2003 V11 Sport Naked sidestand problem

[bbucklin]

Hi all, my name is Bob Bucklin, new member, 1st post. I just bought a 2003 Sport naked and love the bike but have a problem; I need to ride with another person because my legs are too short to reach the sidestand to put it down or raise it I'm 5'6" with a 29"ish inseam. Has anyone else had this problem and if so what were your solutions? Do they make a longer bail?

 

Thanks in advance for any help you may offer.

 

Bob

[GuzziMoto]

My wife is about your height and has no issues reaching the funny tang on the side stand. Does yours have the funny U shaped tang that makes reaching the stand possible?

Aside from making a longer tang another option would be a strip of rubber that catches on the ground and flips the stand up, ala 90's Hondas.

[bbucklin]

Thanks GuzziMoto but unfortunately I still must have shorter legs that your wife. Yes it does have the u shaped bail on it, the rubber band is an idea but I still have the issue of putting the stand down since I can't push it forward enough.

[docc]

I've seen people replace the bail ("side stand lever") with one of their own making bent from flat aluminum plate. You could extend it and shape it anyway you pleased, even angling it back a bit.

 

Every time I ride with Josh on his Sport 1100, I marvel that he operates his side stand by hand!

[bbucklin]

Thanks docc I may have to do just that, just didn't want to reinvent the wheel if I didn't have to

[docc]

An alternative would be to have your seat reshaped to fit you better overall. Certainly a more involved option than the custom "bail' but might give you a better sense of control with the bike at a stop.

 

Mom used to say, "It's no disgrace to be short, but it's mighty unhandy."

[bbucklin]

Thanks again I think I'll stick with trying to figure something out with the bail