I'm starting to lose hope...

[Karma]

Does anyone else have the same problem? If so, how did you overcome it?

Well at 6'4" I've never had that problem but from experience with an old schoofriend of mine there are three options;

1. Growth hormones - Grow a few extra inches, but due to the testostorone (sp?) in them you'll also grow facial hair and get a nice deep voice.

2. Leg splints - They break your legs and then pin them a few mm apart with metal rods... this means the bones grow back longer, but needs to be rebroken again and again every six months or so.

3. Live with it - Ask for help with reaching the top shelf of the cupboard, and get a Virago by the looks of it.

[James Deuce]

One thing you can do is get the seat foam re-shaped and the seat re-covered. You'd be surprised what narrowing the front of the seat can achieve, along with taking 5mm of foam off the top. Sometimes it's the spread of the seat, not the seat height that stops you from putting your feet down flat.

[Motu]

Yes,that's why dirt bikes aren't quite as bad to sit on as their seat height would lead you to beleive - a narrow bike with a narrow seat,a lower fat wide seat can almost be worse.

[SARGE]

Wolf and I went to Hamilton Motorcycles on Saturday because Wolf wanted to take the new BMW F650GS Dakar for a test ride. While we were there we looked at a Suzuki GX125 as a good small bike for me to learn on. Well, looking at it, I thought I would be able to sit on it with no problem. However I climbed onto this mountain (it seemed like it) of a bike only to find that I'm standing on tip-toe like a ballerina. I am now starting to lose hope of ever finding a bike that I can sit with my feet flat on the ground and feel comfortable. my height is approx: 5'2"
Does anyone else have the same problem? If so, how did you overcome it?

any bike shop woth its salt should be able to adjust the suspension ( on most bikes.. to a point).. if they cant .. Call Craig Brown over at Colemans.. he can whack it right down for you


another option is a Suzuki Volty 250

[Lou Girardin]

I wouldn't get too fixated on having to get both feet flat on the ground. I've seldom found a bike that I can do that on. One foot flat is usually fine, or even rocking from tip toe to tiptoe on a Ulysses is doable.

[Ixion]

Confidence thing though, for a learner. Especially as one foot means doing a switch from left foot down (cos right is on brake as you stop) to right foot down (to engage gear). Experienced riders switch without even noticing the fraction of a second when no foot is down. But it's a bit scarey for a learner.

Heretical suggestion - what about a scooter until some rod confidence is gained? They seem mush less scarey to learners.

[TLDV8]

There is no way i can flat foot the TLS with both feet ( the VeeTwo RHA raises the back even more).... i just slide off the seat to the right a tad,right flat foot,left on the peg..then you are free to use the front brake to hold the bike... take off is just clutch,click it into gear and ... BBBrrrappp off we go..that is probably worth a couple of inchs..

[Stevo]

A middle aged lady I met a month or two ago had platform soles on the bottom of her riding boots. She was on a early 90s ZX6R, Also had the seat re shaped and the the bike lowered a bit. I really didn't think she was that much shorter than me (maybe she wasn't), but must have had short legs or sumfink

[MSTRS:Me]

Ms Strayjuliet is very welcome to try Li'l Ratty (SRX250) for size. As Mr T.W.R. says, it is one of the lowest non-cruiser bikes. Still nowhere as low as the Virago though, and probably not too useful since the odds of finding one are slim. The Kawasaki Eliminator has a VERY low seat, I think maybe lower than the Virago.

Oh yes...700mm as compared to my GSXR1100 at 830mm (low for a big sprotbike). Advantage of EL250 is they are one of the cheaper models around, and since they share the same engine as the GPX and maybe GPZ, spares if needed are plentiful.

[Wolf]

i just slide off the seat to the right a tad,right flat foot,left on the peg..then you are free to use the front brake to hold the bike... take off is just clutch,click it into gear and ... BBBrrrappp off we go..that is probably worth a couple of inchs..

That's what I was doing on the F650GS Dakar, I found I didn't have to slide too far to the right - my left buttock and part of my left thigh were still firmly on the seat.

Where Juliet and I differ is that I am used to sitting with one foot on the peg and swapping feet if need be (tried that with the F650 - quite different when you have to totally change position rather than just move your legs), Juliet is not.

I can understand her desire to not tackle too many things at once - learn all the basics of riding a bike unencumbered by the necessity of learning how to ground only one foot at a time. Once she's confident enough on a bike she can work on stopping with only one foot down, swapping feet etc and then progress to something taller when she needs a bigger, faster bike.

[heavenly.talker]

Hey

Totally get where you're coming from with the short leg thing myself.

I used a good pair of platform soles on my boots when I was starting and that gave my legs another couple of inches. Some knee high fashion boots have thick as souls (they don't last that long) but enough for you to get your confidence up.

I now have about an inch soul and find it sweet. Which reminds me...I have to pick up the re-soled other boots! cheers and good luck.

[heavenly.talker]

a narrow bike with a narrow seat,a lower fat wide seat can almost be worse.

Undoubtely...I have found in life that a wide fast seat is always less appealing than its sister who is tall and narrow!

[strayjuliet]

Heretical suggestion - what about a scooter until some rod confidence is gained? They seem mush less scarey to learners.

A scooter would be alright, but Wolf doesn't like them very much and I'm not too keen on them myself, most cars around here (Hamilton) don't even bother to allow room for the poor person stuck in the cycle lane on a scooter. I would also like to have a bike that I can keep up with wolf on, once he gets himself another bike. I am not sure but I think on a scooter I would be limited as to what speed I can get up to.

[MSTRS:Me]

.... I am not sure but I think on a scooter I would be limited as to what speed I can get up to.

Hey, we are all limited as to what speed we can get up to

[yungatart]

Juliet I'm not much taller than you (5'4"), I can sit on the Eliminator with both feet on the ground and my knees bent! She is a very friendly bike-just right for a nervous old Nana like me. Get one -they are absolutely perfect and as for keeping up with Wolf MSTRS has had mine up to 130 ks, no worries.It is also not too heavy(not that I've tried picking it up off the deck yet!)