Bob, did you buy your HRR from Home Depot or an independent dealer?
Either way, you might be able to return it and trade-up to the HRX217HYA model, which has the hydrostatic drive transmission (Cruise Control) and it offers a more precise ground speed design.
There is an
orange lever near the throttle that sets the
maximum ground speed from 0-4 mph, and the
large black spring-loaded drive clutch lever on the handlebar that controls the speed
from 0-maximum set point. So you can set the orange lever to midway (about 2 mph) then when you move the black lever, it will allow speed control from 0-2 mph. If you need a brief bump up or down, just move the orange lever a bit. I typically set the orange lever to my normal flat open walking speed, then just let off on the black lever a bit in the turns. It provides a much more precise level of ground speed control, in my humble opinion. Honda has use this control design on their hydrostatic transmissions for over 25 years, so it has a solid proven history and is very reliable. You may wish to go test drive one and see for yourself. Depending on how long you've had your HRR, Home Depot or the dealer make take it back in for 100% credit on trade for a new HRX.
The HRX also offers a slew of other upgrades, including mower powerful engine, variable mulching/bagging, lifetime warranty on the NeXite composite mower deck, larger wheels with full ball bearings, 5 year warranty, and my favorite, the Roto-Stop blade clutch (yellow button): let go of the lever, and the blades stop, but the
engine keeps running. Here's a link to read about it:
Honda HRX217HYA