dropping while shifting...

[panda]

How common is it to drop a bike while shifting?
I know this is going to be my biggest obstacle
and i was just wondering if you release the clutch
to fast going into a higher gear will your bike roll
or will your wheels lock up and send you flying??

[Brackstone]

I'd say it's very uncommon to drop your bike when you're shifting unless you do something like shifting up or down in a deep turn.

Anyone who is trained properly should not have any problems with this.

As for will your wheels lock up shifting into a higher gear? No, but if the bike is powerful enough and you are riding hard enough you could pull a wheelie.

[XB08]

I have shifted in turns and you only really need to watch down sifting in a turn , you can brake the rear loose. But if you shift before and after your turns , can't see you droping your bike.

[fireguzzi]

Sometimes DOWNshifting with the engine revs too high will momentarily lock up the back wheel. Usually its just a quick skid and then the wheel starts rolling again. Usually you learn pretty quickly not to do that and when the proper time to shift is. Other then that shifting only take about a second or so so and it does not upset things so much as to make you off balance. So falling is not a common result of poor shifting. And if you are worried about such things then I would take a beginner riders course. I did and it was very helpful to me even though I had been riding a long time before that.

[jmillheiser]

Its generally not recommended to downshift in a turn, optimally you should be in the correct gear before entering the turn.

If you happen to be a gear too high most bikes have enough torque to still pull you through with a little bit of lugging, and even then a downshift at that point isn't likely going to be jerky unless you really hamfist the clutch.

To get smoother downshifts you should train yourself to give the throttle a little blip right before getting back off the clutch

[Amdonim]

Its generally not recommended to downshift in a turn, optimally you should be in the correct gear before entering the turn.

If you happen to be a gear too high most bikes have enough torque to still pull you through with a little bit of lugging, and even then a downshift at that point isn't likely going to be jerky unless you really hamfist the clutch.

To get smoother downshifts you should train yourself to give the throttle a little blip right before getting back off the clutch

Golden advice. Compared to heal-toe shifting in a car, rev matching on a bike is relatively easy. It'll just take some practice as to how much throttle blip gets you matched up. The idea of turning is that you want to slow some before the turn so that you can accelerate all the way through, so that slowing is where you should do your downshifting.

[Lion_Lady]

How common is it to drop a bike while shifting?
I know this is going to be my biggest obstacle
and i was just wondering if you release the clutch
to fast going into a higher gear will your bike roll
or will your wheels lock up and send you flying??

Taking the Basic Riders' Course will answer all your basic questions. If you really want to know, then hit your library, or check out AMazon.com, etc for a copy of "Proficient Motorcycling" by David Hough.

(You're more likely to drop your bike while braking than shifting.)

P

[jahjlh]

I just finished the BRC and they spent a good deal of time laughing at everyone that ever popped the clutch and gave too much gas. Our first time on the bikes with it powered up we just sat with our feet on the ground rocking the bike back and forth learning where the clutch grabbs, and then we walked the bikes accross the course and back with our feet down just to get used to the clutch placement. I had no confidence in my ability at all until I took this class. IT really showed me how to do all that was needed. I highly recommend it, even though the Marine Corps made me take it.

Tricycle Marine

[redwing]

Take a MSF class. Try driving a car with a standard shift and making the shifts as smoth as possible. That might help you to realize how to shift a bike. Smooth is a must. Nothing that causes the bike to lurch should ever be done until perhaps you have riden a few thousand mile. Be smooth and plan where you are going and how that will happen. Take the MSF class on a bike near the size you have. The saying 'easy does it' applies to me and think you might consider this rule as a standard for you.
Ride within your limits. Know your limits.