Page 17 of Bend

He smirks. “Wrong.”

I lean forward slightly, a coy smirk playing on my lips. “Not.”

He lifts a brow.

“The R6 has a higher redline and tighter throttle response once it’s flashed properly,” I say calmly. “With the titanium exhaust cutting weight and a proper tune, it’ll pull harder off the line. The ZX-6R’s got decent midrange torque stock, but without internal work, it’s not beating a dialed-in R6 in a straight shot.”

He doesn’t argue, he just watches me, so I keep going.

“And if you actually tuned the suspension on the R6 instead of just swapping it, the power transfer would be cleaner. Less squat and one hell of a launch.”

“…Okay,” he mutters, clearly slightly impressed.

I sit back, folding my arms. “Next.”

His grin sharpens.

“2019 CBR1000RR with aftermarket camshaft, race tires, and remapped fuel injection… versus a 2022 GSX-R1000 with upgraded Brembos and a full exhaust system. Track this time. Not drag.”

“GSX-R,” I answer immediately.

He laughs softly. “You sure about that?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, tell me why?”

“Because you said track,” I say, pointedly.

He gestures for me to continue.

“The CBR with cams and remap will scream on a straight, sure. But upgraded Brembos on the GSX-R? Better braking into corners. That wins you lap time. Exhaust system drops weight. And if the rider knows what they’re doing, corner exit speed beats raw horsepower.”

His grin fades into something closer to impressed.

“You’re assuming equal riders,” he says.

“I always assume equal riders,” I shoot back. “Otherwise it’s not about the bike.”

He studies me like he’s recalculating.

“Alright,” he says. “Let’s say you’ve got an R6 overheating on long runs. What’s the first thing you check?”

“I’d start with the coolant system integrity,” I reply instantly. “Radiator cap pressure. Thermostat. Make sure it’s not airlocked. Then I’d look at whether the ECU flash is leaning it out too much at high RPM. People forget aggressive mapping can spike temps.”

He exhales a short laugh and shakes his head.

“Jesus,” he mutters again, quieter this time.

I tilt my head. “You done?”

He watches me for another second, like he’s recalibrating.

“Okay okay,” he says finally. “Shit. I didn’t expect that.”

“Which part?” I ask, cool.

“All of it honestly,”