2nd is my favorite.
Low enough to call on the torque if you need to square up a turn, but high enough to keep moving, and set you up for the taller gears.
Third and up, you have to stay in the power band, which gets increasingly narrow.
First is good off the line, but will slam you against the dashboard if you are already moving.
Yeah, second is where the action is.
Man, I miss standard transmissions.