I have two challenges... shifting down and checking the oil level

[JustPassinThru_imp]

Thanks all.
I will review my manual for the sight-glass cleaning procedure, which I was unaware of. What will they come up with next?
I'm at 594 miles, so I suppose it is almost time for the 600 mile oil change That might well make everything clearer, so to speak.
As for the transmission, I will wait a few more miles before cursing the bike again. One of those add-on gear indicators would do me a lot of good, too, I suppose. I often find I am in a higher gear when stopping than I thought. By the time I figure it out, I'm stopped and annoyed again. Counting from one to five isn't so hard... it's the counting from five to one that is the tricky part
Now, I gotta go review me some oil threads

I had much the same troubles and sometimes still do.

First, as noted, you have to be rolling for the shift to happen. Not unlike dry-shifting a car or, more obviously, a truck with a crude long-throw shift. If nothing is moving in the gearbox, you will have trouble if the engaging keys don't line up.

Since you cannot double-clutch with a bike transmission, you have to feed it motion by rolling.

Now. Downshifting on this transmission...if you're going overly slow, like walking speed, and you try to bang-bang-bang your way down into first...you will have problems. If you even try to fast-shift down at about 25 mph, you will have odd behaviors.

What I've found: Go down one gear, generally the first drop goes smooth, and let the clutch out for a second. Then in again and go two more. Out again, then two more...don't hit 1st until you're at walking speed. And don't expect to find N unless you first go into 1st. Sometimes you will. Not always; and if you try for N at too fast a ground speed, you can invertantly downshift with a THUNK that you just KNOW is no good.

It can be a nuisance; but it's one of few on this design. Also...make SURE your foot is all the way off the shift lever. When I changed from shoes to boots, suddenly I was having some odd shifting issues. It was my big heavy boot.