It is just personal preference. Some claim it makes for faster upshifts when leaned over coming off a corner hard. But that is HIGHLY debatable. Many top racers use a normal 'street pattern' (Hayden for one) on their race bikes.
It comes down to personal choice. Some folks like it and find it works for them. Many more people try it and claim they are faster with it, but really arn't. I suspect there is alot of 'I'm just so dam cool' factor involved.....
There is no advantage to it on a streetbike. There is also a greater chance of blowing shifts due to rider confusion. I would not recommend it to anyone for any reason, but some folks delight in being different.....
This may have to do with the old school way of building cafe racers. It has more to do with riding position than faster shifting. Because of the lower bars and lay down position it was common to mount some rear ward drivers pegs and flip shifter to the rear thereby reversing shift pattern. This dates back to the days when sport bikes weren't even heard of and their early counter parts the cafe racers were mainly built by the owners by modifying a stock bike. (you may not be able to afford a Dunstall Norton but you could sure make an old Bonnie look the part) I believe the XLCR did this from the factory (but not sure as I haven't seen one in several years) and perhaps some Euro bikes as well.
Amdonim wrote:Awesome, thanks for the info.
Speaking of Bonnies, anyone else in love with the new Bonnie SE?
There is another problem with a reversed shift pattern is that it sooo much harder to find neutral. I'm not exactly sure why but I've seen a few bent transmissions because of it.
As for the Bonnie SE, I really like the idea of them bringing back the Triumph line but make sure you get a English made example. There is a Triumph factory in Asia that makes bikes for the world market, not just for the Asian market as first claimed. I just don't understand the idea of buying a supposedly English motorcycle and finding it is a Asian copy. I used to have the different VIN numbers for the different factories but I've missplaced them. Ask around, several people on these forums know about it.
Alex
It's good spelling but it Wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places. WtPooh
My First Custom, Late 90's Sportster, Heavily Breathed On, Big Block, S&S HP Heads, Custom High Performance Pipes. Wickedly fast, Uncomfortable, Front end is a jackhammer. Age 18yrs, Still have the bike!
