Since you're talking about gameplay, I have a question. Do you usually leave it in High, and adjust your speed using the gas pedal? Of course, if you slow down too much you would need to shift into low to get started again. Or do you shift from low to high when the action gets tough?
When I played it BITD, I don't even remember using the gas pedal to adjust my speed. It was always floored. My guess is the machine was probably not really calibrated well, and you couldn't get to the fast speeds anyway.