A class of its own

It was so good to get out and ride 600s for this issue’s cover test. I’d like to think that middleweight sportsbikes have played a part in most riders’ two-wheeled endeavours at some point in time… they sure have in mine. My first 600 was a nail. I was 17, and it couldn’t have been much younger itself. It was a steel-framed CBR600 that my dad and I took to Cadwell for a club race meeting. I’d not ridden the bike before and to make matters worse, it was lashing it down. I cartwheeled it down the Gooseneck and took it home in Tupperware boxes. It was the first of seven 600s I’ve gone on to own, including everything from GSX-Rs to R6s – I love the things.

It’s hard not to have favourites when it comes to bikes and I reckon Triumph’s Daytona 675 has got to be my favourite middleweight of all time. On the road or track, it really is something special for loads of different reasons. I wish it was still in production, sharpened to suit the standards of today with smarter tech, performance and styling. It’s mad to think how good such a bike would be, with the closest thing to that reality being the 765 Moto2 version Triumph pumped out a few years back in limited volume. The question manufacturers want answering is whether it’s just nostalgia that fuels such thoughts or whether people would genuinely want to own a 600 these days? Who can blame them? The reason the sector got dropped was because the R&D costs were nigh on the same as a litre bike’s, but the sales of 600s plummeted faster than a dropped stone. It could be argued that the void that was left is slowly being filled by middleweight twins, like Yamaha’s R7 and Aprilia’s RS660. They are cheaper to produce and easier to ride for those stepping up through the capacities, but they don’t offer the same buzz as a 600… not even near, in my opinion. A 600 is a solid option for everyday antics, but you still have to work them to get the best from them, whereas litre bikes are effortless nowadays. I like the challenge they throw down, and even more so the reward they offer for riding at your best to extract their potential. It’s a fulfilling experience that I hope future generations of riders get the chance to savour. The good news is, as this group test hammered home, there are still loads of great, used 600s on the market. The bad news is they are holding their value impressively. Do you own a 600? Do you miss 600s? Do you not care at all about the class? Whatever the score, it’d be good to get your take on the sector, so drop us a line and tell us a tale or two. But first, grab a brew and enjoy the mag.