Hey ladies... and short guys :D

[Priv]

i know of a few chicks on the zx6r.com forum who ride 07-up zx6rs who are your height/size who have not had to lower them. I love my 07 plenty of power when i call for it. "its a lady in the street but a freak in the turns!" ill be at the track this sat if you are gonna be up ill let you take it for a spinny. B

Thanks! We'll be home bound this weekend, but thanks a bunch for the offer. The 'power when I call for it' thing is what I'm really jonesing for, I don't want to race, and don't need to get my knee down, but if I want to pass a damn farm tractor, I don't want the bike to huff and puff the whole way

[gtutunjian]

[QUOTE=Priv;1210921]I got to check out one of the grand touring BMWs this week, it was ridiculous, and cost more than my car lol, thing was amazing, every bell and whistle I could imagine. QUOTE]

The F800R isn't one of those grand touring models (some of which seem almost as large as my first apartment.) It's a naked bike. Full disclosure: I own one but I've been following the mods made by a new owner, a 5'4" woman, here. I thought you might be interested in her mods and her overall experience, too.

True that: these are expensive. I balanced that cost with my lack of motorcycle experience (none until now) and the fact that 99% of my riding is solo. I needed a reliable ride I could comprehend quickly, fuel injected, ready to ride, gets out of its own way and that of others when needed, and a fun overall riding experience. All other potentially expensive habits and interests are on hold - I'm forgetting them already anyway.

Good luck with your decision and new ride. Consider hitting a bike event where woman riders will attend (and check out their rides.) I saw several bikes for smaller sized riders at Nelson's Ride on Sunday. Also consider posting on a woman's riding group Forum.

[Priv]

[QUOTE=gtutunjian;1211069]

I got to check out one of the grand touring BMWs this week, it was ridiculous, and cost more than my car lol, thing was amazing, every bell and whistle I could imagine. QUOTE]

The F800R isn't one of those grand touring models (some of which seem almost as large as my first apartment.) It's a naked bike. Full disclosure: I own one but I've been following the mods made by a new owner, a 5'4" woman, here. I thought you might be interested in her mods and her overall experience, too.

True that: these are expensive. I balanced that cost with my lack of motorcycle experience (none until now) and the fact that 99% of my riding is solo. I needed a reliable ride I could comprehend quickly, fuel injected, ready to ride, gets out of its own way and that of others when needed, and a fun overall riding experience. All other potentially expensive habits and interests are on hold - I'm forgetting them already anyway.

Good luck with your decision and new ride. Consider hitting a bike event where woman riders will attend (and check out their rides.) I saw several bikes for smaller sized riders at Nelson's Ride on Sunday. Also consider posting on a woman's riding group Forum.

That is a great little thread, and of course, one of the mods I'd probably want to do is expensive and a PITA lol, I don't really like the look on this, but it does seem like a tough machine, thanks for the feedback!

[mzdagrl]

Carla, you are welcome to take my SV for a spin if you'd like (not lowered at all, springs are stiffer than stock), and I'm sure Rob would let you take his FZ6 out too. I will warn you though, I have a tough time flat footing the FZ and I have a nearly 32" inseam. I find that it is very tall, and rides that way too (dirtbikeish), but I have been told I am weird for thinking that. The narrower the seat/bike, the easier it will be to get both feet on the ground, like Oxx pointed out, which is why, despite having the same seat height, my SV is way easier to flat foot than the FZ.

[dankatz]

Carla, you are welcome to take my SV for a spin if you'd like (not lowered at all, springs are stiffer than stock), and I'm sure Rob would let you take his FZ6 out too. I will warn you though, I have a tough time flat footing the FZ and I have a nearly 32" inseam. I find that it is very tall, and rides that way too (dirtbikeish), but I have been told I am weird for thinking that. The narrower the seat/bike, the easier it will be to get both feet on the ground, like Oxx pointed out, which is why, despite having the same seat height, my SV is way easier to flat foot than the FZ.

I would not recommend the FZ6 quite yet. When I got it after having a Ninja 500 I had a hard time with the height. I am 5'8" with 30.5" inseam. I actually went through the pain at the time to get a lower seat from Germany where Yamaha sold them. After riding the lowered seat for a year I went back to stock because I was used to the bike. I have ridden KTM Adventure and GS1200 BMW since and height doesn't matter to me so much any more. But at the time, the FZ6 felt very tall. Overall, a great bike whicgh I kept for 2.5 years.

[Sheppo]

I know you'll never own a BMW.. Alex hates them :Þ

[jwm2k3]

Carla, dont even worry about seat height, really....

You do not need to be flat footed...when you come to a red light or stop sign, move your left ass cheek off the seat and put left foot down. Right foot will be on the rear brake to keep bike from rolling anyways...see, no need for flat footing!

[golden chicken]

Thanks! We'll be home bound this weekend, but thanks a bunch for the offer. The 'power when I call for it' thing is what I'm really jonesing for, I don't want to race, and don't need to get my knee down, but if I want to pass a damn farm tractor, I don't want the bike to huff and puff the whole way

That's where an SV excels. It has gobs of torque down low, so when you want to pass, you just roll on the power, instead of downshifting 2 or 3 times to get up into the powerband, and it doesn't have the warp speed top end that the 600s do, so it's harder to get in trouble.

[RoyalewitCheese]

im small for a dude and any yamaha 600 made me feel confident enough

my buddy is practically the mayor of munchkin city and he rides a CBR600 just fine as well


don't know about the t-rex arms though .. pics of you trying to solve a rubix cube?

[PhilB]

The Monster is a great bike in general, and for shorter riders specifically. Maintenance is a little more than a Japanese bike, but much more.

PhilB

[SprintPoser]

Try a Triumph Street Triple 675 on for size? Those have lowering kits if needed. The purple one is very nice indeed.

http://www.triumphmotorcycles.com/mo...iple/2012/4763

The seat height seems high, but the width of the seat also figures in and that's quite thin.

[obsolete]

Try a Triumph Street Triple 675 on for size? Those have lowering kits if needed. The purple one is very nice indeed.

http://www.triumphmotorcycles.com/mo...iple/2012/4763

The seat height seems high, but the width of the seat also figures in and that's quite thin.

The ergos are the direct opposite of what she is looking for. When we looked at monsters she wanted the bars even a bit higher. The Daytona has a very aggressive riding position.

[Duffy]

I like the Monsters too and the seat height is perfect for shorter woman and I would have checked them out but the lack of wind protection makes me hesitant. For longer rides being bombarded by wind could tire you out. Never thought much of it till went on a wht mnt run with a bunch of ducati riders and one woman was riding a hypermotard and she said she was beat (and getting cold) at the end of the day from battling the wind. Also with your budget, you pretty much have the pick of the litter. I sat on a brandy new (back in 2008) GSXR600 that was lowered 2 inches in the showroom and it was perfect. I'm 5'3" with 28ishinch inseam.

[mrezra]

My wife is about your size, and she loved her Monster. She hates my 675, too tall and too aggressive.

[solgirl]

Try a Triumph Street Triple 675 on for size? Those have lowering kits if needed. The purple one is very nice indeed.

http://www.triumphmotorcycles.com/mo...iple/2012/4763

The seat height seems high, but the width of the seat also figures in and that's quite thin.

Last year I sat on a a ladies 675 at the track and it felt pretty good out of the box. She road it to nhis from Texas. I would say its pretty comfy to do that .

Carla you should go around to dealers and try some out to get a feel for what your looking for.

[SprintPoser]

The ergos are the direct opposite of what she is looking for. When we looked at monsters she wanted the bars even a bit higher. The Daytona has a very aggressive riding position.

Whoa...I did NOT suggest a Daytona! I suggested a Street Triple. Did you not read what I wrote or click on the link?

[obsolete]

Sorry, just saw 675.

[Kenn157]

Last year I sat on a a ladies 675 at the track and it felt pretty good out of the box. She road it to nhis from Texas. I would say its pretty comfy to do that .

Carla you should go around to dealers and try some out to get a feel for what your looking for.

Adam will be waiting with open arms!

[dankatz]

Whoa...I did NOT suggest a Daytona! I suggested a [i[Street Triple[/i]. Did you not read what I wrote or click on the link?

I think the Street triple is far from a beginner bike and going from a Ninja 250 to a Street Triple is a huge leap. Monster is less powerful and less of a hooligan bike. I think for a beginner rider it is more forgiving. I rode the street triple R in Americade on a 24 mile loop. It is a terrific bike with a ton of power everywhere, great brakes and great suspension. But a squeeze of the brake pedal or an unfortunate bump/open throttle would end up in a stoppie or wheelie!

[Kenn157]

Carla's not really a beginner rider... Street Triple FTW!
Pappa wants a Ducati...

[SprintPoser]

Well I did recommend the Street Triple and not the "R" version for that reason. With only 50 ft/lbs of torque, it's not going to wheelie with the blip of the throttle as it's big brother the Speed Triple might. Certainly no more chance than a Monster 696 with more low-end torque could do it, but with 20 more HP for when it's needed to pass...no problem to get it moving.

The Street Triple R could be more inclined to do an inadvertent stoppie though, as it's got killer brakes!

[dankatz]

I don't know Carla, so apologies if I mislabeled you as a beginner. The riding position of the Monster is with more weight on the front. The 696 is very difficult to wheelie - I have never felt the front end go light on me and that is with a one tooth down front sprocket. There is a definite seat height difference - you seat higher on the street triple. It felt significantly higher to me than the Monster, though on paper the difference does not seem so much

[korndogg]

Carla, dont even worry about seat height, really....

You do not need to be flat footed...when you come to a red light or stop sign, move your left ass cheek off the seat and put left foot down. Right foot will be on the rear brake to keep bike from rolling anyways...see, no need for flat footing!

That's poor advice in my opinion. You're correct on flat ground, but the issue is when you are crossways on a hill. Get the bike tipping downhill and you're screwed. That's where the ability to reach the ground comes in handy before you dump it (and yourself) on the ground.

I have a 1st gen FZ1. Love it. The only thing I would change is the fact that it's carb'd. The 2nd gen FZ's are FI.

[Priv]

I don't know Carla, so apologies if I mislabeled you as a beginner. The riding position of the Monster is with more weight on the front. The 696 is very difficult to wheelie - I have never felt the front end go light on me and that is with a one tooth down front sprocket. There is a definite seat height difference - you seat higher on the street triple. It felt significantly higher to me than the Monster, though on paper the difference does not seem so much

I label myself as a beginner still, so by all means, I don't take offense as it's a reality. Any of the triumphs sound like too much for me. Judging by Alex telling me how easy it is to wheelie, it seems I'd kill myself on the thing. I just want to try something new I guess, and something I can still be comfortable riding, and to be honest, something not so ugly lol

[Priv]

That's poor advice in my opinion. You're correct on flat ground, but the issue is when you are crossways on a hill. Get the bike tipping downhill and you're screwed.

I learned this one the hard way with my 250 the first time I went out alone, it sucked. a lot. So flat foot is pretty much a confidence and comfort issue too. I don't want to feel like I'm on a dirt bike