Lawn care vehicle brake system with improved brake cable actuation

A riding lawn care vehicle comprising:

• a frame to which at least a first drive wheel and a second drive wheel of the riding lawn care vehicle are attachable;
• a steering assembly comprising a steering lever, the steering lever being one of a pair of steering levers, wherein each of the steering levers is operably coupled to the first and second drive wheels respectively to facilitate turning of the riding lawn care vehicle based on drive speed control of the first and second drive wheels responsive to positioning of the steering levers;
• a brake assembly operably coupled to the first and second drive wheels to enable brakes to be selectively applied to the first and second drive wheels;
• and
• a mechanical brake linkage assembly operably coupled between the steering lever and the brake assembly via a cable assembly,
• wherein the steering lever is operably coupled to provide drive speed control inputs to a corresponding one of the first or second drive wheels via a carrier configured to pivot in a forward or rearward direction when the steering lever is in an inboard position,
• wherein the steering lever is operably coupled to an arm that is operably coupled to the carrier to pivot the steering lever in a direction substantially perpendicular to the forward or the rearward direction when the steering lever is moved to an outboard position,
• wherein the mechanical brake linkage assembly comprises a cable tensioner configured to activate the brake assembly relative to the corresponding one of the first or second drive wheels in response to the steering lever being moved outwardly to the outboard position,
• wherein the mechanical linkage assembly is configured to provide a greater amount of rotation of the cable tensioner than a magnitude of rotation of the steering lever when the steering lever is moved from the inboard position to the outboard position, and
• wherein the cable tensioner rotates through a breakover point responsive to moving the steering lever between the inboard position such that the steering lever is biased to be retained in each of the inboard position and the outboard position.