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[ST] first ride, need to work on comfort



Hey all.  Took my first real ride on the ST tonight.  In short: I'm very
impressed, but will definitely have to make some minor modifications.  

I think the largest issue is most likely my riding position.  I rode
about 80 miles this evening, probably 60 of it on highways.  After this,
my right wrist hurt pretty bad and both my hands were numb and tingly
from vibration.

The wrist thing I'm almost sure is from me not leaning forward enough
and/or putting too much weight on the handlebars.  It seems like I am
leaning forward, but that's compared to coming off my Nighthawk with its
standard upright position.  I read in the archives about people putting
bar risers on, but I doubt that I should need them as I'm pretty tall
and have long arms.

I think I will definitely look into getting larger grips.  My hands are
big enough that I don't have any trouble with the span of the clutch
lever, which a salesman told me some people had trouble with.  I usually
cover the front brake and clutch with one or two fingers, but I still
find that my hands are too clenched with the current grips.

I do think that some of the numbness in my hands is just from vibration
of the bike.  I suppose foam grips or gel gloves (or both) would
help in that regard.  There is some mirror vibration, but I haven't
narrowed down at what speeds or rpms.  I find it strange that there's
enough vibration to make my hands go numb, when the engine is so
smooth--smoother than my honda, and I never had a numbness problem on
it, though it does have oversized foam grips.

The only shortcoming I see that I guess I'll just have to get used to is
the engine heat coming off the left side.  It was only in the 80's today
and my left leg was toasty.  

But I don't want to come off as totally negative, this bike is a dream.
I can see me doing long days on this bike easily, once i get used to it.
The engine is smooth and powerful.  Haven't done any twisties, yet, but
it seems plenty responsive.  I definitely made the right choice.

Laters,
Brian
'99 ST (black)

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