, big props for being able to heel-toe in a car. I find that way harder than "heel-toeing" on a bike.

Anyway, other than practice, what helped me get good at it was to just use my plam to match the revs while applying the brake. It kinda keeps things simpler than actually gripping the throttle and any leather glove will be sticky enough to do this. The 2 fingers that I don't use for braking are just there for decoration.

Well, now that I think about it, I do this cause I've got small hands, so maybe if you've got average-big hands you won't have to do this...

Good Luck anyways

[warmseth]

thanks for the tips guys. i'll try the lever closer and the palm thing. acturally i've been praticing it alot and i've almost got it down without either of those behavior/hardware modifications.

poboy-
when heel toeing a car, i use the ball of my foot on the very right side of the brake and then roll my ankle over so that the side of my foot is blipping the throttle. i found it more natural and easier to control than using my actual heel.

Yup, that's the way I "heel-toe" also.
Having plates on your pedals that make them closer together helps a lot ;)

firstly, i think try moving in the brake lever is the best bet, then the palm thing too. I keep my middle and index on the brake and with the pinky and fourth finger and the edge of my palm to blip. obviously practice will help you maintain constant pressure on the brakes and not jerk. just get out there and practice.

also, id like to share my opinion about heel & toe. I hope I don't stir too much comotion. I don't really agree with heel and toe so much as for slowing down the car, but it is used to match the engine speed so not to upset the balance when entering into a turn. i understand that you can down shift to slowdown and throw the back end in, but i don't think that's how it all orginated. also, ppl downshift not really so much to slow the car (which is supposed to be done with the acutal brakes, and not engine braking), but so that they are in the correct gear when they blast out of the turn.

again, i hope i'm not gonna piss ppl off, but that's from what i know of it. Im no pro, but i've been to mosport a handful of times with veterans and its what i picked up.

oh yah, i personally find it hard to heel and toe, especially on the street because you don't need to apply all that much brake, so the two pedals are actually really far apart in depth. But what i find easier is keep the left side (ball) of my foot on the brake, and use the other side (right) of my foot to blip the gas.

maybe this will help some of you. My friends dads car, he screwed on a piece of metal plate to to make it easier, but aftermarket rice pedals could work too.

i'm so stupid, i just reallized he said the same thing, i should really read before i type, may get my outta trouble next time.....lol