Just curious.. at what RPM do you downshift?

A few pieces of advice.
Number 1, carrying a passenger is much more difficult than riding solo. Before you take anyone elses life into your hands, make sure your compitent on the bike. You would hate to dump your fiance on the ground, even worse when she gets back up and probably never wants to ride with you again.
Number 2, go take an MSF riding course and you will learn a good deal to get you started.

Onto your specific question. Before you enter a corner you should set your entry speed. In some cases this requires down shifting (always down shift prior to corner entry as shifting in a turn can cause you to wipe out).
The engine on our bikes lugs below 4k-4.5k range. I generally shift down before that point. When carrying a passenger your rpm will need to be higher.
The bike doesn't start making good torque until 6k-7k which is where you need to be more of the time. I "cruise" around at around 5.5k and shift up at 7k-8k for normal driving.

The reason you couldn't get back in first/neutral is when shifting down make sure you shift down 1 gear at a time and let the clutch out between each gear. The transmission on a motorcycle is sequential and you need to let the clutch out between each gear, unlike a car where you can go from 5th to 2nd no problem. So in that situation you need to ease the clutch in and out while rocking the bike forward and backward until it drops into gear. Don't push hard on the shifter to try and force it, it won't work.
The goal is every time you stop you've already slipped it into first gear.

So the blipping your refering to is called matching engine speed while shifting. Think of it this way. When you downshift your drivetrain will be moving at a higher rpm than it was in the higher gear.
If you let your gas off and pull the clutch in your rpms will drop. When you let your clutch back out, the rpm of the engine very quickly comes up to the speed of the drive train and this causes it to jerk and feel unstable.

But, if you give it a little gas (smoothly) right before you let the clutch out (smooothly) you will have very little to no rpm jumping as your engine speed is near the same speed as your drive train (ideally the exact same speed).



This is why it seems like you can down shift smoother if your trying to accelerate rather than decelerate. When accelerating your already wanting to get back on the gas and your matching engine speed without knowing it. When decelerating you have to make yourself give it a little gas to ease into each gear.

Doing it correctly and smoothly only comes with time.

[longish post for novice, basics etc, just scroll on bye]

bikes used not have speedos or tachos, thus speed and revs
were still happening and riders were still riding and learning
riding skills, but without the additional numerical input..
point being that aside from speed limits you dont really
need to know the exact numbers representing your speed
or engine revolutions per minute..

while it may be of some value to have reference points
[such as a vertical tacho indicator for around 6 - 7000rpm]
when learning your motorcycle, it is also a good idea
to allow your brain to be aware of and respond to
what is actually happening.. your eyes and skin will give
good indications of relative speed, together with your ears
and even subtle sensing thru fingers hands feet and body
will give you [unavoidable] brain data on what your engine
and motorcycle are actually doing..

tacho/speedo numbers are only, an indication,
and should not add to potential stress leves thru
attempting to calculate rev/speed rations while riding..
a glance at the speedo now and then to check speed
or tacho for revs is ok of course, but best keep eyes
and thus awareness and focus ahead of you,
to the place you are entering and will be soon..
usually thats dead ahead, together with peripheral vision,
and also with head turned into any corner you are entering
or proceeding thru,, ie, watching where you will be as
you continue thru a continuing corner or curve..

taking off and continuing [accelerating] means going from first gear
up thru the gears at sufficient revs [better more, than less] which
will generate forward momentum thus 'speed', as you already know..
similarly, in reverse order, when and as you reduce, speed, you will
go back down thru the gears, until you reach standstill or whatever
slower speed suits what you are doing or about to do..

just as you change gears upward using clutch as you go to smooth
out the changes, so you can do the reverse sequence without
using clutch.. especially at lower speeds..
however, at higher speeds/revs when you change down thru gears,
the numerical gear ratio will result in higher, revs at clutch out..
[at very high revs in the lower gears this can result in wheel lock
due to this factor when exaggerated that way]
when its not that exaggerated tho but still at fairly high revs/speed
the result will be the back wheel not locking but still creating
resistance to, forward motion/speed and engine revolutions..
this then is 'engine braking'..

ie, not merely matching revs as speed drops, when the engine revs
will drop as you ease the throttle off and pull the clutch lever in,
then rise again to [about] the same revs you were at before
changing down a gear then continue to drop as speed decreases
with throttle eased off.. this is matching the moving forces..
which makes for smoother transitions and generally stable
forward momentum.. [as opposed to jerky interactions]

so what you want and should aim for in practice and general
riding is, smoothness.. this is a foundational skill in riding..
everything, is effected by smoothness, in a good way..
the opposite of smoothness ultimately means losing
control and crashing.. there is no limit to smoothness..

when learning these basic skills, which as members advise
will happen in response to practice and experience,
it is therefor best to opt for smooth actions in such as
clutching, braking, changing gears and all other transitions
such as from vertical to angled when leaning to turn..
while, one result of smooth skills will include efficiency
which can manifest in faster actions, it is still the best
option to do things slowly, at first, for smoothness,
than going for speed and fast actions, which wont be
naturally smooth as going fast is the result of,,
smoothness, and not the creator of smoothness..

so when you are practicing which is every time
you even think of, riding your motorcycle,
it is best to start everything slowly rather
than attempting to do things fasts first up..

slowly, smoothly, deliberately, with awareness
and conscious control, leads to good technique
- and - results in the pivotal brain training..

brain training results in good riding habits..
habitual riding skills dont rely on thinking,
which can be directed towards other things
such as whats happening ahead of you,
what other vehicles are doing or about to do,
and suchlike..

obviously when first learning to ride you must use
brain and thinking to ingest the basics of what
you are trying to do, as in any skills development..
but the goal is for your body to ride the bike,
while you or your mind decide to do things
and prepare to do things, such as when to
slow down for a corner or stop for a light
or take care of drivers doing this or that..

also, you want to be relaxed and enjoying riding[!]
this means your body doing what it should be doing
[smoothly] which is also pleasant and nice,
while your mind is also enjoying this
very enjoyable life experience..
riding your motorcycle...

any and all practice, with the right frame of mind,
is and must be and cannot other than be, good..
it will result in ongoing increments of increased skill..
like any activity, there will be phases and breakthrus
in even the most simple actions such as using
your clutch.. fingers and hand and wrist will,
develop this skill.. they will get stronger
and become more coordinated as a result..
thus, they will become better tools for
you brain and mind to use to better
increase, smoothness, and riding
pleasure [ ]