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I started an advanced riding course a few days ago: I thought it wouldn't hurt to improve my skills somewhat.

One of the first things the instructor told me was to stick to lower gears, to get quicker acceleration and more responsive engine braking when I needed them. So for the rest of that lesson I was forbidden to go beyond third gear!

Yesterday, this advice quite possible saved me from a nasty accident. A pheasant (excuse the link: in my ignorance I don't know whether they exist outside Europe) leapt out of a roadside hedge into the road right in front of my bike. It was a freak event - the sort of thing you just can't anticipate. There was about half a second to react. Because I was doing 60 mph (~100 kph) in 3rd gear, as the instructor had suggested, the bike slowed really quickly as I rolled off the throttle and went for the brakes and I just managed to avoid hitting the stupid bird. Had I been in 4th or 5th gear, as I normally would have been on that road, I don't think I'd have managed to slow down enough - it was that tight.

So I'm curious: what gear do you guys tend to use when travelling at that sort of speed?

That depends on the weather and my riding style...
If it's dry and I'm in the mood for twisties, I'd be in 3rd gear @ 100km/h (possibly even 2nd, even though that's quite close to the rev limiter - maybe even a little too close to my liking).

If the roads are wet, or when I'm commuting/just feel like cruising, 5th or even 6th gear would do the trick. If I need quicker acceleration, I can always sift down a gear or two.
I think it's crazy to keep it in third @ a constant 100km/h if you're just cruising around. If you need hard acceleration, shifting down only takes a second.

BTW If it was a runner (the pheasant), I think I probably would have kept the throttle wide open and try to dodge it, instead of slamming the brakes. I think there's less chance of going down if you hit it anyway

No, not a runner. I just jumped out and sat down! It was the strangest thing.

I've never made it passed 3rd gear in town(including NSL roads) and I only ever really change up if I run out of revs or think I'm being a bit too noisy.

I've used 6th gear properly once in 10 months of ownership and that was to cruise down the M4 for 100miles. the only other times are when I've been playing about bouncing up and down through the box to keep me entertained

your throttle is your first line of control on the bike and by being in a more responsive gear you'll be better able to deal with the majority of situations.

This is my problem ,i just keep going up threw the gears ...coming from a V twin ...im used to just geting into 5th and leaving it there, I still had power and engine braking.
I got to remind my self VERY DAY to stay in the lower gears and 7000+ rpm is fine.
I made my self ride 50kms in 3rd gear in the snowie mountians and improved my ride and skills sooo much in an hour it was ridiculas.
All I had to do was concentrate on my lines .

i use 6th gear and rely on the torque of the motor.
lazy but fun.

This brilliant motor is so torquey that I find I can shift at 5000rpm and still have plenty of grunt in 6th. When I need (or want) it to really move, I drop a couple of cogs and nail it. But the engine has plenty of thrust for general riding without wringing it out- unlike a 600 supersport, for instance.

Pheasants are very common in the United States, although they are not native.

Pheasants were brought into America from both Europe and Asia. They have displaced native species in the US. This usually happens when an exotic species is brought into an area where it did not evolve naturally.

Hunters love them. It is a very popular game bird. Most people don't even know that Pheasants are not a native species. I am a member of "Pheasants Forever", a local conservation group dedicated to creating and maintaining pheasant habitat..... kind of funny when you think about it. Helping out a non-native, exotic, invasive bird species.

Because of the torque, I almost never feel like the bike is under revved. I like to keep it around 5k-6k rpms around town, so 3rd and 4th are used often. If I am going to be cruising at 50+mph for any length of time, I'll be in 6th gear.

If I'm out having fun on some twisty stretch of road, I like to keep the revs high. I'm no stranger to the limiter.

The above postings about gear usage explains a lot about my fuel economy compared to alot of guys on this board. If I'm in the twisties or playing I use the lower gears but for cruising around town and highway use I use all the gears as needed and let the bike rev comparatively like a daily driven car.
To me advanced riding and using lower gear would be for sport or track use only, not your average daily riding.

TwoUnderPar: Thanks for that!

You know, I can't imagine why anyone would think it's an achievement to shoot a pheasant. Their default response to any threat is to leap in the air making a lot of noise and then to fly away... REALLY SLOWLY.

ROFL!!!!!!!! thats too funny

Yeah, but with all the noise they make, hunters get startled and most of them miss anyway...<G>

Forest rats, OTOH... are WAY too numerous.....especially in the NE and north mid west...

PETA..... People Eating Tasty Animals..... YUM.....
Mary

Suicides are on the rise. It's a sign of these tough economic times...

I use this bike primarily in town, and rarely see 4th. 1st seems to be only to 12-15mph, 2nd I'll use anywhere from 15-35mph, 3rd 25-55mph, and 4th only if I'm trying to save milage costs and get better economy. My primary reason for purchasing was to get better economy than my '05 Galant GTS' <20mpg in town. I'll even run 5th gear sometimes at 40mph, but I would consider it rather unsafe.

Both in my car and on my bike, the throttle has saved me every time (saved from a side swipe, and people coming into my lane when I had some jerk on my tail) and the brake has only caused trouble (1 accident in my car, and dropped my bike twice going less than 5mph....). So it's a little nice to keep it at higher RPMs in a lower gear to get that torque when you REALLY need it.

The fall isn't what kills you, it's the sudden deceleration of the ground