long leg dilemma

I am 6'2" and face a problem with the SWing. I normally ride with my feet tucked towards the back of the foot plate so my upper and lower leg are pretty much at a right angle. I like this position because it's comfortable and when I have to put my feet down I can do so swiftly/effortlessly whilst the handlebars are pretty much straight ahead.

However at very low speeds when actually turning the bars to near full lock my knees sit right under the grips, ie about 1 inch clearance. On a couple of occasions I've had to quickly put my feet down when the bike started to topple. But in order to achieve this I have to swiftly raise my knee to get my foot off the rest plate, out and down. You can probably imagine what happens, my knees hits the bar (ouch) plus it takes extra time to get my foot down. I've been was very close to going over.

So far the only way to get around this problem is to have my legs/knees outside the range of the bars whilst turning at low speeds. But this feels awkward, looks stupid and doesn't help with the balance.

Has anyone else come across this problem and found a better solution?

1. There are a number of posts on both boards about foot pegs.
2. You can choose to wear footwear that gives you the minimum amount of extra height possible.
3. Stretch your feet down so they are in inch above the ground as you are going into your low speed maneuver. This puts them where they are needed in advance of being needed, and if you speed up again you tuck them back in on the floorboards.

As per your post, the real problem you have is

Quote :

But this feels awkward, looks stupid and doesn't help with the balance

You are worried about looking cool, and still being able to balance. Putting your feet down early and letting them hover above the ground isn't uncool, it does help with balance, and it only feels awkward if you aren't confident. Sounds like vanity is more important than doing what works.

Dan

I have short leg problem. When I get ready to come to a stop I always take and stretch my leg down and in position for the stop and it works great for me and it helps me with any balance issues.

dspevack wrote:

As per your post, the real problem you have is

Quote :

But this feels awkward, looks stupid and doesn't help with the balance

You are worried about looking cool, and still being able to balance. Putting your feet down early and letting them hover above the ground isn't uncool, it does help with balance, and it only feels awkward if you aren't confident. Sounds like vanity is more important than doing what works.

Dan

Dan you are a little quick to jump to conclusions, you really don't know me from Adam and if you did you'd know I'm not the cool/vanity driven type.

If you reread my post you will hopefully detect that I made a somewhat incidental reference to how it looked. The main beef was my workaround (i.e. feet on foot plate whilst legs splayed wide) felt awkward and unbalanced and consequently I still don't feel I've gained any more control.

Before you assume my common scenario is low speeds with lots of observers viewing my manoeuvres, it is not. My house is off a junction leading up a steep hill. There is often lose debris at the junction and the gradient increases drastically once you enter my road. This is where I face the problem daily.

Now if putting my feet 1 inch off the ground solves the issue but looks uncool, I will be the first to adopt this method.

Please don't be so quick to judge next time.

I too am 6'2" and do not have the problem you mention. I realize if your height is in your torso, it creates a different problem from having longer legs. Perhaps you should try raising your handle bars. It would be an easy fix which would certainly allow you to resolve the problem you describe. If the adjustment of your handle bars creates an uncomfortable riding position, then you will have to resolve the problem a different way; ie: riding style and leg position. It is not a good idea to ride with your feet off the bike until it in necessary to put them down to keep from falling over. Enjoy the ride...

Thanks Bill, I didn't realise you could raise the handlebars, I'll look into it.

Wingnprayer.... look at this post...


https://www.silverwing600.com/silver-wing-accessories-modifications-f5/i-adjusted-my-handlebars-today-t181.htm?highlight=handlebars


Hope it helps...

Gary

wingnprayer wrote:

Before you assume my common scenario is low speeds with lots of observers viewing my manoeuvres...

wingnprayer wrote:

However at very low speeds when actually turning the bars to near full lock...

You are correct that I do make some assumptions, but they are logical extensions of what you write. Any time you are turning the bars to near full lock, I ASSUME you are going slow, or you will fall over. Why you are going slow is irrelevant, and whether or not you have observers...I am just using the clues that you provide.

But lets be more productive.
You have the information on changing the height of the handlebars via rotation, but I will take it a step farther.
Any decent welding or machining/fabrication shop can machine spacers which will raise the clamps that hold the handlebars in place.
This way you can keep the same angle but raise the bars higher. This however has its own complications. Are your controls long enough to accomodate the extra space? The plastic will continue to fit, but the space between the handlebar plastic and the dashboard will increase, changing the look.

Simply another choice, and a few things to consider. No assumptions or judgements.

Dan

Thanks Dan, I appreciate your feedback. I'm definitely going to have a crack at raising the bars when I have a moment.

I'm short and have tall boots, the shocks set down and had the seat reworked to take as much off as they could. But I would check with a dealership about maybe not only changing the handle bars but getting a custom seat that would sit you back further and give your legs more room.