Suz, The Bernina Stitch Regulator has two operation modes. In Mode 1 you control the stopping or starting of the machine by pressing the foot control. This does not control the speed, the BSR senses the motion, stopping momentarily when you stop moving the fabric, the stitching speed going faster when you move the fabric faster, slower when you move it slower. In Mode 2 the foot control isn't used to start and stop the machine, when the BSR is activated the machine starts stitching when you move the fabric and stops when you stop moving it. Good for small items, but when you have a heavy quilt on the machine, if you don't have a tight hold and say the rest of the quilt falls on the floor....well, the material is moving...the machine is stitching...but NOT necessarily where you intended the stitches to go..lol