Jerry at Tread Life talks about re-tuning his
motorcycle’s riding position. "I have some back problems, and when they
flare up the only thing to do is change the handlebar position, or add
a seat pad, or both, to change the ergonomics slightly." He notes that, "if you buy a sportbike, you get the racer’s crouch along with it. You
buy a cruiser, you get the laid-back, feet-forward position. Car designers would see that as the tail wagging the dog. Motorcycle
designers don’t, so if for example you want a bike with the performance
of a sportbike and the relaxed seating position of a tourer, or a big
thumping V-twin engine without the hurricane-force wind up your pant
legs, you’re out of luck."
I found this interesting as I recently became aware of sport/muscle cruisers when I rode the 2009 Suzuki Boulevard M90 . . . Well, actually, come to think of it, my introduction to this breed was actually a couple of years ago when Genevieve Schmitt of Women Riders Now showed up at my door with a Harley V-Rod and a Fat Boy.
I chose the V-Rod because I'd never heard of it and it looked cool. I'd just returned from my trip Around the Adriatic on a Moto Guzzi Breva 750 IE sport touring bike. (Yeah, hey, there's another hybrid for ya, but it remains my favorite ride for touring on mixed highway and twisty European mountain and coastal roads.)
On the V-Rod I had trouble remembering that when I reached for the footpegs I needed to reach forward, not backwards, which mad for an interesting experience on the streets of San Francisco, but I managed to ride along without falling down with Genevieve for the film crew and photographers while she interviewed me for the magazine — and for a San Francisco motorcycle cop who escorted us off the Golden Gate Bridge. (He didn't like the camera guys hanging out of the back of the truck, but we managed to talk him out of a ticket. Gee, I wish I had that video!)
So, the point is that the new muscle/sport cruisers solve Jerry's initial problem — that is, the desire to lean his bike back a bit into a cruiser riding position so his back doesn't hurt any more. As for his wish for adjustability . . . I predict that'll take a while.
tilted forward and backward. I want a seat with several inches of
height adjustability. I want footpegs with a usable range of positions
to take the kink out of my knees on long rides. . . And I want them now. Please. Because I’m running out of combinations of handlebar risers and seat pads.
Read Jerry's Tread Life blog entry.
When bicyclists wind up with back problems, they often switch to recumbent style bikes, forsaking the crouched position forced by the diamond frame road bike (referred to as “wedgies” by the ‘bent crowd).
If Jerry is getting back problems, it might be time for him to “have an apostrophe”.
At 6’3″, I have never had a particularly comfortable riding position. My Sporty is set up about as good as i can get it, with my front riding pegs pushed way out via a custom bracket. Switch over to a different bike makes me feel cramped, regardless of how big the bike actually is. We really need more factory adjustments to help with this.
I’ve been riding bikes for 30 years. Rode cruisers for many of them. I find the “feet forward” riding position of most cruisers VERY uncomfortable after a short period of time. Rolls the hips in the wrong direction and puts pressure on the lower back. All of my discomfort and back issues went AWAY when I switched to the feet under the seat, body leaning slightly forward “sport-touring” riding position. Natural curvature of the spine, ahhh, yes. Will never go back.
I’m 6’3″ also.