Glad to hear nobody was hurt. Thanks for sharing this story as most guys wouldn't admit to making this... glad you did.
My experience with my 59 parking brake is that reversing with it "on" is not an issue as it only drags a little... trying to drive forward is an entirely different outcome! It won't budge!
Not sure why this is but I think it has to do with how the cable holds the shoes and the rotation of the drum will "jam" the pads in forward rotation but not so good in reverse.
Perhaps someone here can expand on my theory or poke holes in it. Cheers
