Expert: Pat Hahn - 8/16/2009

Question
Hi Pat,  When stopping at a roundabout (to give way), then taking off in first gear.  I was told that you should be able to get your bike into third gear before you really take the angle/corner of the roundabout.  How do you upshift in such a small amount of time, between taking off and entering the roundabout.  This question followed up on a lesson, where I had taken off in first, then was fiddling to get into second, while halfway through the roundabout (was going straight ahead essentially), not full circle.  I hope that makes sense..  many thanks,  Helen

Answer
This is a tricky question, but it's good that you're thinking about it.

So:

You should "be able to" get your bike into third gear ...

or

You should "get" your bike into third gear ...

There is a difference!

Rather than basing your roundabout strategy on what gear you "should" be in, base your gear strategy on what speed you should use in a roundabout. If the best speed for a given roundabout is 20kph, for example, decide what gear is best to use at that speed.

Upshifting quickly requires aggressive acceleration. (In fact, upshifting smoothly requires aggressive acceleration.) If you're not moving fast enough for, say, third gear, not only should you not BE in third gear, the motorcycle will resist it, as well.

So, if you want to get your bike into third gear for a roundabout quickly, it will require you to accelerate and shift quickly. That is, accelerate aggressively in short bursts of throttle. When you shift, squeeze and release the clutch quickly, shifting quickly as you do. Don't dillydally, don't separate the motions in time--roll off/squeeze/shift/release/roll on all nearly simultaneously. If you accelerate hard, and roll off the throttle just as you shift, you'll find that it shifts much smoother--the bike likes it that way.

Many riders don't understand the need for speed when shifting. You shift gears to match the engine to road speed. If you don't have the road speed to require a shift, there's no reason to shift. And the bike resists ... it slows down, clunks into gear, and you have to really work the controls to get it going again. On the other hand, if you've added some speed and acceleration into the equation, the bike is excited to shift, and helps you do it.

I hope that helps, or at least makes a little sense.

Pat