Counting shifts !?!?!? What does that do? lol
See, now that takes thought ... and I don't do that well enough to count to 5 while remembering where I am. hehe
I seem to be one of the few not missing 6th.
I think it has a lot to do with what we are used to, how many miles we are putting on, and the kinds of roads we are running.
Think of the irony.
A bike that will run from zero mph to 75 mph, in one gear (third), and yet some of us want another gear.
Not saying there is anything wrong with wanting 6th.
I believe I understand where you are coming from.
My background is four gears, and fifth is the extra one. As I recall my 1000cc Sportster only had 4.
A lot of riders are used to 5, and want 6 with the Rocket.
I came from 4 gears myself, and never searched for 5th.
But now,,, things are different on a rocket,
it should have a sixth.
You can tell from the way the motor is crying for it at highway speeds.
ok, maybe a "little" above highway speeds.
But never-the-less, 6th would be nice.
Not only does it cry out for another highway gear, but when your banging through the gears accelerating hard, every gear feels the same. After 2nd, they all pull the same, my past bikes all had a distinct top gear feel to them. Whether they were 5 or 6 speeds, that last gear felt distinctly "the end". My R3 doesn't have that "the end" feel to it, so I can't always tell that I'm already in fifth.
That's a very good point. Out here where the speed limits are 75 and traffic moves at least 10 mph above that, another gear would be very welcome. Running below 3K should make the fuel stops a bit less frequent.
That's exactly my point. It always feels like there should be one more gear and sitting on 3K rpm just seems unnecessary given where the torque is. I can count (and mostly get it right) and I also know where the needle sits in each gear - well, 4th and 5th at any rate. It's a minor annoyance to try to change when you can't. What I dislike is that the engine has to rev way higher than it needs to.
Back to my original (rhetorical) question - what was Triumph was thinking??
Don't know, and can't answer that one,
but,
a GiPro Will let you quit searching for it.
Easy hook up, and worth it's weight in gold,
actually worth more to me cause of the "little extra boost" it provides...
Not to mention not searching for 6th anymore..
I ride about 12000 miles a year lately, and I figure about 10% is on interstates. Even then I am riding hills most would call mountains (Highest point in Pennsylvannia right across the hill).
I've had cages with Overdrive, never used it much on the roads I ride.
Flat interstates, use it all day long.
If it were put to a vote, I'm in favor for a 6th for the Rocket.
Expect to be riding it in Flordia after I retire, and would be nice there.