Pucker Up, It's Powerful

If you've been riding on the same brake pads for more than a couple years you're likely not riding enough, or you just don't use the brakes. If so, skip this. Otherwise, you'll be interested to know what kind of replacement pads to put on your bike.

Galfer brake pads are high quality pads available at most dealerships and Web sites. They offer two basic types: carbon or sintered metal. The difference between the two is broken into two categories of riding conditions: hot, dry riding climates where there's a high potential for brake fade (carbon), or rough riding climates where mud and sand are present, but not as likely to experience drastic brake fade (sintered metal).

Anybody riding a Honda CR or CRF from 2002 to present knows how quickly the rear brake fades after hard braking. The minuscule size of the caliper and pads are prone to fade in a short amount of time. For this reason I purchased a set of front and rear carbon pads for my 2004 Honda CR250R. After replacing the front tire and completing a top-end rebuild, my first experience with Galfer carbon pads was a thrilling one. I still have the proof of their power protruding from the palm of my right hand in the form of a small piece of asphalt embedded in my skin.

Two years ago I was cruising my bike up and down the cul-de-sac to test out my top-end work. I was in third gear and did a wheelie as I was heading up the street. After I brought the front end down I tapped the front brake, with the new front tire and carbon pads. Prior to having replaced the brake pads, there wouldn't have been any problem with this. The old pads were worn and provided a very progressive braking. To be brief, my new front carbon pads bit hard into my 240mm Honda rotor, and I did a perfect imitation of Superman flying through the air.

I contemplated my predicament as I sailed through the air, thanking the heavens that my mother was out of town at the time. To this day I'm sure she's convinced that my bike is a conduit to the gates of hell. I digress. I flew up and over my Renthal Twinwall handlebars and straight into the cheese-grater-like devil know as asphalt. I skidded and rolled and somersaulted to a stop, gracefully ending on my feet. My bike lay on its left side, spinning its rear tire and shut off.

I spent the next three hours at the local hospital as they meticulously (though at the time it seemed more haphazardly than meticulously) scraping and cleaning my fresh road burn wounds and examining my right arm with their X-ray. The final diagnosis was a minor radial head fracture in my right arm, and lots of road burn on both my palms, left elbow, left rear shoulder and left thigh. The one irony about the whole thing is that the lowest section of road burn on my body occurred on my left hip. My legs and head remained unscathed.

My bike received a wicked dent and scrapes to FMF Fatty pipe. A triangulated section of the left-side handlebars was ground away after the grip and clutch lever were chewed up. The front fender got a nice set of skid marks, as well as the left side panel. Luckily, I had an extra set of grips on hand and an FMF SST pipe, so they replaced the damaged goods.

The scars are a nice reminder to me of the pucker power of Galfer carbon brake pads. If you're looking for bite, I'd recommend them to you with a smile. Just make sure you're prepared to stop NOW.