I think some pretty successful 2.6 trucks have shown that locking the converter is enough "gear change" to get the job done and not have the reliability problems at high HP. No sledpuller needs that thing shifting 3 times. First gear is just a time waster.
Kinda like the PowerGlide in drag racing....yeah, it's a dinosaur, but it flat out works.
I understand what you're saying Matt. I also agree on the first gear delete.
My statement was more of an observation from a time perspective, a timeline so to speak.