OK people, thanks for the advice. I don't want to be starting bad habits that will be detrimental my my (or my bike's) health. LOL

 

I use all my functioning fingers. Which are my index and middle fingers. Ring finger is gone and little finger don't work from a work accident in 2001. Original clutch in 98 model bike that I have had since 2003. No problems for me.

 

I use 2 fingers when I'm trying to clutch up a wheelie .

 

You don't need to use the clutch at all, the gears will shift but you'd be fecking up your bike pretty well.

 

Thats how I Ride,,and If they wanna ride I'm down with that.

 

If I'm riding in traffic then I usually have all four fingers of both hands on the levers. I've done this for so long now that it feels natural. If I'm not in traffic then I'll just leave a couple of fingers on the levers. If I'm on a back road with good visibility then I'll ride with no fingers on the levers and just relax. Riding in a group of other bikes is riding in traffic.

 

X2 on that, I just finished up my Harley Basic Riders Course today on the range and they advised using all 4 fingers to pull the clutch so you make a nice smooth motion and you have more control with 4 fingers versus 2.

 

I recall being taught in the MSF course NOT to ride with your front brake covered because the natural reaction when something comes up is to grip the handlebars. If your brake is covered you're very likely to over sqeeze the front brake and possibly lock the front wheel, even if you didn't intend to slow down at all. Is it good to be ready to stop in traffic? Yeah. But when something unforeseen jumps out at you like a pot hole or road debris or anything that makes you tense up, having your front brake covered could make an uneasy situation worse.

 

This is the same thing I was taught in my MSF course. I do still sometimes "cover" the brake, but I'm trying to break that habit.