Something that is not taught in the MSF training class is 2 finger breaking while blipping the throttle to down shift.
To be honest I questioned this practice at the very beginning but now I follow this practice, after much practice. It really does help while taking a turn, especially in a hurry. I drove a Harley sportster for over a year and never followed this practice, although now I know why the bike bogged down so much in the corners. I had to take the corners in 3rd gear to slow, because I had to slow down too much before the corner to take it in 2nd.
In the manual it says to down shift from 4th to 3rd at 16mph. So if you down shift into 3rd at that speed and take a corner (90 degree corner in the city) you may get rear ended by a car and your bike will be bogged down trying to excelerate out of the corner. With the 2 finger braking and blipping the throttle you can be in 3rd gear at a much higher speed and or even be in 2nd gear. I try to take corners around 20 mph, most of the time in 3rd...this keeps good breathing room between me and the car behind me. Cars usually take the entry of the corner too fast and have to break in the middle of the corner, when in a hurry, especially if the light is about to turn. This can be very scary on a motorcycle when looking back from the mirrors.
I read an article about this in a motorcycle magazine which really got me started trying it and after a little practice Im pretty good at it. Next time Im in the motorcycle shop I will find the magazine that has the article in it.
I think its important for new riders to understand this concept and know that Im not advocating taking corners too fast. I just believe that to be perfectly safe on a motorcycle you have to stay out of the way of cars, because they are not going to go out of their way for you to be safe and or they dont even see you.
When I say corner Im talking about a 90 degree corner in the city with a stoplight, not a sweeping corner on a road, although it also works well there. And Im sure this topic has been covered many time. This is my 2 cents worth.
Last edited by ecustu7; 10-25-2012 at 08:57 AM.
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I always two finger brake. Whenever I use four digits, I find that I use more braking that I really need, plus there's the split second that you lose repositioning your hands. I too got penalized for using this technique at MSF, but it's really something that should be encouraged as an option, rather than a no-no. To them, two-finger braking seems to carry a stigma shared by left-foot brakers: there are advantages to left-foot braking and the criticisms against its use are usually unfounded or ridiculous. Not that I discourage four-finger braking (it's a solid technique that conveys the highest potential effort); just that two-finger braking is a good alternative.
There are two varieties of two-fingering that I've seen practiced; one is common use and the other I've only seen performance riders use: index-middle and ring-pinky. I use the former 90% of the time. The latter apparently gives you better throttle control and is good for firm braking systems that require a more delicate touch.
Last edited by pete_falcone; 10-25-2012 at 09:19 AM.
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Sometimes I'll just use my index finger when I don't need much of a decrease in speed, for example, just prior to entering a faster sweeping corner. Generally though, I'd say I use two fingers 90% of the time. If I have to "stand on the brakes", I'll use all four fingers.
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I also didnt like some of the things taught in the MSF class. For example they said to pull in the clutch automatically when breaking. Because I already drove a stick shift and understood the concept, I always started breaking and then at the last minute pulled the clutch in. You break a lot faster this way. I think they only taught the other way because people would forget to pull in the clutch and the bike would kill off. The reason people dont understand this concept in the MSF class is because 90% of them drive automatic cars.
Yes use 2 fingers for planned breaking (non emergency) with throttle blipping and 4 fingers for unplanned breaking (emergency).
It makes since that racers would use middle and index, to keep pointer on throttle and because of the shape of the break handle, its probably easier to grab the break with those 2 fingers, although I never would have though of it.
I know exactly what you're talking about. Clearly 1st gear is much too low for most corners, except maybe in a parking lot. For me I've found 3rd to be a bit too steep for a robust exit. I tend to go into a turn in 2nd and then slip the clutch to bring the rpms back up smoothly when exiting.
I will have to give your method a try in 3rd...
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I know exactly what you're talking about. Clearly 1st gear is much too low for most corners, except maybe in a parking lot. For me I've found 3rd to be a bit too steep for a robust exit. I tend to go into a turn in 2nd and then slip the clutch to bring the rpms back up smoothly when exiting.
I will have to give your method a try in 3rd...
Just got off my bike and tested it while I got some lunch. I took a corner at 19-20 mph in 3rd and got on the throttle smooth and it didn't bog down, but below that I would take it in 2nd.
The shift points and speeds in the manual are for optimum fuel economy. If I rode around following those guidelines, I would never get anywhere on time or have any fun! Two finger braking and using engine braking to decelerate are definitely good techniques in my book.
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The shift points and speeds in the manual are for optimum fuel economy. If I rode around following those guidelines, I would never get anywhere on time or have any fun! Two finger braking and using engine braking to decelerate are definitely good techniques in my book.
I agree that they are good for fuel mileage but I also think they are so you won't wreck the transmission or break loose the back tire trying to downshift into a gear at too fast a rate of speed, if not blipping the throttle. If you do this in a car, usually nothing really bad happens, but on a bike its a different story.
CBR250r
2 finger braking, blipping throttle
