To Big ??

[skidz]

One of my old mates 25 odd years back had a Kawasaki Z1R, and had to wear fairly good soled boots to touch the ground with his toes. He used to get shit about toe tapping the pavement, but hey, good on him doing what he wanted. I you don't do what you want, then this would be one hell of a boring place!

[Ixion]

I've seldom had the luxury of two feet on the ground on a big bike . Never found it a problem.

I guess, though, that a very small person might have some difficulty on some (some) large bikes. Not because of height but cos of arm reach , hand size, upper body strength etc.

The Whale, f'instance, takes quite a bit of arm and upper body effort to force through the corners - y'have to forcibly countersteer it. Maybe a small chick might find that over tiring after a while. And some sprotbikes are a long stretch to the bars - tricky if you have very short arms.

And I know one girl whose hands were just too small to be able to use the brake lever on the BMW - at full extend she could just get the tips of her fingers on the lever. That would be a bit dicey.

Comes down to the rider, surely though. If it works for them where's the prob. People are good at finding ways to adjust/compensate for such things. Look at Mr OneArmedBandit. Manages to ride very well with only one arm. And I knew a one legged rider once.

[Sensei]

Wife is small (legs)and has been riding for 22 years and she hasn't come off in that time on the open road (Apart from trail riding a CB550 on the Winui fire break) , she managed a GSXr1000 just fine a few weeks back. How does your own record of coming off bikes compare ?.

Better than that sorry 33 years of hard out riding everyone of the 50+ bikes I'v owned & only one slid through my on fault . No broken bones etc !! . The post was about small people not been able to control their Big bikes if it broke out or lost control of it . Not taking the piss that small people cann't ride big bike have seen big people that cann't ride small bikes . Would your wife beable to control a GSXR1000 if something hit the front of it while riding EG does she have enough strength or skill to keep it on the road . This is what I am talking about nothing more

[Teflon]

Would your wife beable to control a GSXR1000 if something hit the front of it while riding EG does she have enough strength or skill to keep it on the road . This is what I am talking about nothing more

Is the gsxr1000 physically bigger than a 600?

I thought somthing like a zzr11 would be more of a handful for a light person than your 1000.

[Sensei]

Is the gsxr1000 physically bigger than a 600?

I thought somthing like a zzr11 would be more of a handful for a light person than your 1000.

By the looks of all the post's even that wouldn't matter .

[Mooch]

Better than that sorry 33 years of hard out riding everyone of the 50+ bikes I'v owned & only one slid through my on fault . No broken bones etc !! . The post was about small people not been able to control their Big bikes if it broke out or lost control of it . Not taking the piss that small people cann't ride big bike have seen big people that cann't ride small bikes . Would your wife beable to control a GSXR1000 if something hit the front of it while riding EG does she have enough strength or skill to keep it on the road . This is what I am talking about nothing more

You’re doing well to have 33 accident years with only a minor issue, well done!
I don't think size comes into it too much; she had no issues with the GSR1000 apart from the heavy clutch which most likely can down to poor maintained on the rental bikes we had. In fact, she said the 1000 was very easy to ride. The GSXR1000 is probably around 30 - 40 kilos lighter than the last couple of bikes she'd own. Skill wise, she has a conservative riding style most of the time, nothing to prove, just likes ridding. Every now and then she give a bike heaps much to the surprise of those who know her, at this point the experience comes through. She's gets amused with man biker ego, says we often miss the point of motorcycling with silly HP bikes.
She was teaching handling skills when I met her, and raced the odd bucket.. And on the ego sport side used to sky dive for a hobby, so has plenty of modest confidence. So I guess what I'm saying is that size doesn't reflect on experience or ability. We have another lady friend that rides a big block Harley with no issues and she is tiny.

[Sniper]

I attempted to sit on the ZX12 in Sportzone the otherday. There is no way unless some modifications were taken for me to sit on there comfortably. But it didn't stop a shorter (albeit stockier) chap trying it too. Must be something to do with....... ummmm

[SPman]

I think it comes down to a combination of skill/experience/technique over physical strength.It's just a fact of life that most women have less upper body strength than men, regardless of size.Most of the time, its not really an issue.As long as, in particular the case of a high performance sport bike, the bike is set up to the characteristics the rider likes and can easily handle, again, it shouldnt be an issue.
In the case of a sudden emergency situation, that actually involves the strength factor, people with less strength will be at a disadvantage, but, then again, in a potential high side situation, for example, even with the strongest of people, its all in the lap of the gods, because the forces involved will far outweigh any input the rider can make.
eg. I hit a small rock on the Kopu hill - cranked over,full power on, between corners, passing a car.The bike was fully airborne and bent both front and rear rims! My upper body strength MAY have played a small part in not canning off, as would, perhaps, experience, but the biggest factor was probably luck! So many "what ifs" involved!
I see what your're getting at, Scott, and I think there is an element of what your're talking about involved.But, in 99% of situations, it's probably not a major factor.
PS who was that chick, back in the 70's - used to ride a Norton Commando, then the last time I saw her, was riding a Kawasaki KZ1300/6! She was about 5'3" and 45kg!!