Some other rider once commented that brakes wear out faster than engines. That's why he used the engine to brake as much as possible instead of just riding the brakes when stopping.

Suppose you are getting off the highway and coming down a ramp with a stoplight at the end. It's red, so you start to brake and pull the clutch, click 5 times into first  roll toward the light. Now, half way to the stop it turns green. Now you have to figure out what gear to shift back up into, which, for most people, probably requires staring at the speedo and doing a bit of math.

OTOH, suppose you were letting the clutch out and engine braking with each downshift. Tada! You're already in the right gear and can just give it some gas and go. That's why I let out the clutch each time.

The same thing happens in town, except it's 3rd-1st and not 6th-1st.

If I have to make an emergency stop, I"ll just pull and brake as much as I can, then worry about getting into first later. However, if I did also use the engine to brake me, I'd stop even faster, but that's too mentally complex for me.

Quote from: miloI meant that when I do that I have the clutch lever pulled in the whole time I'm shifting down.

I.e. I thought the whole debate here was over whether to engage and disengage the clutch five times when coming to a stop, or just to disengage it once. I, as a noob, do the latter.

Oooh! (see this is how you earn a title) And, this is a bad habit, grasshopper. You must unlearn what you have learned. I'm only trying to help. RRitterson gives an excellent example!

Wow, thanks for all the insight on this one.  Yeah, in MSF they mention engine breaking, but as we never got above 2nd gear in my MSF, downshifting remained a mystery.  

I have done the accidentally letting the clutch out while going 30ish mph after shifitng in into first (I stomped too hard on the shifter I think).  The gs let me know I am a noob with a screech of the front tire and a pop into neutral.

It does make sense to slowly click down as you decelerate, to be ready to take off again, while using the breaks also so your breaklights go on.

I usually just let off the gas apply a little brake using both the engine and brakes to slow,  then downshift when it "feels right".  feeling in the seat rather than looking at the tach,  I dont spend a lot of time looking at the tach and speedo trying to figure out if I'min the right gear. after riding for a while the vibration of the engine and the feel in the seat will tell you what to do. each stop is different,  if there is a lot of gravel/dirt I use the rear brake a little more then normal,  cars around I usually use more front brake (in a panic situation Ive found its easier to gas it out of an accident situation that way) If im out in the middle of no where putt-n around I might just pull in the clutch and coast to a stop.  basically every stop is different

Quote from: kwong2001

Quote from: TarzanBoy

Quote from: kwong2001
95% of the time i'll sit at a stop light in 1st gear, only exception is if it will be a long light and I can see the light changing to give me a little warning.  See, my bike sometimes does not want to go into gear so I have to rock it back and forth, which can add a few precious seconds.

Ah, you should try the trick my roommate taught me on our second time out!  I had the same problem at the very first traffic light we went through....  -When the bike doesn't want to go into first gear, let the clutch out *slowly* and simultaenously push down on the gear shift.  By time the clutch has been let out 1/4-1/3 of the way, the bike should very gracefully drop into first gear.  Problem solved without rocking back and forth (which isn't practical if there are a bunch of cars waiting behind you).

hmmm, i'll have to try that next time  

My bike had this problemk too. After sitting in neutral for a period of time, you have to work the clutch a little to get it to engage into first. Just squeeze the clutch in, let it out, squeeze in again and shift into first, then head off!

Also, milo, I'd suggest that you release the clutch at least a little bit in every gear so you can get into the habit of doing it regularly. It isn't THAT much extra work :lol:. If you downshift a lot and suddenly you're in a low gear at a high speed, the rear wheel can literally hop. I've experienced that. Rear wheel hop is SCARY.

I tend to do what ktrim does, from 3rd to 1st anyways, and as I feel myself slowing down to a suitable speed and I can feel the rpms dropping I shift down into 2nd and roll along in second until I'm just about ready to stop then I drop into 1st and brake. I'm goign to start feathering the front brake from now on though, just to get that light on, it'd come on before the brake engages any wouldn't it? I've never really looked back to see lol.

You can adjust the rear brake light switch to activate the brakelamp before the rear brake grabs.