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Yeah dirt bike brakes are definitely marginal with street tyres.
The only surfaces I've ridden on that you have to be a bit cautious with the front are dusty / gravelly hard pack and at the other end of the spectrum, deep sand as you can go over the bars. Not ridden any of the muddy, gloopy stuff that you lot have to deal with....
I'd say I normally brake 70/30 front to rear. You obviously need to be going straight and upright.
Jung-
My off road riding was when I was small with a vespa 50 special!!!! the a few malaguttis. That were summer entertainment in southern Italy so similar to what you had with added ploughed fields.
Then road bikes and going back to off roading to improve my road riding control. Did off road days at tracks and bought and sold a few bikes. But was never fit enough for a whole days riding. Off road tyres for muddy clagy soil don't last long on the road
Not sure if I got off road riding as i was always trying to be in the right gear at the right speed and rarely going straight.
lynx
Just talking:
All the off road days I've done, the first thing that is taught is to off road braking. On road bikes the logic is mainly front, while off road is mainly rear. The usual circular loop to get through to people that front brake means falling over especially while leaning.
Off road bike also have smaller front discs, calipers and master cylinder. So when you supermoto a bike, from off road to on road the front brake disc is replaced for bigger disc, bigger caliper (well greater pad area) and matching master cylinder.
Also found that front brakes were marginal at best. But then I only had small two strokers (no engine braking) or 250-400 stroker so quite a lot of engine braking.
EDIT: The riding comment was a joke, hopefully the self appointed made the joke.
EDIT2: What I found from off roading, is that there isn't much around centralish London and riding out and back can be a real pain. As the off roading is quite tiring hence lobbing bikes in the back of a van. Then weekends away. But then that is boring on your own.