With all the talk about disc brakes for road bikes coming soon for professional cyclists, it made me think about how far road bike brakes have come since the 1970s. Until that time, brakes for road bikes were more of an afterthought for component makers than anything else and had changed little in design or functionality since the 1940s. Basically they worked sort of OK in dry conditions but it was a case of 'heaven help you' when it rained. At least things got better when steel rims were abandoned in favour of alloy.
Starting around 1990 or so with the introduction of the double-pivot designs, the effectiveness of road bike brakes took a big leap forward. There have been further refinements through the years with Shimano, Campagnolo and Sram all producing very effective braking systems right down to their entry-level components. Unfortunately, the major bicycle manufacturers don't always spec brakes to match the rest of the components and it continues to be an area where they typically save costs in an effort to offer a bike at a lower retail price. What typically happens is that your new carbon bike with Ultegra 11 speed gears will come with no-name or house-brand brakes which are not much better than the stuff which used to masquerade as brakes in the '60s. Not all non-system brakes are bad though with some decent units being offered by other brands, Tektro in particular.
Brakes may not make you go faster but they are sure handy when you have to cut speed quickly and safely in any conditions. It may not be the sexiest upgrade you can make on your bike but if you have doubts about your current brakes there are worse things you can spend your pocket money on than a set of decent stoppers or at least some upgraded cartridge brake pads.
And in case you're wondering about disc brakes v. rim brakes for road bikes I'm keeping my thoughts to myself on that one for now...... :)
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