How To Brake Like A Pro! | Pro Tips With Gee Atherton

We all know that feeling. You're flying down the trail, skipping over the rocks and roots, everything is flowing - then suddenly you realise that corner coming up is way tighter than you thought, and there's no way you're slowing down in time!
Whether you find that you're using your brakes too much, or you're not using them enough, mastering braking is key whatever your MTB goals are. We met up with Gee Atherton to learn how getting better at slowing down helped him become one of the fastest mountain bike racers in history.
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Did you learn something from Gee? Which pro would you like to learn some skills from next? Let us know in the comments!
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[@gmbn]

Did you learn something from Gee? Which pro would you like to learn some skills from next? Let us know!

[@FastToysClub]

Not really learned anything. Gee is basically saying all along that “you need to feel what to do, and comes with experience “. He’s a great rider, not sure he’s a great teacher.

[@b-vk8441]

No I did not learn much, all this generalization does not do any good

[@rider65]

Obviously he's a really good Rider but he's not a good instructor🙄 he has a hard time explaining technique not very well-versed in physics

[@justins9968]

Amaury Pierron

[@callawaycass5148]

I had high hopes for this video, but it was not very informative. It would be awesome to see footage of a pro riding with some sort of graphic indicating when and how hard they are braking.

[@bennyheng662]

I appreciate the fact that gee pointed out the reality of riding that it’s not all guns out for us normal riders! Gives us normal folks alot of confidence considering the amount of riding he’s done and is still a legend!🎉

[@Bjjmtb]

Gee is a legend! He’s one of the most fearless riders ever.

[@gmbn]

Totally. Amazing to see him come back from so many serious injuries too!

[@NextLevelRiding]

Best advice from Gee here is recognizing that there's a difference between racing technique and riding for fun!

[@robertocalvo934]

Brilliant. Best presentation ive seen on braking on KZbin. Gee is great at explaining thw fine details - abd that black bike looks rad

[@glennbroad2543]

More of this please, love riders tips on bike handling, track lines etc

[@frankharradence5546]

I’m probably too light on the front brake, afraid of locking or washing out the front end. This video has inspired me to get out and practice my braking technique…thanks for posting, also good to see such good riders as Neil and Gee doing the double act on video.

[@gmbn]

It's certainly worth going out there and learning what you can and can't do with your front brake! Your front brake is really important when it comes to harder braking - we've got some extra tips in this video that might help: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHeQonymgMdjiLM

[@winklertribe5268]

Great video!!! Thanks Neil & Gee! I did learn that you can use hard braking intentionally to navigate tight turns.

[@shredthetrack6858]

Great content! Thanks to all of You Guys!

[@jeremycox8261]

G is such an amazing rider.

[@debanick]

Excellent description Gee 👌 thanks GMBN 😁👍

[@gmbn]

Hopefully it'll help you next time you're out on your bike! 👍

[@ruanviljoen7814]

Thx bois

[@anitalandkroon]

Top video 😃 and yes I definitely learned something 😎 Gee is a very good rider ! jolanda neff or ella conolly 😃 I would like to learn some skills from them !

[@razmtb5028]

thanksss this is awesomeee!!!

[@gmbn]

Thanks for watching! We hope you found it useful!

[@05GDF]

Good stuff

[@texfromro]

i just love how the Mezzer is using its travel... It really looks like a great fork

[@andynelson1977]

That's not even the Mezzer! It's the Mattoc, it's little brother 😮 34mm trail fork and it works like THAT on a DH track! ❤

[@Olivertaylormtb]

Any tips for jumping a heavy bike? Edit: I know, silly question, those red Bull helmets-I want one of those!

[@theydisintegrate]

Great detail about modulating the brakes front and rear for different scenarios. I've mostly thought you need to be smooth but in practice I lock up the rear to swing the back wheel around... Thought i was using bad technique but it has saved me from blowing corners. The most important thing I've learned that got me going faster recently is literally just use less brakes. It takes some courage but it works.

[@gmbn]

That tip about modulation through the front and rear for different purposes was one of our favourite insights from this video too! It's an interesting take on it 👍

[@michaelrodgers5105]

Biggest hang up for me is never really using front breaks. Coming from BMX its hard getting used to that they are there for some reason. Any tips on when and where to use them mostly

[@gmbn]

Your front brake is really important, and is useful for slowing you down quickly. You can use your back brake to help scrub speed and balance out your bike, but getting used to using your front brake properly will really get you slowing down fast! This video might help out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHeQonymgMdjiLM

[@bobothericefarmer1878]

Ga damn that’s wild

[@wyealex]

Lots of parallels with motor racing here. Why not put some telemetry on Gee or someone else and link it up to a run?

[@squidelleotious6362]

I just wanna say, knowing when to brake on a bike is the same as knowing when to brake on a car. It's all the same methods, for a bike, you brake earlier before the turn, that way you can have controlled speed while in the turn, completely letting go of the brake in the turn. For a car it's the same thing, The only difference is you have a running motor, so you hit the brakes early before the turn and while you're in the turn you just keep the engine at a balanced RPM, you don't read it to the point that you're increasing your speed but you don't let off the gas completely where you're reducing speed, that way the wheels are not losing or gaining wheel spin around the corner where you can end up having either oversteer or understeer, but other than that both a bike and a car hit the brakes early before the turn to have a controlled turn.

[@chickenclips]

You guys kinda missed each other with the questions and answers on a few occasions. Informative nonetheless. Thank you

[@RidesWithJake]

I seriously clicked the video when I saw “BLAKE LIKE A PRO” 😂

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Don't use XT brakes! They're just so grabby with the bearing roller cam thingy in the levers! Great for stopping brake rub but they're either on or off!

[@fortza11]

Strange, he is asking questions, and then he doesn´t look at him - you should try it 🙂

[@Ferrari255GTO]

Part one is making sure your brakes actually work like they should and that they are in good condition, it's better if you have hydraulic brakes rather than jurassic ones despite them requiring more work for maintenance, a set of "El Cheapo Shimano brakes" will often do quite well performance-wise with plenty of reliability and ease of maintenance, if you're a heavyer rider you might wanna consider using 4 pistons to ensure you don't run out of power if fade kicks in

[@user-yn5sk5ru5g]

Cool shots, but this did not adress the basics much. Brake short and hard when upright, most of the work is done by the front. Brake as little as possible in the corners so you unweight the suspension and you get your travel and sensitivity. Set up your levers where you only use your index finger.

[@rider65]

Menza-menz. Brake lever setup is a matter of PERSONAL preference. Also, trail braking is a technique to go faster. Hard to master, but better than On-Off as you suggest. Learn from motox & sbk/gp riders.

[@jokermtb]

You already knew that

[@porroco]

Pros dont use brakes, they use balls.

[@randommtbridr]

How to Blake like a pro?

[@Juleslshaw]

Why would I need brakes I'm trying to go fast not slow 😒

[@superchickensoup]

Funny how Gee can't form a sentence without saying "you know" and Rachel can't say a sentence without saying "like" what is Dan's magic word ?

[@rottieshepcalibre9156]

My family loves Neil but for me he’s my least favorite. No disrespect to the man but I can’t understand him. God knows how they do 😮

[@Liverpoolarcool]

Ok??