Short Woman Shopping: bike-hunting tips for shorter riders
by Corn Dog on July 24, 2006
in Commentary
by Janet Green, Editor, Biker Chick News
copyright 2006
If you’re under 5-foot-3 and shopping for a bike, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how many bikes really do fit you. And chances are, one of those bikes is going to reach out and knock you over the head with its styling, its “cool factor,” and its general overall suitability. But, just in case the bike that speaks to you the loudest doesn’t fit you perfectly the way it sits on the salesroom floor, there are a few simple modifications (“mods”) you can keep in mind that just might solve one of two key height-related problems.
Problem 1: You can’t “flat-foot” the bike.
In order to have the most and best control over the bike at slow or no speed you should be able to sit in the saddle with the bike pulled upright off the kickstand, knees bent, your feet planted flat on the floor. If you’re up on the balls of your feet, or worse, tip-toed, you won’t have complete control when you roll up to a stop and put your foot down or when you’re straddle-walking the bike backwards out of the garage or into a parking spot.
Solution: Lowering the bike.
You can physically lower the bike itself a couple of ways, but they both involve changing the suspension components – namely, the shock absorbers. On most bikes, the shocks are mounted to the frame and to the swingarm. You can purchase a special bracket that will allow you to loosen the mounting bolts, slide the shocks to slide the shock back an inch or so, bringing the frame-with-fender down a bit closer to the tire in the rear, which might be enough to get you flat-footed.
You could also replace the stock shock absorbers with shorter shocks, bringing things down even further. If you go this route, make sure you don’t go so short that the tire is likely to rub on the underside of the fender when the shock is compressed (i.e., you hit a bump, or add a passenger or luggage.)
If that’s still not enough, you can also purchase a kit that lowers the front of the bike by changing the springs inside the fork tubes. Again, make sure you aren’t creating a situation where parts of the bike will rub together that weren’t intended to do so. Alternate solutions: You might be able to flat-foot the bike just by changing out the seat. A bike with a wide seat will spread your legs farther apart before they head toward the ground. A narrow-profile seat might give you just enough extra room to get you flat-footed. And, if you’re just up on the balls of your feet instead of tip-toe, it’s possible you could get by just by purchasing boots with a taller heel and sole.
Problem 2: You can’t comfortably reach the handlebars.
Obviously, being able to reach the handgrips is key to comfortably operating and controlling the bike. From a design stand-point, lots of bikes today have “drag bars” – drag-racing style handlebars that come out in a nearly-straight line from the triple tree, extending left and right but not coming back toward you. These bars can force the shorter rider to hunch forward and reach way out to the right and left, putting body weight on your wrists and causing a burning sensation between the shoulder blades after only a short ride. (Kind of like that old ten-speed you used to ride with the curled-under handlebars – which, not coincidentally, was also originally designed for aerodynamic racing.)
Solution: Different handlebars, or pullback risers.
Depending on how far you have to hunch forward, you can try a couple of things here. Pullback risers are little chromey bits you put in between the tree and the bars to bring the bars up and back toward you in inch-increments. Small risers can make a big difference, so ask your dealer to help you determine how much pull-back you need.
You can also try a different handlebar style altogether. Buckhorn bars (and their next-bigger cousin, mini ape-hangers) bring the hand grips back toward you, and put your hands at an angle on the handgrips so your body sits back a bit and your weight rests on your butt and lower back instead of your wrists. Full ape-hangers will likely raise your arms above shoulder-level, which looks “old-school cool” but might make the upper arms ache. Finally, beach bars form a wide curve back toward the rider – like using half a steering wheel from the city bus. These have a distinct look and bring the grips back toward you, with your hands in a straight position similar to the drag bars (but probably with better weight distribution). Of course, if choosing different bars you’ll want to consider the design and look of your bike, too. Beach bars might look hot on a wide cruiser, but they’ll likely look out of place on a narrower bike.
An important caveat here is that adding risers or changing the bars could also mean you’ll need longer or shorter clutch control cables and/or brake lines to accommodate the adjusted distance.
Shorter riders needn’t fear the bike-shopping experience. While it’s true that making these modifications will change the final price of the bike, it’s also true that making a bike fit you perfectly is actually part of the process – and part of the fun!
5′-0″, rides ‘07 Streetglide…. Has 16 yrs riding experience!
Gina – the other side of this equation that I didn’t even discuss in this article is: how does a smaller/shorter woman “man-handle” (for lack of a better word) a larger bike? The Street Glide weighs over 780 pounds… do you have any trouble maneuvering when, for example, you have to walk it back into a parking spot? Appreciated you stopping by, thanks! ~ Janet
Can be a problem backing up… try not to get high centered… Also, lowered the bike as much as posssible, with out affecting rideablity… Lowered front end, special “reach seat”.. rear end couln’t be lowered more than stock without special bracket for shocks… THEN RAISED ME! (Got a tip years ago from another lady rider) Went to my shoe repair shop… had my riding boots resoled with 21/2″ orthopedic lifts… would you like pics? Now have over 10,000 miles on bike. Riden it up highway 1 and 101 up California coast inot Oregon … From Olathe, Ks.
hello, im completely new to bikes and really want to buy one, im a 5″3 female and could really do with some assistance. its hard to deal with salesmen as they are all trying to push their own products. i want an on road bike, even a dual purpose would be quite cool. i like the look of sport bikes.im not sure which manufactue\rer is the best, in fact i have no clue as to where to star. please advise.
Jade, thanks for reading! I have never tried to shop for anything other than the V-Twin cruisers, so I’m afraid I can’t be too helpful on other types of bikes. If anyone else reading here has some tips, feel free to share!
A great place for you to start would be to head over to Delphi Forums, and find the “Women Who Ride” forum. There are over 1200 participants in that group, many of whom ride sport bikes and can advise you on which ones fit shorter riders. You will need to sign up with Delphi for at least a free account, but even their paid (ad-free) accounts are very reasonable and well worth the money (I think I pay $15 per quarter for mine). Once you’re signed up, look for “Women Who Ride.” The direct link to that forum is:
http://forums.delphiforums.com/distaff – this will take you to a login page, which is where you can get your free account.
Best of luck to you – ride safe and have fun!
Janet
I have a lowered ‘08 ultra classic that I am loving. Used to ride a lowered Heritage and had no problem being flatfooted. Pulled the handlebars back and rode with a lot of comfort. I am still adjusting the the different ride of the Ultra, but really do like the smoothness of the ride. My only problem with both the Heritage and now the Ultra is reaching the kickstand! I have a bruise on the inside of my lower leg from the floorboards and struggle each time to reach the kickstand. I can ride off of the kickstand most times, but still need to be able to reach and pull it up. Any suggestions for an extension that makes it a shorter reach for a short legged woman?
Shelly, glad to know the bigger bikes can be made to work for shorter riders, my husband rides a Heritage and I have tried it out a few times – yes, I think if lowered it would work well for me except for the kickstand – I can’t reach it either! LOL ‘Course, neither can he… thanks for reading! ~ Janet
Hi, I’m a new short rider (5′2) and am planning an around the word bike trip with my boyfriend. I am trying to find an enduro type bike that will fit me, street cruisers don’t seem to be a problem, but all the dirt bikes I’ve seen are much higher normally. Do you have any suggestions?
Nina, I really don’t know anything about the sport and “Enduro” bikes, except to agree with you that the sport bikes seem to me to much taller than cruisers. I have heard that the Ninja is not uncomfortable, though, even for short riders. As for enduro bikes… Sorry I can’t be helpful.
Hi,
I’m a sports bike rider, I LOVE them
I actually asked around the girl forums I am a member of and have published a list on my blog of the different bikes girls are riding. Not just cruisers, but sports bikes like me and also all other kinds.
The list also includes whether the girls can touch the floor, and any adjustments they made to the bikes to lower the ride height.
It’s proving very popular and helpful to girls who are looking at buying a bike.
Bladerider
Blade, I’m so sorry I didn’t see this comment before now – THANK YOU for taking time to read and comment here!
Folks, The post below at Bladerider’s blog will give you a couple of links to some very good resources she has created for sportbike riders.
http://ravenbladerider.wordpress.com/2009/01/11/girls-and-modern-sports-bikes/
If the link doesn’t work for you, just visit http://ravenbladerider.wordpress.com and click on the “Female Riders” category.
- Janet/BikerChick
Jade,
I recnetly read an article on Women Riders Now that listed all of the bikes from major manufacturers that come stock with a low seat height. It might be helpful to you. Here’s the link: http://www.womenridersnow.com/PublicFiles/DepartmentViewer.asp?ArticleID=1187
Mrs. Road, thanks for sharing that link – it also appears in the text of my more recent post that provides an update to this article. It was a Herculean effort from Women Riders Now and VERY helpful! ~ Janet
I have been thinking about taking a good class and learning to ride but I live in Houston Texas which is a very dangerous place for novice riders so I continue to ride with my husband on our Harley. I prefer the Sportster because it fits me the best and is more compatible weight wise. I am not afraid of my riding abilities it is the people in the cages that scare me there is no time for freezing up due to lack of experience. We have had some pretty close calls that my husband’s riding abilities saved us from. I just recently finished chemo and survived breast cancer so riding a bike is not so challenging anymore.
T – “no time for freezing up due to lack of experience” – that is a very good point, if you live in a busy city with aggressive drivers, that could be very daunting. I do have lots of gal pals who handle the bigger bikes with no problem, but so far I find my 883 Sporty fits me really well. I just found a great catalog with an interesting new front-end setup that I would love to try – makes it look like a mini-FatBoy! Bet it’s expensive though. Thanks for reading and commenting!
Janet
Biker chick
I am 4′11 (quite short) and have a Honda Rebel (not a very big bike), and I’m thinking of graduating to a larger bike, but I have some concerns about the weight of the larger bikes and the arm length, the weight I think I can handle but the real problem as it is I have trouble with my hands going to sleep.
What do you do to stop this from happening?
Kat
Kat, there are two things I can think of off-hand that might cause your hands to go to sleep. One is an incorrect (for you) riding position; the other is vibration in your handlebars.
Riding position – Because I’m so short, I’ve found that often, the stock handlebar set-up on a new bike creates too far of a reach. This can burn starting between my shoulder blades and all the way down my arms into my hands. The solution is to figure out how much pullback you need in your bars, and see if you can find some risers or extensions that will alter the handlebars into the right position.
Vibration – I hadn’t heard about vibration being a problem with the Rebel, but on a pre-2004 Sportster, believe me – it’s an issue! So it might be with your bike too. Depending on how the engine is mounted (among other potential variables), the vibration from the engine might be traveling through the bike and creating a buzzing or vibrating sensation in your hands. After some distance of riding, this makes them feel numb and/or puts them to sleep. There may be a deadening insert you can put into your handlebars (I know at least one person who did this on her Sporty), or maybe some kind of padded handgrips might work to reduce the vibe.
All that said, if you are looking new bikes, definitely research whether vibration is an issue in the bike you’re considering as well as the handlebar position. As a very short shopper, I found that the Honda VLX (which is a 600) and the Shadow 750 Spirit both fit me very well. I owned the Shadow for about 18 months and put padded grips on it (Kuryakyn ISO Grips), and never had a vibration problem. On my 883 Sportster, I changed handlebars a couple times – once for comfort and once for looks – and it didn’t lessen the vibration any but it did make my shoulders more comfortable. On my 1200, the engine is mounted differently so the vibration’s not so noticable, but I got ISO grips for my birthday so we’ll be adding those soon and that should eliminate virtually all of it.
Other thoughts welcome, so others please chime in!
Janet
Thank you so much, your so very right there is a lot of vibration with the Rebel, I find that it is both my hands not just one, my husband has been at a loss on how to help me as he rides a BMW Cruiser and doesn’t have this problem, the bike actaully fits me through the arm length and height well now that I have lowered it and got boots with heels, the shopping I’ve done has been real fun(still looking) leaning me towards the Honda Spirit, I was looking for a Honda 600 but found out there discontinuing that model, the dealer said people were complaining they were dogs on the freeway and that the larger models were being purchased more readily, so the 750 I checked out seem to fit but a bit heavy, handle bars fit and I really like the looks.
So were would I find these Kuryakyn ISO Grips handle grips? Are they designed to fit most bikes?
Kat Kleinsmith
Kat, the 750 I owned was heavier than the Yamaha 250 I started with, but it was very well-balanced and I had no trouble maneuvering it around, including “walking it” backwards (such as into or out of a parking space). The Kuryakyn ISO grips are made for many makes and models of bikes, you can get them through J&P Cycles from a variety of sources – J&P Cycles and Dennis Kirk are the two sources I used most often when not shopping with my HD dealer. Be sure to spend a few extra bucks and get the “wrist rest” add-on, it’s well worth it… allows you to relax your grip on the throttle while the weight of your hand keeps it open.
By the way, on the 600 – I sat on that bike the day I ended up buying the 750. I LOVED the way it felt and fit; the only reason I didn’t buy it was because it was only a four-speed, which my hubby thought would not be enough power on the highway. I bought the 750; later heard mixed reports from others who owned the 600 – some said they never felt like it was lagging, others definitely did. As much as I loved the way the bike fit me, I was glad I bought the 750 instead.
Have fun shopping!
I can ride any motorcycle,its the stopping flatfooted thats the problem.I had to learn fast to lower all my mcs.I was embarrased thirtysome years ago when I rode up to a 1% clubhouse,did’nt get my feet down right and fell over.
5′,2″,106 lbs.