Standing up

[Snails pace]

Ok you professionals. I have been playing round standing as I ride through a few greasy mud patches on our farm tracks. Though I have spent most of my life on the seat on trail bikes negotiated boggy areas I am happy enough standing changing gear, breaking etc. My question is that while standing my fulcrum / center of balance would be more over the front wheel. In a oh damn situation I would be over the handle bars.
So is this normal get use to it?
Should i keep the knees slightly bent which brings balance back slightly? The old bones creak a tad.
Try tipping the bars back a bit more?
The bike is a Dr650 with safari tank. Standard bars but I have put on 50mm risers. On a good day I stand 180cm tall.
Any suggestions gratefully received.

[Oscar]

Stand up, lean forward slightly elbows at right angles, knees bent with the balls of your feet on the footpegs.

This enables you to move your body weight according to the situation - where the front end might knife in to soft ground, lean back to lighten the front end (on sand, I sit down, way back on the seat).

[NordieBoy]

I just cannot get the hang of standing with the balls of my feet on the pegs.
Hmmm... May be a good calf stretching exercise.

I sit with them there but not standing.

Also I cannot rear brake whilst standing.

[dino3310]

when i got my little tank on i pretty go with oscas technique, but when the 22ltr tanks on i have to bend out slightly to accomadate such a fat thing between my legs and i get tired real fast, but with the 10ltr tank on its a breeze

[wysper]

when i got my little tank on i pretty go with oscas technique, but when the 22ltr tanks on i have to bend out slightly to accomadate such a fat thing between my legs and i get tired real fast, but with the 10ltr tank on its a breeze

If someone doesn't make a dirty comment about this post, I will be sorely disappointed.

[george formby]

You said you wanted a professional opinion so don't listen to me....
I was taught to ride on Trials bikes, standing up %90 of the time. Wether you have the balls of your feet or instep on the pegs is a matter of grip & comfort. For me, the whole point of standing up is to use my legs as shock absorbers over rough ground & to maximise how my weight helps the bike gain traction, wheelie over obstacles, slide & keep the bike upright while turning without washing out the front.
You can't stand like a pole, the whole point is to move appropriately to cover the terrain. It doe's keep you fit..

[NordieBoy]

when i got my little tank top on i pretty and i have to bend out slightly to accomadate such a fat thing between my legs and i get tired real fast

Too much information.

[wysper]

Thats some nice editing nordie. Well done. Gold star for you.

I am a noob to adventure riding, and starting to really get the hang of the standing up thing.

I will be looking to get some advice on bar set up etc next time I get out with a few of the guys on an adventure ride.

I think I will leave the pegs where they are for now and look for maybe bar risers and different shaped bars (since i bent them on my last ride... well the beach did really - bastard)

[dino3310]

Too much information.

cheeky prick your lucky i like your DR if not i would have to come down there and give you a right royal spankin

[dino3310]

I am a noob to adventure riding, and starting to really get the hang of the standing up thing.

shit ive been here a while and i still cant get the hang of it

[NordieBoy]

I will be looking to get some advice on bar set up etc next time I get out with a few of the guys on an adventure ride.

I think I will leave the pegs where they are for now and look for maybe bar risers and different shaped bars (since i bent them on my last ride... well the beach did really - bastard)

Ideally I'd like my bar/peg distance increased another 3cm for standing but I don't want to increase my seat/bar distance as sitting is pretty much perfect although a cm or 2 forward with the bars would be nice.

Dropping the pegs even further I can easily get another 3-4cm.

[Oscar]

Ideally I'd like my bar/peg distance increased another 3cm for standing but I don't want to increase my seat/bar distance as sitting is pretty much perfect although a cm or 2 forward with the bars would be nice.

Dropping the pegs even further I can easily get another 3-4cm.

I put some 25mm risers on, that did the trick.
The 950 is so easy to ride standing up, you can forget that yer on a big bike.
This sometimes allows the overconfidence fairy to turn up and smack you upside yer heed, like...

[Eddieb]

I put some 25mm risers on, that did the trick.
The 950 is so easy to ride standing up, you can forget that yer on a big bike.

I put the KTM risers on my 950 over the weekend, one of the best mods I've done to it so far.

I put 30mm risers on the PD and that made a big difference there too.

[twisty]

I reckon it's mostly about the distance between handle bars and pegs. A standard trail bike is about 85-90 cm. Which is cool if your say 5 10" and you want to stand in an attack position for MX or just want to sit.

On my Gas Gas I pushed this to 108 cm (my adventure bikes are now nearer 100cm) which makes siting a bit less comfortable and a MX attack position (with quickly sitting and rising for corners) not quite as good.

The reason I did this is to get me off my ass because I've spent most of my time riding sitting down (I'm 6 3") which was killing my back. Road riding hasn't made much difference and because I can just sort of stand and ride I feel like the chick from the Titanic movie "I'm flying Jack I'm flying".

[Waihou Thumper]

When there is a camera......Ain't that the truth guys?
Then we fall off some of the time too.....when there is a camera....
Thing is, wouldn't it be nice to take high speed turns, change gear, operate the brakes achieved standing up...
Hard enough to stand up when that monkeybutt gets us some of the time aye!