Kawasaki's ZX-10R con- quered all in CW's 2004 Superbike comparison and subsequently took home an award in our annual Ten Best Bikes competition. Strong like King Kong, making 155.5 rear-wheel horses, and banana leaf- light at 408 pounds, the ZX-10R epitomizes Open-class sportbike performance, enabling its rider to walk on-and all over-the competition. The only chinks in the Ninja's armor were its tendency to mis-shift under full load, particularly while going from second to third gear, and the fact that it was the only gladiator sent into battle without a steering damper. Recognizing that these two issues may have cost the ZX-10R victory in the racetrack portion of our testing, we set out to find cures.
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