BurnPgh wrote on 07/09/09 at 13:53:16:


Other than the initial start it is not difficult with a little practice on the technique.

Yeah, I've had to do that before when my clutch cable snapped.  Just wondering - What kind of damage does that do to the transmission, clutch, or other components?

spacepirates wrote on 07/14/09 at 08:53:33:

Pushed like hell in N then jammed it in 1st.  Remember she was already hot and ready to go.  Should've gone for 2nd, but was more confident 1st would work.
Hindsight being 20/20... might've been able to electric start it, then push her up and jam into gear.  When I was stopping, tried to find neutral but couldn't.

tried this new-fangled no clutch shifting thing on my way home from work today, it was quite the pregnant dog.

the higher gears were fine, but getting from first to second, and almost anything shifting down was kind of tricky.

  I used to have a BSA in the 1950's that I ran on the dragstrip once in a while and never used the clutch going down the track. I don't know what effect it has mechanically but I never had any trouble. If I remember correctly, most everyone just kicked them into the gears. The BSA shift pattern was one up and three down so you were pushing down to go up in the gears. Gene

The rider's task when upshifting is to get it done completely smoothly.  With a toe under the shifter pulling up not-too-hard, roll the throttle part way off then back on to the correct point as the transmission shifts.  It it isn't smooth, you didn't do your throttle action right.

My bike mechanic recommends avoiding clutchless downshifting and avoiding 1-2 upshifting to minimize the chance of transmission damage (except in the winter when he needs the work).

I think Keith Code's California Superbike School teaches the riders to use their clutch on downshifts.
"The actions of riding one lap of a complex circuit with say 13 corners, like our favorite training track, the Streets of Willow Springs, breaks down something like this:

Throttle position changes (including throttle blips) 50
Steering inputs 22
Gear changes 20
Clutch actions (downshifts only) 10
Front brake pulls and releases 14 "
http://forums.superbikeschool.com/index.php?showtopic=75

Only question I have is what do you do if you encounter a stop light or somewhere else that you have to come to a complete stop at? She'll stall if you don't clutch-in in those situations with Bike in gear ...