I agree with the conclusions about ~4000k bulbs being superior for hand torches and night lighting in general, but the reasons are different that stated above.
HID, fluorescent, LEDs etc are not continuous light sources, so their comparison to the relative straight spectrum of the sun is simply not valid. Also, our eyes have the greatest sensitivity to blue green, around 500nm. This means that if you measure the lumen out-put of a 6000k bulb -vs- a 4000k one, and the bulbs are otherwise from the same series and wattage, the 6000k bulb will score higher because it has a stronger wavelength in the blue-green region. So, this is kind of the same photopic -vs- scotopic debate that high pressure sodium advocates have been arguing for decades. An engineer and a biologist would likely give you two different answers, with both being right.
So, our eyes are most sensitive to 500nm, and the light with more spectrum in this range will have the higher lumen count on the box. Big deal. Our best vision at night only works good if you include longer wavelengths in the mix. 6000k might get attention better than 4300k, which is why those high powered Xenon searchlights you see at night promoting events are typically around 6000-6500k. However, for best depth perception and over all color rendering practical light sources need to be lower than that. Quite simply, when you're walking around the woods with a HID flashlight, or even watching an NFL football game lit with HID lights, do you want to notice the color and intensity of the light, or concentrate on what it's illuminating? The answer under most circumstances, unless you're lighting a parking lot to keep out thieves or illuminating B-17's ,is typically the later, and the beam shots prove this.