St George SMP 1st & 2nd Post up your videos!!

[Marshy]

Are clutch less downshifts really necessary? Seems like putting extra load on the gearbox at a point where you could use clutch with out losing time. Or is this another slipper clutch move?

Nope, not necessary at all (or recommended), but I once did the whole 4 hour with no clutch lever - so clutchless up and down shifts all day! Veeeeery interesting day....

As Jamie said, it's a useful skill to have in your bag of tricks, and also contributes significantly to your overall mechanical knowledge. If you know how something works, you know better how to ride so as not to hurt/break it.

[Spilly209]

Nope, not necessary at all (or recommended), but I once did the whole 4 hour with no clutch lever - so clutchless up and down shifts all day! Veeeeery interesting day....

As Jamie said, it's a useful skill to have in your bag of tricks, and also contributes significantly to your overall mechanical knowledge. If you know how something works, you know better how to ride so as not to hurt/break it.

Yea I got taught how to shift down without clutch at a Bernie Hatton course at the farm. You basically put pressure on the gear lever first them give a healthy rev whilst simultaneously pushing down (in street pattern) for the gear down. When you get it right it's cool & sounds cool but you don't always get it right. And if you were to get it wrong hard on the breaks coming into a corner I reckon it would cause you to run on at the very least.

So I totally agree it's a good skill to learn just in case you ever need it but I'd use for emergencies only. I can't help but think MotoGP bikes have slipper clutches for a reason and I've seen they always use the clutch for every downshift even when it's multiple downshifts from 5th to 2nd or whatever. You can see with onboard footage they pull the clutch in rapid fire for each downshift. I really don't know why Bernie Hatton teaches this, CSS sure don't and nobody fast I've ever asked about it has agreed with it. Maybe it's a road riding tip or something...


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[Saturnalian]

Nope, not necessary at all (or recommended), but I once did the whole 4 hour with no clutch lever - so clutchless up and down shifts all day! Veeeeery interesting day....

As Jamie said, it's a useful skill to have in your bag of tricks, and also contributes significantly to your overall mechanical knowledge. If you know how something works, you know better how to ride so as not to hurt/break it.

+1 on this. Thats exactly where i was coming from. Its all about being able to, and understanding how the bits work but there is more to it.....

Yea I got taught how to shift down without clutch at a Bernie Hatton course at the farm. You basically put pressure on the gear lever first them give a healthy rev whilst simultaneously pushing down (in street pattern) for the gear down. When you get it right it's cool & sounds cool but you don't always get it right. And if you were to get it wrong hard on the breaks coming into a corner I reckon it would cause you to run on at the very least.

So I totally agree it's a good skill to learn just in case you ever need it but I'd use for emergencies only. I can't help but think MotoGP bikes have slipper clutches for a reason and I've seen they always use the clutch for every downshift even when it's multiple downshifts from 5th to 2nd or whatever. You can see with onboard footage they pull the clutch in rapid fire for each downshift. I really don't know why Bernie Hatton teaches this, CSS sure don't and nobody fast I've ever asked about it has agreed with it. Maybe it's a road riding tip or something...

Hang on a second Spilly. Lets expand on this more, do you blip your throttle on downshifts. We all do, well Nick doesn't, but it sounds fucking awesome.
But we really do this to unload the gearbox so we can use less clutch and get our shifts done quicker under hard braking. Just the same as every MotoGP and in Particular World Superbike / Supersport rider i've watched. You know those guys on the machines "just like" ours. Have you ever looked at their throttle hand when they're coming into a corner.
That throttle blip is to aid the gearbox. Or do you do it to keep your rev's up ? Its only got 2 wheels, not 18.

Why not use this skill/ drill to find out exactly how little we need to blip that throttle on our bikes in order to make those gear changes smoother and quicker so we can do it more efficiently and quicker on the track.
Thats why he teaches you that drill, and thats why i practiced it