Cannondale Synapse Carbon, Owner'S Manual

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Brakes are designed to control your speed, not just to
stop the bike. Maximum braking force for each wheel
occurs at the point just before the wheel “locks up”
(stops rotating) and starts to skid. Once the tire skids,
you actually lose most of your stopping force and all
directional control. You need to practice slowing and
stopping smoothly without locking up a wheel. The
technique is called progressive brake modulation.
Instead of jerking the brake lever to the position
where you think you’ll generate appropriate braking
force, squeeze the lever, progressively increasing the
braking force. If you feel the wheel begin to lock up,
release pressure just a little to keep the wheel rotating
just short of lockup.
It’s important to develop a feel for the amount of
brake lever pressure required for each wheel at
different speeds and on different surfaces. To better
understand this, experiment a little by walking your
bike and applying different amounts of pressure to
each brake lever, until the wheel locks.
When you apply one or both brakes, the bike begins
to slow, but your body wants to continue at the
speed at which it was going. This causes a transfer of
weight to the front wheel (or, under heavy braking,
around the front wheel hub, which could send you
flying over the handlebars).
A wheel with more weight on it will accept greater
brake pressure before lockup; a wheel with less
weight will lock up with less brake pressure. So, as you
apply brakes and your weight is transferred forward,
you need to shift your body toward the rear of the
bike, to transfer weight back on to the rear wheel;
and at the same time, you need to both decrease rear
braking and increase front braking force. This is even
more important on descents, because descents shift
weight forward.
Two keys to effective speed control and safe stopping
are controlling wheel lockup and weight transfer.
This weight transfer is even more pronounced if your
bike has a front suspension fork. Front suspension
“dips” under braking, increasing the weight transfer
(see also SECTION 4.F). Practice braking and weight
transfer techniques where there is no traffic or other
hazards and distractions.
Everything changes when you ride on loose surfaces
or in wet weather. Tire adhesion is reduced, so the
wheels have less cornering and braking traction and
can lock up with less brake force. Moisture or dirt on
the brake pads reduces their ability to grip. The way
to maintain control on loose or wet surfaces is to go
more slowly.