How are the ergo's?

[ronk1200lt]

We have heard lots about the GT's handling, but how about the ergo's? Has anyone over 6 feet tall driven one for any length of time. How would the long ride comfort compare to an FJR? I am 6' 4" and would like to buy a GT as a second bike. I haven't been able to ride one yet as our dealer is sold out till fall, so I would be interested in hearing about how comfortable it is for a big guy. Thanks.

[eljeffe]

I am 6'3" and 260lbs and the ergos are great. In the high position, the bars are too high for me. In the low position, the ride was more like a K1200R (or the K1200RS/GT predecessors). So I have mine set in the middle. I've done 1000 miles so far, and aside from the seat taking the full 1000 to break in, that's the only complaint in terms of ergos. We leave Wednesday for a 2000-2500 mile trip, so I will report back.

[Ruben]

Well, I'm 6" 1", so I guess I qualify. I can't tell you how it compares to the way a FJR rides, as I've not ridden one. Sitting still, the '06 FJR seems far more radical than the LT, with a significant lean forward position. The GT is even more upright than the Honda ST1300, when the bars are adjusted to full up, the way they are currently being delivered here.

To put the comments below in perspective, I'm sixty years old, an out of shape, fat desk jockey, that doesn't get much exercise. I have a bad back, and arthritis in my hands, back, and neck.

The GT:
At first I found the seat very uncomfortable. I still don't care for it, but after the first discomfort, it never seems to get much worse. I rode most of the day Sunday, mostly back roads, as I'm still breaking it in. The longest stretch was just shy of two hours. Nearly four hundred miles later, I had nearly forgotten about the seat!

I don't know WHERE they funnel the heat, but it was hot Sunday, most of the day hovered around 93-95 degrees F, and there was NO heat from the motorcycle that I could detect.

Ours are currently being delivered with the tall windscreen. Set to the tallest position, it kept the wind off me, sort of, but I didn't care for it. Some buffeting, but mostly too hot! I found the best position for the windscreen was about one third of the way up from full down. Any lower caused an uncomfortable low pressure area in front of me, pulling my head forward, and higher was too hot, due to not enough venting in my helmet. Once properly set, it was a trifle windy, and noisy (earplugs are a must), but very comfortable.

The suspension soaks up bumps better than most full touring rigs, including my Goldwing! I can't praise it high enough!

The footpeg position seemed perfect for me, I can't deal with rearsets anymore, and I HATE the foot forward "cruiser" position. Even a couple of hours sitting at a time caused me no discomfort.

With my previous 2004 K1200GT, I would have such a stiff neck that the muscles would be knotted up for a week after a ride like that, causing me several days of headaches. With my new GT, I felt great, and had plenty of energy left to clean off the bug goo, and have had no soreness anywhere this week.

Conclusion: This bike works fine for me. In some ways not quite as comfortable as my Goldwing, with custom seat, but way more fun!

[ronk1200lt]

Thanks guys. Specifically, how do you find the peg position. I am the same size as El Jeffe but have bad knees. Do you find that the pegs are low enough so that your joints don't ache on long rides?

[eljeffe]

It's fine for me. I can dangle my feet without worry of dragging when I need a rest.

I have yet to touch the peg in the corner (and I have no chicken strip left), so I would bet someone will make a peg lowering kit that won't compromise handling and leanability.

[DPSCOTT]

My short ride on Jeff's GT made my knees feel like they were being stretched on my RS. The peg position felt like it was just barely forward of being directly below you.

[TouringProf]

I do own an FJR, and have toured on it. I only have 675 miles on the GT, but I'm departing from Denver to Atlanta on the GT on Sunday to visit my daughter, so that 'low mileage embarrassment' will soon be a thing of the past.

The pegs on the FJR are, for my 32" inseam, a longer reach; to put it another way, my legs are more bent on the GT than the FJR. However, with my beads and airhawk and sheepskin on the torture seat, that difference will also be mostly offset, especially with the seat in the upper position.

One more observation. Unlike the GT, the FJR does have the ability to install forward highway pegs. I've got 'em, I use 'em, and they help a lot ($75.00). Unless I drill into the fairing somehow, I don't see how this can be done on the GT. This is one area where I think the FJR has it over the GT for long day touring.

Finally, the risers I got for the FJR (no cable change necessary) put my bars in virtually the same position as the GT bars in their highest position, relative to my seating position.

[Mitch_Rider]

WOW! Even after only 300 miles on the Crystal Grey GT that I picked up Tuesday evening I can personally confirm wholeheartedly everything thing that has been written about the GT as far as performance and handling. The engine should be referred to as a "thruster" in every gear...I am not sure what one would need the rpms above 7000 for other than "rocket racing". The bike instantly inspires confidence in its handling. I did my favorite local twisty road last night at speeds that I never would have thought comfortable for me. This bike was designed for those kind of roads!

I absolutely love this bike but I am really struggling with the ergos. A good part of the riding that I enjoy is longer distance touring, with as much freeway as two lane twisties I am experimenting with the bar height and seat height to find a spot where the ergos on this bike will work for me (6'1", 220 lbs, 32" inseam). After my initial hour with the seat up and the bars all the way up my butt had gone numb. The seat, as others have mentioned, concentrates all of your weight on your pelvic bones. The design of the seat keeps you forward against the tank and (I think that this is the critical part) the knee angle of the peg placement makes this the natural riding position. It is, in fact, the perfect position for doing the fun roads, but for me only for an hour at this initial setting. Since then I have lowered the bars midway and that seems to create enough forward lean to better spread the pressure points. I know all about the custom seat route as I have had my 02 LT (135000 miles) seat done three different times and my RT done as well. For me, I think that lowering the pegs ( I have lowered pegs on both my LT and RT) and the custom seat route will be needed to be comfortable for distances. I also realize that getting used to this position versus that of my LT is part of the “finding comfort” process. The other downside to the peg placement and my length of legs is that the knee bend is fairly tight and my bad right knee was starting to remind me after an hour. I was very close to taking the bike back and telling the dealer that it just wasn’t going to work for me…BUT I was so enthralled with the performance that I have decided to perservere.

I experimented with different settings for the windscreen and for my torso height, I was looking over it at full up, had a nice pocket of still air for my helmet, but a fair amount of wind on my shoulders. I am sure that the after market folks can address this..

The other item that has taken away from the full enjoyment is the very sensitive and twitchy throttle that others have mentioned. Hopefully a freeplay adjustment will help some and I have already mentioned this to my dealer to correct on Tuesday when I bring it in for the 600 mile service. As it is, it is way to sensitive for my tastes and riding comfort. You have so much "thrust" available, that hitting the slightest bump can bring it on at the wrong time. I have ridden my step sons CBR1000 and the GT's throttle is very similar...maybe its appropriate for a race bike but not a "touring bike". Hopefully there will be a fix for this.

I just love the bike’s performance and its lighter weight. It feels even lighter than my RT. Working out the ergos will be a bit of a challence, but I feel it is well worth the effort. Due to the low resale value of an 02 LT with 135,000 miles on it, I am planning on keeping mine. Worst case, I can alternate with my old LT and enjoy the GT for a year or two until the new LT comes out and see where we go from there

Sorry to be long winded, but I hope that this is helpful.
Jeff
"MitchRider"
Portland, Oregon
06 K1200GT “GEE TEE”
02 K1200 LT “MCH RDR”
04 R1200RT “RT TIME”