ninjette.org - View Single Post

adouglas · March 16th, 2018, 08:31 AM

Somewhat OT but food for thought since the original question was about posture.

I actually PREFER more aggressive ergos. Here's why.

A couple of months after I bought my 08 Ninjette I had a couple of vacation weeks to burn, so I decided to take a tour and rode out to Indianapolis for the MotoGP race, then took a meandering route home. By the end of it I'd ridden something like 2,800 miles. That gave me a LOT of seat time to think about exactly what hurt, why it hurt, and what I could do about it.

What I concluded after many hours in the saddle was this:

- Putting weight on your butt hurts. It's more comfortable to lean forward, put your weight on your thighs and get it off the pointy bits of your pelvis (your "sit bones"). I was a lot more comfortable leaning forward, putting weight on the tank and tank bag, and putting my feet back (toes on the pegs). You can simulate this in a hard-backed or office chair: Scoot forward and perch on the front edge with your feet back under you. You should be able to slide your hand under your butt. See? No weight on your a$$.

- Weight on your arms and wrists hurts. Better to put your weight on the tank and leave your hands and arms loose.

After that trip I bought clip-ons and rearset adjusters to give the bike more supersport-like ergos. Much more comfortable for me if used correctly.

I now ride a supersport on the street and the only thing that hurts -- no kidding -- is my knees. That's more because of my age than anything. Zero discomfort in my wrists and none on my butt.

But... supersports are hard on your wrists, right? Sure, if you do what a lot of people do and insist on stiff-arming the bike. I don't do that. I ride low, with my chest/belly on the tank. Arms are always loose. So no pain in the wrists. That same posture automatically pulls my butt up off the seat, so no pain in my butt either. I'm pretty much hugging the bike.

Are there drawbacks to this posture? Well, you do have to look up all the time because otherwise you'll be craning your neck. I have to wear glasses, so to accomplish this I use contacts when riding. It's also a bit more of an athletic thing, in that you're using muscles in your core and thighs that you wouldn't otherwise use when sitting upright.

March 16th, 2018, 08:31 AM	#6
adouglas Cat herder Name: Gort Location: A secret lair which, being secret, has an undisclosed location Join Date: May 2009 Motorcycle(s): Aprilia RS660 Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 6 MOTM - Jul '18, Nov '16, Aug '14, May '13	Somewhat OT but food for thought since the original question was about posture. I actually PREFER more aggressive ergos. Here's why. A couple of months after I bought my 08 Ninjette I had a couple of vacation weeks to burn, so I decided to take a tour and rode out to Indianapolis for the MotoGP race, then took a meandering route home. By the end of it I'd ridden something like 2,800 miles. That gave me a LOT of seat time to think about exactly what hurt, why it hurt, and what I could do about it. What I concluded after many hours in the saddle was this: - Putting weight on your butt hurts. It's more comfortable to lean forward, put your weight on your thighs and get it off the pointy bits of your pelvis (your "sit bones"). I was a lot more comfortable leaning forward, putting weight on the tank and tank bag, and putting my feet back (toes on the pegs). You can simulate this in a hard-backed or office chair: Scoot forward and perch on the front edge with your feet back under you. You should be able to slide your hand under your butt. See? No weight on your a$$. - Weight on your arms and wrists hurts. Better to put your weight on the tank and leave your hands and arms loose. After that trip I bought clip-ons and rearset adjusters to give the bike more supersport-like ergos. Much more comfortable for me if used correctly. I now ride a supersport on the street and the only thing that hurts -- no kidding -- is my knees. That's more because of my age than anything. Zero discomfort in my wrists and none on my butt. But... supersports are hard on your wrists, right? Sure, if you do what a lot of people do and insist on stiff-arming the bike. I don't do that. I ride low, with my chest/belly on the tank. Arms are always loose. So no pain in the wrists. That same posture automatically pulls my butt up off the seat, so no pain in my butt either. I'm pretty much hugging the bike. Are there drawbacks to this posture? Well, you do have to look up all the time because otherwise you'll be craning your neck. I have to wear glasses, so to accomplish this I use contacts when riding. It's also a bit more of an athletic thing, in that you're using muscles in your core and thighs that you wouldn't otherwise use when sitting upright. __________________________________________________ I am NOT an adrenaline junkie, I'm a skill junkie. - csmith12 Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est. Heri historia. Cras mysterium. Hodie donum est. Carpe diem. Last futzed with by adouglas; March 16th, 2018 at 02:46 PM.