If you think riding around at 30-40 mph in 4th gear is the best/only way to ride then maybe you shouldnt be giving any advice either. 40 mph in second gear is around 4-5k rpm on our bike. Which is still a low rpm for these but gives you all the throttle response youll need in emergency situations.

 

So yesterday I took out my bike again and rode around town in 2nd & 3rd gear rpm's were around 4-6k gotta say I love it. the response was like no other when I needed it.. also I am so used to cars I would never be at 6k rpm just cruising around.. But on a bike Now I see the difference..

Thanks again for the Info..

 

Amazing what being closer to the power band can do isn't it....

Short shifting/bogging is not only dangerous (as it limits response) and boring, it's also bad for the motor as it lugs the engine, increases the chance of knocking, and can hammer bearings. For daily driving, find a reasonable RPM to shift at (2/3-3/4 of the range is usually good area) and maintain 1/3-1/2 for cruise.

 

I try to stay around 6-7 at least.

Anything less these bikes don't get up and move as fast as i'd like and that's our biggest advantage for safety.

 

Yeah, i'm in 3rd max when driving around town.
Still enough power to take most corners and, like others said, enough to get out of the way of danger when needed.

The guys driving in 6th around town must be shifting a lot! Seeing most of the towns here do have traffic lights, roundabouts, speedbumps etc.

 

Depends on where I'm at, what kind of traffic, and how fast I need to be going. On the freeway I'm usually around 7k @ 80mph in 6th gear, or 4-5k @ 50-60 mph in 6th gear. Anything lower than 50 and I'll usually drop a gear or two because then you start bogging down.

Around town, usually 4th or 5th @ 4-6k. If I'm not paying attention, I'll end up in 6th going 60mph, but that's only because I'm still trying to break my gear/shifting habits from riding the 500.

Normally I just listen to the exhaust tone and that tells me whether I need to shift or not.