Is there a big disadvantage to not blipping the throttle on fast downchanges?

Done Silverstone the other day and I was chaging down gears without blipping the throttle (as it's so bloody quick I didn't want to compromise braking!). The rear wasn't locking and it all sounded ok bar one or two misjudged shifts.

Is there any danger in harming the motor by doing this? Is this recommended? How do the big boys do it and do they change down several gears at the last minute when the revs are low?

Originally Posted by teriyakimonkey

Done Silverstone the other day and I was chaging down gears without blipping the throttle (as it's so bloody quick I didn't want to compromise braking!). The rear wasn't locking and it all sounded ok bar one or two misjudged shifts.

Is there any danger in harming the motor by doing this? Is this recommended? How do the big boys do it and do they change down several gears at the last minute when the revs are low?

You run the danger of locking your rear going into a corner.

Big boys more than likely have slipper clutches, but I would imagine they blip the throttle anyways. If you practice, you can do it while braking and won't compromise on anything. It takes a little while - I'm guessing you're coming on and off the brakes and starting to pogo under braking when trying to blip? Just need to practice dude! As you get faster, you'll be braking from high speeds and the need to blip will become greater, so best learn then skill now

You don't have to blip, just make sure your let the clutch out smoothly, and not too quickly.

[flymo]

Originally Posted by lukemillar

You run the danger of locking your rear going into a corner.

Big boys more than likely have slipper clutches, but I would imagine they blip the throttle anyways. If you practice, you can do it while braking and won't compromise on anything. It takes a little while - I'm guessing you're coming on and off the brakes and starting to pogo under braking when trying to blip? Just need to practice dude! As you get faster, you'll be braking from high speeds and the need to blip will become greater, so best learn then skill now

+1, when you start to get quicker and quicker you'll find that the downshifts need to be done MUCH quicker in perhaps half the time or less than you do now, and likely over a range of more gears. If you dont blip just right at that stage you'll almost certainly lock the rear enough to initiate a slide and risk dropping it.

With practice you should be able to brake and blip at the same time, it sounds awkward at first but you'll get the hang of it and be able to blip as you downshift without easing off the brakes.

Whats a clutch?

Originally Posted by Flamin_Squirrel

You don't have to blip, just make sure your let the clutch out smoothly, and not too quickly.

agreed i've never done it... ok only done one track day... but as the instructor said to me.. smooth is the key

Well, I suppose it could reduce any wear on your clutch; by blipping the throttle on downchanges you keep the engine speed matching the rear wheel speed, so the clutch dosnt have to slip/be slipped as much to equalize the speed of the two.

I blip on most downchanges, I find it gives a smoother shift, and also the bike feels more stable. I've noticed that simply shutting the throttle and whipping in the clutch, letting the revs fall, makes the bike more unstable...I did this once mid corner (it was a long corner of decreasing radius, I had to downshift) and when i pulled in the clutch, the bike stood up. Not very nice!

Best thing to do is to go out and try it; how I do it is clutch in, gear down, blip, clutch out.

Can be harder to blip when braking if you are using more fingers, so try two-figner braking at first to get a bit more grip on the throttle.

(p.s., im no expert...I probably do it wrong but it seems to work for me)

Matt

On the road, no real need but on track yes. We are talking about track riding here afterall. Learn the skill and it will prevent those lockups. I get two fingers on the brakes and can still blip. As Luke said, practice.

[yorkie_chris]

Surely the other consideration is reducing the wear on the gearbox? If your gears are engaging with a big THWACK then maybe think about different technique.

The slipper clutches are only to stop the rear wheel slipping, your's is a 675 right? Shouldn't be too bad a problem since I #think# they have a slipper clutch as standard, and the rear shock isn't stupidly overdamped on rebound.

[johnnyrod]

It's all about smoothness more than engine wear, as noted above. Do it all the time, it doesn't take long. If you need more convincing the see what the master says:

http://forums.superbikeschool.com/in...?showtopic=258