downshifting. needs work

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sproutjw
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downshifting. needs work

#1 Unread post by sproutjw »

This is my only my second season riding and I am off to a rocky start. My downshifting needs work. My ride is only a 250 marauder suzuki I thought small . power low height would be a good choice. I would not do it again but will persevere untill I can master it and go on to something more suited to my needs. This bike does not have a tachometer and I have a difficult time judging when to downshift. I have no problems other than sometimes I have to make sure I am not in second at a stop or I could stall it . NOt good in the intersection. Any suggestions. My spouse has been riding for years and years and is 000 help. He just says I don't understand your problem just ride it.

Any ladies out there find your guy not really sure if hes for your riding or against. Mine doesn't ride with me because he wants to go a break neck speed and I'm into the feel not the need for speed.
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#2 Unread post by cbm »

Welcome to the forums! I'm a fellow Canadian rider from down the road in London, also in my second season.

Regarding your downshifting problem, I think trying to start from a stop in second gear (thinking you're in first) is a pretty common problem. I know that I routinely give a little extra tap or two on the shift lever just to make sure I'm in first gear when I'm starting from a stop. With my bike, there's a little bit of a clunk when it drops into first, even with the clutch pulled in, so I try to listen/feel for that as a double check. Despite those tactics, I admit that I have tried to pull away in second gear on a couple of occasions...it is possible, but it's a bit of a lug!!

Not having a tachometer is probably not ideal, but at the same time, you don't want to be looking down at the gauges too much anyway. I find that when shifting I tend not to watch the tach too closely--I do listen to the engine and try to let it tell me when it wants to shift. When it starts to get a bit whiny, I shift up. When it feels like it's chugging, it's probably time to shift down. When downshifting, it's hard to get a perfect match between the engine RPM's and the bike's speed...usually you need to give it a wee bit of throttle as you release the clutch in order to avoid having the engine brake the bike too much.

This might be as clear as mud...but hopefully it's of some use! My suggestion would be to find some quiet roads to ride on where you can practice accelerating and decelerating, making your goal being to shift as smoothly as you can. The more time you spend on your bike, the more you will get tuned into when it wants to shift, up or down.
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blues2cruise
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#3 Unread post by blues2cruise »

Practice and more practice. It will come to you.

I also had problems in the beginning thinking I had gone into first, but in reality, I was in neutral. :roll:
Then I was enlightened by Sev here on the forums, just as CBM did for you. When I approach a stop, I hit the downshifter a couple of extra times to be sure it's in first.
It's normal to hear a thunk when it goes into first. Quite reassuring actually, when you feel it and hear it go in.

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sproutjw
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re/ downshifting

#4 Unread post by sproutjw »

Thanks for all the help. I have been practising accelerating and going slower and it seems I am in too much of a rush. Tapping on the gear seems to work too. Its not too cool looking at a stop trying to figure out which way neutral is because your not sure your in first or second. I have on occasion been able to start in second but not consistently so thats not good. Once I get some more practise under my belt I'm sure I'll get around to It . Anymore words of wisdom from you more seasoned riders is greatly appreciated.
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CNF2002
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#5 Unread post by CNF2002 »

Next time your husband refuses to ride with you because he wants to go fast, tell him that he's too fast at everthing and its going to leave him riding solo in the bedroom, too.

Or that you'll find another riding partner that will pace himself to meet your needs.

That'll slow him down :laughing:
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#6 Unread post by KarateChick »

First sprout :welcome:

You sound like you are going at it right with all the practising and that is exactly what I'd recommend you keep doing. The more you practise, the more familiar with your bike you will become. Part of becoming familiar with your bike will be listening to the engine to know when to shift up or down. I've never ridden a bike without a tach but have had a car w/out one (don't know if that counts) but it was my first car and I really drove it a lot to get comfortable with when to shift based on the engine sound and also on speed to some degree.

Anytime you come to a stop, get into the habit of doing what Blues said. Tap the shift lever down a few times to MAKE SURE you are in first. It is also a good defensive manouvre because you may need to MOVE if someone does not look like he is going to stop behind you! I always do this but sometimes find myself tapping again just to be absolutely sure I am in first when stopped. I've never moved to neutral while stopped (stay in first) just in case.

As for your 0% helpful spouse... :x ...I will not singe your ears with my comments about what I think of him and how's he's just totally abandoned your m-c efforts! (Is he jealous that you are riding now? That's my first guess) I hope you are not doing this for him but for you! So relax and have fun and you'll do great. Hopefully you will find some riding buddies (not him) that appreciate you.

Have faith in yourself and persevere! :)
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#7 Unread post by bok »

the gearing down to first at a stop is pretty easy to get into the hang of. i tell people to put it into negative 10th gear every time they come to a stop. basically as you are slowing down to pretty much walking speed, tap the shifter down about 10 times, "blip" the throttle a bit and gently release the clutch to make sure it's engaged.

people who follow behind me probably think i am a total spaz whenever i do this, but i rarely miss being in first gear.

as for the shifting with out a tach, it gets to be habit and you will be able to gauge it by the sound of the engine and your perceived speed. if you haven't got much practice on a standard transmission (car or bike) it's a bit daunting at first but much easier/safer than trying to watch your tach for the proper shift numbers.

i will now (partially) defend your spouse as i see something there that i do a lot too and maybe it's the same thing.

speed is a danger in a couple ways. going too fast for conditions we all know about, but going too slow (10mph under the limit or more) can be a danger too because cage drivers can easily misjudge how fast you are going and end up almost hitting you as they come up behind you. going slow on a bike also causes cages to tail gate you and possibly drive more aggressively around you which can be quite dangerous.

now, if that isn't the case, and he is on a big powerful bike and always going 15 over the limit and expecting you to "keep up", then i'd say he's a bit of a tater and needs to relax and enjoy the ride and not take pride in how fast he gets to the destination.
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#8 Unread post by mahgnillig »

Add me to the number who tap the shift lever a few times at each stop. I've only been riding a few months and find it hard to keep track of what gear I'm in, so I just keep pushing the lever down until I hear it 'clunk' into first.

I also tend to sit in first in traffic, just in case some maniac rear ends me... at least I have half a chance to get out of there if I see someone approaching too fast in my mirrors. Sometimes I'll pop it into neutral if I want to take a drink or something, but only if there is a car already behind me. I figure if someone hits the person behind, I'm not going to be able to see it in enough time to react anyway :?

As for your other half... maybe he needs to chill out a bit and enjoy riding at speeds other than breakneck. As long as you're going with the flow of traffic, you're doing fine (even if, like here, the flow of traffic is always 10mph+ over the limit :frusty: ). If he really wants to go fast, suggest he takes a trip to the nearest track once in a while where he can go as fast as he likes without getting a ticket.

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