You know, I just read the article mentioned in the SportRider 600 Shootout thread and realized something very odd about me and my 675. Everyone complains about the ergonomics of the bike. I don't, though.
I don't have to reach very far for the bars, and the waspy width of the tank means I can slap my balls on the tank without having to spread my legs like a whore with a fat client.That is a VERY good thing considering the damage to my hip, femur, and pelvis.
I will say that the best bang-for-the-buck modification I have made, aside from the gel seat, is the addition of StompGrips to the sides of the tank. If I plant my toes on my pegs, my thighs naturally grip the tank and give me an utterly remarkable amount of stability on the bike.
Having that amount of grip on the tank means that I don't press down on my handlebars, negating the horrible wrist pain that I was giving myself the first two weeks I rode the bike. I think that the wrist pain most riders complain about on the 675 is from improper body positioning and weight distribution.
I keep my elbows very low and hold my bars like they're rotten bananas, managing all my weight with my stomach and lower body. This lends itself, in my own experience, to a lot more maneuverability into and out of street cornering situations and adjustability of body position for changing situations such as ye olde fast-fun-corner-woohoo-oh-shit-that-car-is-doing-35 scenario that we have all come to know and love. Popping my body up on the interstate as an "air brake" or "hey, I'm riding here, ASSHOLE" sign is easier on the 675 than on my SV650, as is dropping back in the saddle to tuck.
I do have complaints, though. I feel like I am forced to slap my balls on the tank, pretty much. If I sit further back on the saddle, I feel like the front end is low and have to put an inordinate amount of pressure on my wrists. Maybe that is what everyone complains about with the wrist pain.
The StompGrips have aided that issue quite a bit by allowing my knees to "stick" in place and stabilize my lower body with my ass back on the saddle. Only complaint there is that my knees are squeezing a hard-ass tank so my ass can be...well, not MORE comfortable, just differently placed.
Changing between those positions over a long ride more than doubles saddle time for me, though. The StompGrips, gel seat, and my recovering strength from riding so much, have changed my average smile time on the 675 from 30 minutes to "have to re-fuel and piss" which is something I can't say for any of my other bikes.
So, what do you guys think of the ergonomics of the 675 versus other bikes you own, ride, or have ridden? What are your praises, what are your complaints? Anything you've done to increase/decrease your comfort?
"I mentioned earlier that the 675's overall narrow shape helped make for a good handling bike when transitioning corner to corner. It's very similar to the CBR's racy ergo package, yet the reach to the bars proved to be a little too much, even for Steve who's a tad taller than most of us. He commutes daily on his personal 675 through L.A. rush-hour traffic and usually calls the bike a "torture rack." " (2008 Supersport Shootout)
I bought my 675 because of how COMFORTABLE it is to me. One of the ergonomic changes I have made is the Triumph gel seat, and I think the damn thing should come with that seat from the factory. I am 6'3", 145lbs soaking wet in gear, and my pelvis is crooked from being shattered last year. Yeah, yeah, I know I'm scrawny. Lost a third of my body weight when I was in the hospital, still rebuilding myself.
I don't have to reach very far for the bars, and the waspy width of the tank means I can slap my balls on the tank without having to spread my legs like a whore with a fat client.That is a VERY good thing considering the damage to my hip, femur, and pelvis.
I will say that the best bang-for-the-buck modification I have made, aside from the gel seat, is the addition of StompGrips to the sides of the tank. If I plant my toes on my pegs, my thighs naturally grip the tank and give me an utterly remarkable amount of stability on the bike.
Having that amount of grip on the tank means that I don't press down on my handlebars, negating the horrible wrist pain that I was giving myself the first two weeks I rode the bike. I think that the wrist pain most riders complain about on the 675 is from improper body positioning and weight distribution.
I keep my elbows very low and hold my bars like they're rotten bananas, managing all my weight with my stomach and lower body. This lends itself, in my own experience, to a lot more maneuverability into and out of street cornering situations and adjustability of body position for changing situations such as ye olde fast-fun-corner-woohoo-oh-shit-that-car-is-doing-35 scenario that we have all come to know and love. Popping my body up on the interstate as an "air brake" or "hey, I'm riding here, ASSHOLE" sign is easier on the 675 than on my SV650, as is dropping back in the saddle to tuck.
I do have complaints, though. I feel like I am forced to slap my balls on the tank, pretty much. If I sit further back on the saddle, I feel like the front end is low and have to put an inordinate amount of pressure on my wrists. Maybe that is what everyone complains about with the wrist pain.
The StompGrips have aided that issue quite a bit by allowing my knees to "stick" in place and stabilize my lower body with my ass back on the saddle. Only complaint there is that my knees are squeezing a hard-ass tank so my ass can be...well, not MORE comfortable, just differently placed.
Changing between those positions over a long ride more than doubles saddle time for me, though. The StompGrips, gel seat, and my recovering strength from riding so much, have changed my average smile time on the 675 from 30 minutes to "have to re-fuel and piss" which is something I can't say for any of my other bikes.
So, what do you guys think of the ergonomics of the 675 versus other bikes you own, ride, or have ridden? What are your praises, what are your complaints? Anything you've done to increase/decrease your comfort?