Decided to do some actual trail riding today on my Laufey and I'm rather new to proper trails. Green trails are always rather mellow but blues can get way more gnarly. I don't think I could ever ride reds and blacks to their fullest without proper coaching.
When I was growing up my parents and many others casual cyclers told me it's dangerous to use the front brake because you will go over the bar.
The older I got the more I realized just how insane this advice is. I'm 31 and I only went OTB twice in my life but those were kinda extreme situations on steep trails.
I think everyone with half a brain knows the rear brake can only provide a small fraction of a good front brake's stopping power but it's not like most bikes are equipped with super strong, 4 pot brakes. It's very easy to learn how hard you can pull it before you even come close to going OTB.
I live in Hungary and it's kinda shocking that even in emergency situations I see some riders just "slam" the rear brake without using the front and failing to stop in time.