Adjusting Your Bike - Make It Fit You
- Motorcycles Adjustments - An Article by mitchelguita:
- When I started riding Motorcycles back in the dark ages the dealer did two things that are almost impossible to find today, first the let you test ride a motorcycle before you purchased it and second they would set the motorcycle up so that is was adjusted for you. Most people today have what I call the cowboy mentality, everybody wants to jump on the horse and ride away like the cowboys did in the movies. So I’m asking the question does you bike fit you?
- Brake and clutch levels: where does your fingers rest on them, are you barely reaching out for them with the tips of you fingers or can you only use two fingers to squeeze them? If this is you sooner or later we will hear about your fall. Your finger at rest should cover the levers no father away then last knuckle joint of your fingers and you should be using all four of you fingers to squeeze the levers.
- Mirrors; do you look like a bobble head trying to see what going on behind you or are you admiring all the pins and patches you have on your vest. You might get away with this for a long time just going straight but sometime in the future you going to be changing lanes or riding a curvy road and Oh boy watch out. You should be able to keep you head upright, looking straight ahead and glancing by moving just you eyes see one to four car lengths in the next lane on either side of you without more than ¼ of your arms or shoulders being seen in the inside of the mirrors.
- Handle Bars: does riding the your motorcycle leave you all tingly, is that burning joint in your elbow or shoulder, or has riding become one big pain in the neck. If it has you need to adjust your handle bars. Today most people thing that the stretched out over the gas tank look of a $60,000 custom is cool looking, however nothing will end your riding career sooner then constant neck, back, and shoulder pain whether on or off the motorcycle. As you mother told you sit up straight and bring the handle bars to you.
- Suspension: when I started riding motorcycles you could always tell the old timers as they would enter a bar sideways, it always looked like someone dropped them more then three times. Why? Because back in the day a motorcycle’s suspension was nothing more than a crude spring under your butt and some rubbery gripes. Today motorcycle’s suspensions are an engineering marvel. So adjust it for your riding style.
- Foot Pegs: ladies bear with us men as we never had to sit in one of those examination tables. Nothing will shorten a ride faster than having your knees higher than you belt buckle. All that blood get stuck in your legs it become oxygen depleted, without oxygen tissue start to die. This is the number one reason when a group of riders stop they are jumping around looking like they are doing the River Dance. Adjust the pegs so that there are no sharp angles at you hips, knees or feet.
- Brake and Shift Levers; speaking of River Dance is that what you look like when using the shifter or brake peddles. If you have to remove your foot from the pegs to shift or brake you are adding precious seconds especially when you might need them most. Your Shifting foot should not have to move more than 30 degrees to shift gears. Your brake foot not more then 45 degrees from contact to full brake.
- Headlights; we all like a nice pair of headlights especially when the high beams are on, but this is the most overlooked item on a motorcycle today. The headlight should be adjusted for the rider ability to see. When sitting on the motorcycle with your head straight up and looking straight ahead the headlight should illuminate a cars length straight (not to the right or left) ahead of your ability to see. This way when you change to the high beams you should be able to see an additional three cars length ahead. It will guarantee that not only will you see what coming but that you will be seen as well.