argghh no brakes.
A few years ago, I took the family on a day out in the Yorkshire Dales. We travelled the road that leads from Wensleydale to Swaledale and is known as "Buttertubs Pass". It's a rather steep climb and jolly steep down the other side too. There's a sharp double-bend part way down, then after that it's a straight run. You drop 150m in maybe a mile. That's an average of a 1 in 10 slope, and a section of it is a 1 in 4.

Consequently, a combination of no other cars, plus a good view of the road meant that I didn't really bother with controlling the speed. This meant that I got to well over 80mph on what isn't even a B-road.
I could see the junction at the end and began to apply the brakes. Not much happened, so I pressed harder and harder. The car was slowing, but the brakes were becoming spongy and smelt funny.
I was within 200 yards of the T-junction, still running downhill and was still doing over 40mph with ropey brakes.

Careful application of the handbrake and shifting down into 4th meant I took the left-turn at 25mph, picking a good racing line as I could see that nothing was coming each way.

Once I'd stopped, I parked up on the verge and my wife asked me why we'd stopped. She hadn't realised we were at the mercy of gravity and when I explained, it didn't seem to sink in. Though she had wondered why I had been a bit daring at the corner.

Fortunately, after about 10 mins the brakes seemed to have recovered.
( sandettie light vessel automatic New Twitter - @bollocksreally, Mon 16 Feb 2009, 19:05, 4 replies)

.
It's called brake fade. Too much braking on the way down would have caused your brakes to heat up, thus reducing their effectiveness. 10 minutes later, they'd cooled again.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brake_fade
(Dr Dicko, Mon 16 Feb 2009, 21:15, closed)

yup
didn't half shit me up though
( sandettie light vessel automatic New Twitter - @bollocksreally, Tue 17 Feb 2009, 1:28, closed)

Porlock Hill
Is one place that gives me nightmares.
Been up and down loads of times without incident but can't help thinking 'what if?'
(oneinthepink is at your cervix m'lady, Tue 17 Feb 2009, 12:20, closed)

They claim it's the steepest A road in UK
I'd say Blue Bank on the A169 into Sleights is steeper, as is Sutton Bank on the A170 is too.
( sandettie light vessel automatic New Twitter - @bollocksreally, Tue 17 Feb 2009, 13:08, closed)