Zigo 1080 series, Owner'S Manual

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ENGLISH
4.3.1 Brake controls and features
It’s very important to your safety that you learn and remember which brake lever
controls which brake on your bike. Traditionally, the right brake lever controls the
rear brake and the left brake lever controls the front brake; but, to make sure your
bike’s brakes are set up this way, squeeze one brake lever and look to see which
brake, front or rear, engages. Now do the same with the other brake lever.
Make sure that your hands can reach and squeeze the brake levers comfortably. If
your hands are too small to operate the levers comfortably, before riding the bike
consult a bicycle dealer, who may be able to adjust the brake lever reach without
dangerously reducing brake performance.
Your Zigo® Leader™, when in Cycle Mode, has a front brake quick-release
mechanism to allow the brake pads to clear the tire when a wheel is removed or
reinstalled. When the brake quick release is in the open position, the brakes are
inoperative. Ask your dealer or Zigo® to make sure that you understand the way
the brake quick release works on your bike and check each time to make sure
both brakes work correctly before you get on the bike.
4.3.2 How brakes work
The braking action of a bicycle is a function of the friction between the braking
surfaces. To make sure that you have maximum friction available, keep your
wheel rims and brake pads clean and free of dirt, lubricants, waxes or polishes.
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 diff erent speeds and on diff erent surfaces. To better understand
this, experiment a little by walking your Leader™ in Cycle, Carrier Bicycle, and
Jogger (if applicable) Modes and applying diff erent amounts of pressure to each
brake lever, until the wheel locks. Also, note that slowing or stopping takes
signifi cantly longer distances when you are carrying the added weight of a child
in Carrier Bicycle or Trailer Mode. More weight means you must allow for more
braking distance. Be particularly careful on hills and uneven surfaces.
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,