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Am I Nuts???

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Anonymous

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Probably. I'm 55 and ride a 500# scooter. I'm also married to a banjo player and we aren't rolling in dough. :-D

I've been looking at shifty things lately, and I'd really like to get a Connie. My problem, or one of them, is I'm short, with a 30" inseam. I've sat on a couple and can touch the ground with the balls of my feet. I was thinking I could lower the seat, and buy boots with a higher heel. I've gone out to the COG forum to check on how other inseam challenged riders cope. I also plan on taking the MSF (again) on a shifty thing this time.

Am I getting in over my head? I don't like the riding position of sport bikes. I don't really want to get a cruiser, but I've been looking at them, too. :-P

:help: Helpful comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated.
 
I think you'll be fine with a lower seat and maybe some longer dogbones if needed. As long as the Connie has been around I can't imagine they don't have an aftermarket for dwarfs by now. Your 30" inseam shouldn't be a problem. :mrgreen:
 
I'm inseam challenged myself (around 29") and ride a bike with the same seat height as a Connie (mine is lighter though).

My stop position is often with my right foot on the brake and my left down.

Like you I don't want a sportbike or cruiser.

I think you will be all right.
 
:tab Just out of curiousity, what is it about the Connie that attracts you? It could be that there are other bikes out there that will meet your desires with less top heaviness. Is it the full fairings? The bags? I would think that many of the standard riding position bikes might work for you.

Adios,
 
Tourmeister said:
:tab Just out of curiousity, what is it about the Connie that attracts you? It could be that there are other bikes out there that will meet your desires with less top heaviness. Is it the full fairings? The bags? I would think that many of the standard riding position bikes might work for you.

Adios,
Click to expand...

I like the looks, the fairings, the sportiness, the good reputation. Comfort comes into play, too. As well as size. I'm looking for something around/betwen a liter and 1300 cc's.

Would you name some of those standards for me, please. I'll check them out.

Thanks!
 
The ones that come to mind are
ZRX-Retro Standard
FZ1-Better wind protection
Tuono-Just plain fun
Bandit-never rode one
919 -close but not a liter but lightweight and nimble
 
bushwhacker said:
There is a guy from the Conroe SCRC that has a 99 for sale for 3k.
Click to expand...
That would be SpEd and he does have it posted here too. I think Karen and he have already had discussions. ;-)

Oh, and to answer the original question... no, I don't think you are nuts. Have you had any conversation with Jensbike on COG? I believe she's fairly well inseam-challenged too.
 
BMW R1150R can be had with a low seat, windsheild and hard bags. I was going to put the hard bags on my bike and tour with it. :angryfir:

Dang kids in Mitsus! :miffed:
 
:tab I was thinking along the lines of Jeffie, but it would be quite a bit more expensive than the Connie. Though the R1150R is a nice bike, ask Txcpl!

:tab However, there are also smaller bikes like the nakes SV650, which can have a nice windscreen mounted and no plastic to get trashed if you do tip it over (which is likely considering your height, no slight intended). You can even put frame sliders on the SV. They can be easily lowered. They have a more upright riding position than the SV650S. Footpegs are slightly lower and farther forward than the S model. Plenty of power to haul you and lots of luggage.

:tab Other bikes to consider would be the FZ6, Honda 599 or 919, Vstrom 650, etc,... These bikes all have plenty of power, good handling, easy to work on, reliable proven engines, cheap to insure, and are LIGHTWEIGHT compared to a gased up Connie, hehe. They are all easy to lower, all have upright seating positions. You can easily add soft or hard luggage to all of them.

:tab If your heart is set on the Connie, then I would get it if you think you can get it low enough to make you comfortable. They are great bikes. But remember, if you do drop it... Plastic is not cheap ;-)

Adios,
 
Connie

Yeah the Connie's are great. I have a freind that is the Assistant Area Director of the COG group in Dallas. He has about a 28-29 inch inseam and the seat hieght is kind of challenging. He also had a Russell Seat made that helped somewhat. The other common complaint is the top-heavy feeling of the Connie. Definitely sit on one before you buy it. Otherwise, those guys are CRAZY about their Connies'. They are also a great group of people and very helpful to anyone. Good Luck.

BTW, my opinion about cruisers is that they are generally NOT very comfortable after about an hour on the road. That feet-forward position works really nice on the showroom floor but it doesn't do your spine any favors after about 30 minutes. But that may be a personal preference thing. One exception is the Honda Magna. They are very nice with a footpeg position that isn't too far forward and there are a lot of aftermarket windshields that look nice on them. They also have a very low seat height. My 5'3" wife can flat-foot on a Magna. You might give up some storage capacity but the aftermarket can take care of that.
 
Connie and Shifty things

Karen,

Are you wanting to take the basic or experienced ridercourse? I would assume you want to take the basic to get back in the feel of the shifty thing. Taking the course prior to purchasing a bike will help you get current in the event you want to take one for a test drive. (Less chance of dropping your new baby as well.)

As far as the Connie goes, I just purchased one a few months ago. While they can be somewhat top heavy, they are very manageable and a used one can be had quite affordably. COGers are die hards as the bike does everything well (not great) for not much $. Sure there are other bikes better in certain aspects, but you always have to consider cost (unless you got the bucks....).

Consider what type of riding you do. The Connie is good for either short or long haul trips (7.5 gal tank), around town, etc. with very good storage space with good power and handles twisties quite well, although not a true sport bike. I've found it to be quite enjoyable because of it's versatility. Also, it has more upright seating than a sport bike. I feel it is a more manageable bike than cruisers as the 4 cylinder engine is much easier to control in the friction zone. As stated earlier, I think the only downfall is the higher center of gravity, which makes it feel heavier.

I teach both courses for Ridercourse (www.ridercourse.com) in Carrollton. If you are willing to travel over here, I would be more than happy to talk Connie's with you then! If you take the course soon, you can beat the heat! I'm scheduled to teach the basic course 4/9-4/10, so no better time than the present!!!!

Good luck!
 
I don't think you are crazy. I myself have been trying to decide what to save up for. Since I don't have the Burgman anymore, I sure have been missing riding.
Sat on SpEd's ST today. Oh it was nice. Didn't get to ride but, would have hate to drop a bike that still has paper tags on it. Anyhow, I went looking around. Sat on all the bikes at the Suzuki/Yamaha place and out at the Kawaski place. I liked the Ninjas but my husband said no way. I will most likely get another scooter next year.

FYI, out at ProPowersports of Conroe, they have an 04 Connie with 10K miles for $2500. No bags or anything. Red in color.
 
Just a tad top heavy

I love my connie, but they are a tad top heavy...But for the money, you can't beat them..
 
Tourmeister said:
However, there are also smaller bikes like the nakes SV650, which can have a nice windscreen mounted and no plastic to get trashed if you do tip it over (which is likely considering your height, no slight intended). You can even put frame sliders on the SV. They can be easily lowered. They have a more upright riding position than the SV650S. Footpegs are slightly lower and farther forward than the S model. Plenty of power to haul you and lots of luggage.
Click to expand...

Funny you should mention that. I just mounted a windscreen on mine last night. I'll have to get pics posted today.
 
:roll: Since your on the subject of " bang for the buck " have you looked at the Bandit S models ? Being that I'm biased I still have to say that getting a 1200cc sport cruiser for under $6300 is a bargian . Not to mention that it leaves you with enough cash for the extras ( Givi bags and upgraded screen ).
 
I wouldn't want a top heavy bike that I couldn't easily flat foot. When talking about seat height, people seem to only consider sitting at a stoplight. You can manage that just fine without flat footing it.

But what about the first time you back 1/2 way out of a parking space, and suddenly need a little backwards push to get going? Are you gonna have enough traction with your tootsies to make it?

And what about the times you may stop on a canted surface that slopes away from whichever foot you put down first? Is the bike gonna go over so far before you touch ground that you'll have a hard time stopping it?

Same thing on gravel. It's very easy to put your foot down on gravel and have your foot slide a few inches while the bike continues to lean until you finally manage to get some traction. If your foot slides too far, the weight of the bike really starts working against you and, soon enough, you and the bike are on the ground. (BTDT) You can manage ok with a low seat height and/or a light bike. But a top-heavy bike and a high seat may be a formula for a tipover.

Not trying to rain on the parade, but just trying to emphasize that there's more to it than just being able to tippy-toe at a red light.
 
:tab Excellent point Gravy. If your legs are perfectly straight while just sitting on the bike, you have no leg extension left to move the bike or do anything else!

Adios,
 
And the answer to that situation is simple... either recognize the limitations imposed by the height of the machine, and avoid those situations, or else get a different bike.
 
Maybe a little crazy as most people are it seems people buy pickups with autotrannys and bike with manual. The scoot you have will keep up with most bikes the only real drawback I see with it is you need to change the belt every 10 or 20k.
 
PassTheGravy said:
And what about the times you may stop on a canted surface that slopes away from whichever foot you put down first? Is the bike gonna go over so far before you touch ground that you'll have a hard time stopping it?
Click to expand...
I encountered this yesterday on 1488. I was at a stop light and the road canted down to the right with a very strong wind blowing from the left. I had to lean hard to the left with the left foot down.
 
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