This is an interesting discussion.so..why not continue with Techman's comment/issue.

After taking a ton of action photos, I've settled on using the A or AV (aperture ) setting choice on all of my cameras...for airplane work. That way, YOU are selecting the correct exposure ( f-stop) and the camera is setting the fastest shutter speed that it can, given the light available.

Of course, this is an over-simplification, since you also have to choose the best ISO setting (film speed equivalent) for your picture first. Of course, then there are the settings for white balance; focus mode etc. I love having all of these choices, but I do settle in on just a few for particular types of shots.

Ame...as a new user now of an Ultra Zoom camera, I recommend that you spend some time going through the "White Paper" written by an early Sony H5 user. While it was written specifically to that brand, it contains tons of useful information for anyone to maximize the use of any Ultra Zoom style of camera.
http://www.aakatz.com/whitepaper/

regards, Rich