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Pain associated w/ throttle & front brakes

Thateguhate

Thateguhate

Dislikes Cyclists!
Joined
Aug 22, 2009
Location
San Mateo, CA
Moto(s)
2001 Honda CBR F4i
Name
Dave
BARF perks
AMA #: 1101801
Not sure how common this is for most of us here but I thought I should ask before I end up in either more pain due to riding, or in an accident in the future from not covering the front brake enough..

About a month ago I sprained both of my thumbs.. (aka skier's thumb) It's been a slow healing process but my left hand is almost there. I have noticed though lately that I don't have the strenth in my right hand that I used too and the muscle between my thumb and index finger hurts after some time of riding. Therfore when I am on the bike the throttle tends to slip through my hand every few miles and I'll have to re adjust myself so that I'm able to cover the front brake with two fingers again like I'm supposed to do.

Now, most cases one thing to think about is gloves. I have thought about it and my A* SP2's actually grip more so than my old fox gloves. On the other hand I do have stock grips/levers so I started considering that this could be the problem. So I rode my coworkers R6 with CRG levers and my stock ones were actually closer to the grips than his CRG set to level 1 and it didn't feel much different.

Also, my throttle has a pretty good (spring rebound) to it because I was told to fix the sticking from the grip after the Doc Wong Ergonomics course I trimmed off a bit off and it works fine now. On the other hand though this also causes more resistance now so whatever lol

Would most of you say I just need to man up and stop being a b*tch? Or would levers such as Pazzo, or ASV help me in this case?
 
Thateguhate said:
Would most of you say I just need to man up and stop being a b*tch? Or would levers such as Pazzo, or ASV help me in this case?
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Fix the problem, don't ride with pain. You're a man not an animal :twofinger
 
Or don't just constantly cover the front brake :later

I don't, never have. It's a matter of having size XS hands. I've tried multiple times to do it and even with adjustable levers I can't do it. I rely more on swerving than braking.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, I am reasonably bad on the brakes. On the track I almost always get passed entering turns while I'm on the brakes.
 
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Don't ride covering the brake all the time. I mean really on the freeway or on between corners in the twisties, you don't have to have your fingers on the brake. My fingers subconsciously reach for the brake before I'll need it, and rest most of the time.
 
I'd say don't cover the brake while you're holding the throttle open for extended periods. That alone can create a repetitive strain injury if the throttle springs are strong enough. Aside from that, adjusting the angle of the lever, changing the throttle tube/ grip are some other options. I was having my hand fall asleep on the fwy after installing a yoyodyne short turn throttle on my kawi. I was able to unwind the preloaded spring on the carbs by about half a turn, which eliminated the problem.
 
O.k. I had carpal tunnel surgery on my left hand, not my right.

On my R6, my right hand will go "carpal" pretty fast in the beginning of a ride.
Stock levers.

On the Honda 600rr...few problems at all. Different play and position?
I did rotate the levers down a bit and it no numbness period after i went with long pazzos. Didn't like the shortys at all.

Play around with angle, length and play and I bet you will find relief.:thumbup


Give the muscle strain time to heal as well or it will become chronic...ice ice baby.
 
I don't know why I haven't thought to bring the lever up a bit. *Doh*, As for the sprain itself I thought It may get better if I got back to my usual routine. It seemed fine for a while but lately started hurting again, You can even see how much more swollen it is than the left one.

In reference to what you said above Daniela.. what do you dislike about the shorty levers??

Also, why I want to cover the front brake has mostly to do with my accident in November. I unintentionally grabbed too much rear brake and caused myself to lock up and hit someone. Yesterday I was on El Camino here in San Mateo and I was half ass over the front brake when suddenly a car slammed on the brakes in order to not miss his turn. The car behind him caught it last second as did I and I caught myself going for the rear brake and corrected it.

I believe if I can make it more comfortable it will save my ass. The MSF is great, but as often as they wanted us to use that rear brake over a year ago in my class I never did kick the habit in split second situations. ANY OTHER TIME I never go for it.. :(
 
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Thateguhate said:
In reference to what you said above Daniela.. what do you dislike about the shorty levers??
:(
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On the track, the shorty's caused me exactly the thumb to forefinger type of muscle strain you described with your injury. Can't say why specifically, perhaps more pull tension or the reach/angle or my hand position on them.
The long ones feel much more natural. Again though, it all comes down to personal preference with these products. Comfort is not only important, it can be life saving when the brake hand is involved.:thumbup
 
True lol... Theres different types out there. Long, Short, Folding... *sigh* I'll be adjusting that brake this weekend. Hopefully that helps me out, and saves me some money at the same time. Meanwhile I'll be putting mineral ice on this damn hand!
 
If this is all related to an injury, I'd suggest using a lotion (hand lotion you dirty minded...) containing MSM. I'd also suggest getting a bottle of glucosamine/chondriton tablets and taking a couple a day until the bottle's gone. If you're over 40, get another bottle. :teeth

Addendum: I've also got a spray bottle around here somewhere... It's got DMSO and capsacian in it. Helps a lot with minor swelling and pain. I'll see if I can find it and give you a manufacturer.
 
Covering the front brake, do you also cover the clutch when you cover the front brake? If no.... there are some human factors issues to consider.

Also, there is another place to look, are your gloves big enough for your hands? In particular the stretch between the your thumb and pointer finger. Can you stretch your thumb out to the side are far as you can in your gloves as compared to without the gloves.... This can be an issue if you are always riding covering levers. :ride
 
Thateguhate said:
I'll be adjusting that brake this weekend.
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Fast easy way to find the right angle for yourself

-Loosen the pinch bolts on the lever perch
-Put the bike on a stand or have someone hold it for you
-Put on your gloves / jacket or leathers
-Sit on the bike in the exact position that you'll spend the majority of your time
-Without looking at the lever, reach... adjust reach again. Repeat until it's in the closest position to natural that you can find. This should be in a straight line down the length of your forearm. (which is why it's important to sit in the right position) For track use I had to rotate mine down as I'm typically popping up under braking... by about lap 5 my hand would be so numb I'd have to use my whole arm to open the throttle. Adjusted the lever, pain go bye bye.:cool
 
I already did the course Steve, Back in October I believe. Good class actually! And no I don't cover the clutch. For some reason I just hover over the front brake.

As for meds I have a lotion called Diclorub. LOL of all things, I know I'm gonna hear it now hahahahaha It worked well on my ankle and its prescribed I'll give it a go.

As for the tip on making the adjustments... THANKS!!! A buddy told me to do it the same way when I got on the phone with him. He said to bring it down. I sort of argued with him about it saying I can't reach it well as it is and he said that at the track when I'm riding agressively enough I'll need to do this. I'm stopping by his job tomorrow to check out his ASV levers and to check out the positioning of his levers as opposed to mine.
 
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Thateguhate said:
I already did the course Steve, Back in October I believe. Good class actually! And no I don't cover the clutch. For some reason I just hover over the front brake.

As for meds I have a lotion called Diclorub. LOL of all things, I know I'm gonna hear it now hahahahaha It worked well on my ankle and its prescribed I'll give it a go.
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Think about stopping.... do you ever stop without pulling the clutch either first or at the same time as the brake? This means that even if you are covering or hovering over the brake you gain no reaction time because you, out of habit, are going to wait to apply the brake until you get the clutch applied.... which is the same motion as riding without covering the brake.

I know some human factors people that would argue that covering the brake can actually slightly increase your reaction time.... don't shoot me I am just the messenger. Have you tired riding without covering the brake, does that help any??

If you have changed levers and positions, but not gloves and are still in pain... try a change in gloves. If this doesn't work then it may be time to see a doctor.
 
Well... I don't know! I would think that in parking lot speed scenarios, most would go to the clutch and brake at the same time... where as with greater speed and reduced chance of stalling the motor, I would think clutchless braking to be the norm until a downshift is necessary. :dunno barf poll?
 
I probably screwed up... should have been clearer. I slow without clutch, but I don't stop without clutch first. From the human factors/reaction time stand point, one habit avoids confusion and allow for fastest reaction. Which is where a lot of riders get into trouble because the car driving habits are stronger than the motorcycle riding habits. In an emergency the stongest habit will kick in.

Like I said, don't shoot me I am just the messenger....
 
MCSFTGUY said:
I probably screwed up... should have been clearer. I slow without clutch, but I don't stop without clutch first. From the human factors/reaction time stand point, one habit avoids confusion and allow for fastest reaction. Which is where a lot of riders get into trouble because the car driving habits are stronger than the motorcycle riding habits. In an emergency the stongest habit will kick in.

Like I said, don't shoot me I am just the messenger....
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That does make sense. My first reaction always seems to grab for the rear brake THEN front. Which is totally f'd up I know..

A friend told me to ride with my foot under the rear brake instead, this will force me to learn to grab for the front as opposed to the rear, and as he said above, I grab for the clutch first depending on speed/conditions.. It's not something I really thought about before, but rather something I just end up doing naturally..

Really, giving myself more time would help all around but I like to prepare for the unexpected because no ride EVER goes the same as the previous. Too many obsticles out there to get comortable these days.
 
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