Cougar

if I were I'd take a nice long ride in the country with few cars so you can experiment it each gear. There should be a point between each gear set that you can shift almost seamlessly. Have you done any clutchless shifting? Key points here are learn to shift FAST, not necessarily clutching fast but letting off the throttle just right and clicking up a gear without instantly adding or subtracting power from the next gear. Think of it like... how could I shift the smoothest if i didnt have a clutch. 1st to 2nd is obviously harder due to the big ratio change but all others you should be able to just give a lil flick of the throttle to drop load enough to enter the next gear with neutral load. If it takes more than a lil flick, you're not in a good rpm to shift. It should be pretty clear if you're too high or too low based on the amout the bike lurches forward or back the instant it takes control. This isnt useful for our typical, vroom click vroom click vroom riding. But I think you're trying to find a nice peaceful medium for daily riding and this is how i do it. You say you're concerned you're shifting too low... if you're transmission is clunking hard on the shift, your revs are WAY too low.

Cougar32v I dont get to play too often lately but i have ufc2009, fable2, L4D, WaW, and cod4

nick can you pm me a copy of that review? I'm 6'3" 225, been riding an fz6 since 07 and im looking for a big bike. Honestly I just dont dig on most of suzuki's offerings and since im one of the guys that rides to work every day for 5 months a year, I want something comfortable, easy enough to handle in downtown traffic, but also adjustable suspension and decent ergos to hang off the side a bit. Ive been looking at (i know somebody's gonna bust down the give ya shit door here) a Buell firebolt, R1, busa, zx14, fjr1300 aprilia rsv 1000r, and ducati 1098 the itallian bikes arent so comfy but the ergos suit my body very very well. What I dont want is the yamaha style top end only power (fun but no good for downtown, i hate having to mind my gears alllll the time) i think the rsv 100r and zx14 suit my size the best, tho i think the rsv is more racey than i want. and the front of the 14 is just nasty in my opinion. The R1 and Duc get my votes for the underseat exhaust, along with the firebolt and its ground exhaust. Firebolt also has a huge fuel milage bonus.

I cant find a brand name on them, but I use these black and white buds I got from walmart. I think the box was white/silver/black The silicone buds come in diff sizes and wear very very well, dont pull out easily when putting a helmet on. They also have an inline mic and a jack that someone else could plug in and share. Also they're 2.5mm and come with a 3.5mm adaptor so you can use them with anything. I run pandora radio and listen to audio books on my blackberry. you can also seemlessly switch to an incomming call (while still working) so these are a perfect all in one solution for me. Cant talk while riding but that was expected. Oh and they also reduce a lil bit of the wind noise i get from my icon helmet.

ya know i see a lot of ppl ripping major racing names for being dicks. I can't say id think anything different if I had been rubbed the wrong way by someone. But I'm sure ive had bitchy days where someone that didnt know me before thinks I'm a complete ass. I guess it would come down to how they think of fans. Say (theoretically here im just making shit up in a way that i could excuse) someone like john force doesnt think fans contributed to his success and he wants to spend his time focused on racing. Then add perhaps the frustration of having trouble with a few parts not working as they should and he remembers he has to go deal with fans... Yeah i can understand being pissing and saying something stupid. Like i said that, I totally made up a situation there and if he had some something shitty I didnt like... yeah I'd be upset too. Now some sports, say nascar, are built off the fan base. For a nascar driver to ever lose his cool with fans that make his career happen... Ok im done rambling now. I hope ya get my point.

Yeah I ride downtown everyday and its always aweful. At least Washington and 17th were both fixed. but the michigan coming from greenbelt is horrid... I hate when traffic light make me go that way.

I'm 6'3" 200 with long arms... i tend towards joe rocket gear for fitment.. but thats mainly because gpmoto stuff went bye bye... Their jackets fit me perfectly.

I do text and drive sometimes, but yes, I'm always peeking around for bikes. actually I try to defend them from assholes when i drive. Like if I see a car or truck not being bike safe, I'll try to get in between them and the bike and try to block or whatever i need to to make more space. I know some moves may make a rider worry a bit, but I'm sure most relax a bit when they see me taking up 2 lanes to stop a ram from charging up their ass.

my ex was 4'10" and rode an 05 ninja 500. corbin seat that was rediculously lower and thinner and dropped 2" front and back. I could only take a 90* corner at like 16mph or the lean would scrape frame (belly plastics removed btw) She rode it ok mostly. one of her first times out she put it down hard and never had the guts to really take a corner again tho... oh and she didnt compress the suspension so it was scarey for her at high speeds. So yeah, all and all I'd say it was all just a bad idea. Oh and I'll suggest for females... Icon makes a nice heeled boot that my ex loved for riding, may want to check those out.