Bikes for short ladies to take the test on.

[Guest]

Hi I'm looking for ideas on suggestions of what bike will be suitable for me, I currently ride a Suzuki Marauder 125cc on L-plates and I'm looking to take my full bike test (either DAS or A2) but struggling to find a bike small enough for me to ride.

I'm only 5' tall and have an inside leg of 26".

Could any others who are as small as me suggest;

1. Bikes that are suitable to take the tests on.

1a) DAS - 595cc with a power output of at least 40kw or (53.6bhp)

1b) A2 - 395cc with a power output between 25 and 35 kW (33bhp and 46.6 bhp)

2. Bikes that are very comfy to ride to get after passing if different from a test bike.

Your suggestions would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Chrissy

[littlecat]

exactly the same size as me then .... I did my DAS on a fully lowered er5 , under the old rules .

firstly, shop around for schools in your area who a. understand just how tiny you really are, and the issues that come with that, and b. have a properly lowered ( not just a bit of foam off the seat ) bike .

not sure what most schools are using for the A test now, but I would imagine a properly lowered er6 ( or a fazer etc )would do the job .

you will find you are always going to have a very limited choice of bikes that work , and even less choice when it comes to schools that understand and will accommodate you.

[littlecat]

just to add...if you're hoping to find a bike that will fit you as standard that's suitable for the test, you may as well search for sparkly purple unicorns.....not happening

[Dav3y]

Might sound strange, but I'm sure there was someone talking about boots that I gather have a deeper sole on them that can also help a little.

[littlecat]

Daytona ladystar... very good built in platform... cost around £250-300 quid... about the same as a customlowering service....or you could just break all your nails and lower your own for a fraction of that.

theres also the option of stretching the touchdown and learning to slide your arse off to land one foot.... I wouldn't recommend that for a learner though, but then again, ive managed a modest 13000 miles on the R6 with the tip of one toe touching the floor..... sometimes its more about mental attitude

[MissBex]

I'm about 5ft 2 and I'm doing my DAS on a XJ6 thats been lowered and had some foam taken out of the seat. I can Flat foot one side and nearly flatfoot the other side.

The school I'm with has 2 other XJ6's that have also been lowered, one of them has been lowered a little more (on the front suspension) than the one I've been using but when I tried it out the steering felt too light and different so I went back to the other one lol.

I'm also wearing Dainese Grace Boots which give me a nice little bit of height increase also. (Around £120)

Go around to all your local schools and ask if you can just sit on some bikes to see if you are comfortable

Also, this is a nice website where you can play around with bikes and rider height, inseam, seating position, lowering etc.. might be useful for you: http://cycle-ergo.com/

[Guest]

I think you'd be fine on what I did mine on - ER6N, with some raised footwear you should be able to at least get your toes on the floor then you'll be fine. I'm 5'5 and could flat foot both feet. With my R6 I touch both toes or flat foot one side, no problems with either technique.

[littlecat]

the same leg length as me , a standard er6 will have her feet swinging off the floor...

[Remy]

I'm 5'3" with a 28.25" (the .25 is v. important ), and the only bikes I have ever flat footed on were custom built bobbers/choppers! I think it's fair to say at your height you won't find anything you can flat foot on, but it's how balanced you can be on tiptoes (or if you're lucky balls of feet). When I was deciding whether or not to do the DAS I tried the school bike, a lowered ER5 but it was so heavy and I still couldn't flat foot it was not worth me even trying and I took the test on my 125 - but that was in the days when you didn't have to take a further test to ride a bigger bike.

Both my bigger bikes have had to be lowered, the first was a Suzuki Gladius and I now have a Moto Guzzi V7 (both considered 'low' bikes to start with). The Gladius was an easy to ride bike but is top heavy and I did drop it several times! A lot of schools use them as learner bikes. There are other bikes with lower seat heights such as Ducati Monster 696 and Triumph Bonneville, but again in stock form would probably be too high for you. There are many bikes that can be restricted for the A2 test here

I have Daytona Ladystars which do give me an extra bit of height, but as they are thicker in the sole they can take a bit of getting used to and you can lose 'feel' when learning - but if you decided to give them a try it's worth giving them a go with your current bike to see how you get on. They give you about 2.5cm at the heel and a bit less at the toe, but as Cat has said aren't cheap - you can sometimes pick them up off eBay though.

The best thing to do is to have a look round training schools local to you and have a sit on their bikes, to give you some idea!

[Guest]

the same leg length as me , a standard er6 will have her feet swinging off the floor...

That sucks. Here's a good video: This rider is 5"1 and illustrates how it can be done. 26" inside leg.

... just don't stop where the ground isn't level

Motorcycle tips for short riders:

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[mailee66]

That looks so awkward for the rider in the video. I could see the bike being dropped at some point with all of the tip toe shuffling going on each time you stop! Think it would be safer to get the bike lowered or buy a lower bike IMHO.

[littlecat]

must ask my mate for the vid of me he felt compelled to take after he stopped laughing the first time he saw me on the R6 with one foot swinging 5 inches above the floor... the effort it took to upright it was almost superhuman... but you'd never have noticed once I was moving , lol

[littlecat]

lol, just watched the video...that's hilarious...mostly cos that's exactly me on the R6.... only thing missing is the scenario where the legs aren't quite long enough to kick the stand down properly on a camber, and it keeps springing back up...necessitating shouting loudly at some passer by to come kick it down for you.....hehehe... funniest looks me and ohjay ever got were at squires... on a particularly busy hot day, when the flat spots in the carpark were full....he knows if I don't move once we've stopped , that means I cant get the stand down... so I sit patiently while he walks over and kicks it down for me....... the faces of the guys nearby were priceless

[MR_W]

Never been a problem for me being 6'1"

[Guest]

lol, just watched the video...that's hilarious...mostly cos that's exactly me on the R6.... only thing missing is the scenario where the legs aren't quite long enough to kick the stand down properly on a camber, and it keeps springing back up...necessitating shouting loudly at some passer by to come kick it down for you.....hehehe... funniest looks me and ohjay ever got were at squires... on a particularly busy hot day, when the flat spots in the carpark were full....he knows if I don't move once we've stopped , that means I cant get the stand down... so I sit patiently while he walks over and kicks it down for me....... the faces of the guys nearby were priceless

What you need is a telescopic reaching device lol.