Honda CBR1000RR

The Sharper Blade

Old habits die hard. I ride maybe 25,000 miles a year on roads that range from interstate to gravel, and I reckon I usually hold my own. But the racetrack is different. It takes me a whole day at California's Buttonwillow circuit to overcome my road-bound inhibitions: No unexpected gravel will be strewn across the corners; no loitering idiot in an LTD is lurking over that blind rise; and no trees or concrete berms will jump out from the bends. It ought to be biker heaven. And, of course, it is – especially on the remarkable 2006 Honda CBR1000RR.

The cutting edge
First, a little background. Honda's open-class RR line dates back to the CBR900RR Fireblade of 1992, which, with 124hp and at a shade over 400lbs, effectively wrote the credo for this class: power is good, weight is bad. It was two years before the ZX9R Ninja arrived with similar power and weight. Then, in the time-honored practice of adding capacity for more power, Honda upped the ante to 918cc in 1996 with 130hp, then to 929cc in 2000 (after the arrival of Yamaha's R1), while weight dropped to around 375lbs. Displacement was bumped again in 2002 to 954cc before the full 1000cc bike arrived in 2004. As Honda generally reserves makeovers for alternate years, the 2006 iteration is effectively the first update for the CBR1000RR.

The battle for sales between the Big Four in this prestigious marketplace is fought in fractions of an ounce of weight, marginal horsepower figures and split seconds on the track. Potential sportbike purchasers will scan the spec charts for dyno readings, standing quarter times and maximum speeds, as much for post-purchase bragging rights as any intention (or ability) to use the full performance of these amazing machines. For around 11 big notes, you can ride away on a machine that will humiliate anything but a McLaren F1 on the street and, with a weekend's prep, mix it with the privateers on a racetrack. All with bulletproof reliability – and electric start....

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