Bicycle brake maintenance is a very important step to insuring that your bike is operating as smoothly as possible.   The typical brake operates by pulling together to brake pads onto the rim of your wheel.  Because of this motion, the rim can often become dirty, and the brake pad will wear out.

As the video points out, there are several steps one should take with bike pad maintenance:

1.  Cleaning the rim.  He suggests using a piece of scotch brite pad to go around the rim, but any oil-free solvent can do (alcohol, citrus, etc.).

2.  Check brake pads.  Most brake pads will have vertical lines on them for reference, so just eyeballing the amount of pad left can show you if you need new brakes.

3.  File down the pad.  Re-surfacing the pad is important if they were worn down uneven, and also provides an even surface for the pad to press onto the rim.

4.  Make sure the pad is centered and close. Adjust the pads so that there is an even amount of room between both sides of the wheel.  Adjusting this is a slightly more advanced maintenance than just checking your brake pads, so it is recommended that you go to a bike shop.

As your bike pad wears down, your brake lever will come closer to the handlebar.  Using your barrel adjustor, you can tighten your cable to give braking a quicker feel.