Life is tough at the top. When you're at the peak of your game, getting the grades, exceeding all the expectations, you just know there's got to be a downside, writes John Gilbride.

There's got to be metaphorically speaking a gunslinger, just that bit younger, that bit faster than you, waiting to take you out.

For Honda's CBR600, it seemed at one point as though Yamaha's R6 would be the feisty new kid destined to ride the old stager out of town.

Aimed squarely at stealing away the CBRs ridership, the R6 was faster, more nimble, more in-yer-face than its competitor.

The little Yamaha has sold by the bucket-load but despite everything, the perennial Honda has held on to its crown as the all-round sportsbike.

But, if the R6 has failed in its bid, it's in good company there have been many young pretenders to the CBRs crown, and all without success.

If anyone has come close to imitating the CBRs success, it's Triumph, with the brand new TT600.

It's a bike pitched unashamedly at the CBR rider someone who likes the idea of a sportsbike but doesn't want to spend their evenings being ministered unto by an osteopath.

The TT initially looked a sound prospect, but mid-range maladies have since left the newcomer lagging.

In the 13 years since the first CBR model rolled off the production line, the bike has consistently remained in the top five sales chart, and it's not hard to see why.

The CBR can be all things to all riders.

If you want a sunny Sunday afternoon blast, it'll keep up with big-bore bikes in the bends without too much effort, and the odds are you'll be feeling more confident and having more fun than your 900cc-riding mates.

If you want to tour, the CBR will take you anywhere you want to go in comfort without your pillion deserting you on the Dover ferry amid a flurry tantrums and taxis.

And if you want a bike that will commute all year round, this is the one for you.

Seemingly impervious to the rigours of slimy, salty winter roads, the CBR will cleave effortlessly through the jams and take you from A to B with nary a wobble or a worry.

But if the CBR is reassuringly together at low speeds, it's when you open the bike up that its true abilities become apparent.

The Honda doesn't have the revvy feel of the R6 or the grunt of Kawasaki's ZX-6 if anything the motor sounds a little tame compared with those two beasts.

But the engine pulls eagerly through all the gears, and its easily the most confidence-inspiring of the bunch.

No wonder the CBR is the choice of so many track schools you find yourself taking corners faster, with greater lean-angles, every time you ride the bike.

And if fruity pipes pull your chain, you could always fit an aftermarket can.

The little touches count for a lot as well.

There's a centre stand (don't scoff you try lubing a chain without one); an idiot light that stops you riding off with the sidestand down; well-placed bungee hooks; less extreme handlebar and peg angles; and rock-solid mirrors.

And that's just for for starters.

Things like this can make a difference between liking a bike, and loving it.

The brakes could be better they trump the Kwak but cant touch the R6 for feel and stopability.

And while Honda seems to have curbed its yen for the more garish paintjobs, no one could accuse the CBRs paint schemes of being tasteful.

But when you're faced with a motorcycle that has practically become an institution in the biking world, it seems churlish to criticise such small points. Still, you know what they (almost) say familiarity certainly breeds content.

FACT FILE

Honda CBR600

PRICE: 6,595

TOP SPEED: 152.98 0-60mph: 3.48 secs

MPG: 33.6

FUEL CAPACITY: 18 litres

BRAKES: Twin disc (front) single disc (rear)

INSURANCE GROUP: 14