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Out for a short ride today. Was on a long straightaway in 5th gear and picking up speed when all of a sudden I lost power!!?? Well I shouldn't say lost power because I could rev the bike but it was like I was in neutral. But no green light. A million things ran through my mind as I coasted to the side of the road, did my clutch cable break? No that’s not it, Oh no did I blow the transmission??!! I was afraid to pull in the clutch or try to get the bike in gear till I came to a complete stop. Now I'm thinking great the one time I don't take a cell phone with me. I stop the bike look down still no green light, pull in the clutch and make a shift down, Clunk- I rev the bike and let the clutch out a little and the bike moves forward. Relieved I shift down till in neutral then first and back on the road and home. Bike ran like nothing ever happened. So my question is what happened? And should I have the bike looked at?

eRoCk

Sounds like you hit a false nuetral. Its happened to me a time or two, at least once when trying to make a fast pass in the mountains. I was given the good advice of not shifting in times like that. Not real confidence inspiring. I think its normally the result of a bad shift execution, if you make your shifts correctly, whatever that means, its less likely.

Because I was uncertain what if any gear would engage, or if the transmission might lock up, I pulled in the clutch, lost some speed, and shifted into a higher gear & let the clutch out gently & all was well with the world again. I think from riding 2 strokes, I'm always ready to pull the clutch in - in case the engine freezes up like 2 strokes were prone to do. Engine freezes, rear wheel freezes, you better be quick with the clutch.

Mine does that everyone once in a while. I think it is mostly my fault as a result of sloppy shifting. I had my dealer look at it when they did my 18K service and they said all is well and now I have the problem documented in case something happens at a later date.

Sounds like what SCRob says. Happens with this style (automotive type) transmission when the upper gears and dogs get 'confused'.

Been there, done that. You gotta keep a little pressure on the shift linkage when you shift gears. Sometimes you will feel the shift lever move up just a tad when the clutch engages because the gear engagement wasn't complete.

I've had this occur more often with a particular pair of boots that I wear. The boot's toe is different enough either through shape or thickness and that effects my shifting sometimes.

Similar to the other replies, I have had the same experience. I make my shifts a bit more deliberately and the problem goes away. If I wear a lighter weight boot it happens more freguently - it is definitely "handler error" on my part!

That happened to me on both my Rockster and my Tuono. Bad shifting techniques on my part. Or sometimes the hands don't quite communicate with the feet.

I agree with others. It sounds as if it was not properly in gear and the slipped into a false neutral. It usually happens with a significant audience.
It's only a problem if it persists. It could be the bike but most likely, and hopefully, it's the rider and can be correct with a more positive shifting technique.