Lowering Sportbikes & other options

There are those of us that are short and can't reach the ground very well with our feet while sitting on a motorcycle. If that is the case, there are a few things that you can do.

#1 is to shave off some foam from your bike seat

#2 is to get motorcycle boots that have a thicker sole

#3 is to lower the bike. Lowering the bike should always be the last resort since it will change the handling of your bike and you will loose some ground clearance.

Shaving your motorcycle seat

You can get a custom seat made by Sergeant or Corbin, but usually after market seats are thicker to be more comfortable than stock seats. The best solution is just shaving off some foam on your motorcycle seat. Some seats have very little to shave off but some might have up to 2" of foam that you can cut away. If you are uncomfortable doing this yourself, take your seat to an upholstry shop. I had the seat shaved on the Ducati ST3, he took off about 1" and it cost me $60.

Motorcycle boots with thicker sole

Most motorcycle boots have a very thin sole. Women tend to ride in Sketchers or Doc Marten boots for extra height. While that might be ok for around town, these boots offer little protection and the laces might get stuck on your peg which can result in you dropping your bike.

I have found that the Daytona boots give me more height than any other motorcycle boot and they come in small womans sizes. The Lady Star GTX give me an extra 1.5" and the Road Star GTX give me almost an inch. I've been wearing Daytona boots since 2001 and I love them, they are also very comfortable and waterproof.

The Lady Stars also come in men's sizes, the mens version is called M Star GTX boots. Check them out at: http://www.helimot.com/index.shtml

Another alternative is Sidi Violot or Rose boots. They give me about 1.25" and are pretty comfortable. These boots go nicely under jeans and don't look like motorcycle boots, although their sole is not as grippy as the Lady Stars.

Lowering the bike

Lowering the back:
If your bike uses a "dogbone" link and has after market lowering link available for it, it can be lowered. There are two kinds of lowering links, ones that lower the bike at specific increments for example 1", 2", or 3" or adjustable links which can be adjusted to any height you want.

I've had two bikes lowered with dogbone links (F4 and F4i) and one with an adjustable link (954RR) and I have to say that having the ability to adjust the height of the bike to exactly what you want is a great thing.

Lowering the front:
The front is lowered by pulling the forks up through the triple clamp. It is recommended to lower the front and back equal distance, but sometimes that it not possible. You can usually lower the back more then the front.

When you lower the bike you will also need to cut and weld the kickstand.

Some dealers can lower the bike for you. The lowering link costs about $100-$200, lowering itself can cost anywhere from $200-$600 depending where you go.

It is important to stiffen up the suspension once the bike is lowered so the bike doesn't bottom out over bumps and potholes.

Adjustable lowering links:
http://www.schnitzracing.com/

One, two and three position lowering links:
http://www.diamondpowersports.com/showparts/llinksts/llinks