BlackEyes1
Guest
So I took my first long trip on my NT700V a week ago or so. I went from Tucson to Ajo to Gila Bend to Casa Grande to Oro Valley and back into Tucson. 374 miles. Not much to say about the trip visually. Lots and lots and lots of desert. I wasn't going for the sights anyway, I am trying to work up longer and longer stints on the bike in preparation for the Rally in South Dakota next month.
First let me start with some of the farkles I've done so far. I have the MCL Bar Risers, Kuryakyn ISO grips, a throttle boss, and a Corbin seat (OMG am I glad I have that).
So I don't know if anyone else has experienced this but the Corbin seat seems to improve my posture. That is, I find myself more inclined to straighten my back out when in it. I guess I was hunched over a bit with the stock seat but never really noticed/considered it until now. Also, I don't remember who posted it but I had read recently in the forum about using ones legs to bear some of the body weight. So I'd never really tried or considered it, I just sat on the seat and rode along. On the trip I tried numerous different positions (partly just to break up the monotony and stiff joints) and I really tried to use my legs a little more than I had in the past. I found that this relieved some pressure from my arms/hands and again helped more with posturing. Additionally I've found that I need to use my leg muscles a little more anyway with the Corbin seat because I seem to slide forward in the Corbin seat when I hit the breaks. The downside of this is of course that with me using my legs to more properly distribute weight and such on my trip, I found that as I got into Tucson I'd slide right up into the tank at lights. I was pretty beat near the end and I just didn't have the strength to hold myself back. Maybe I'll just have to build up muscles in my legs. At least I know now that as the day goes on I need to be more cautious and leave extra extra stopping distance.
Other than the sliding forward issue, I am very happy with the Corbin seat. I still get tired and sore with the Corbin and maybe that is just something I'll get used to but it's much better than the stock seat. With the stock seat, any trips over say 100 miles meant that I couldn't comfortably sit down in a chair for 20 - 30 minutes after getting off. With the Corbin seat, even though I get tired and sore after awhile, as soon as I step off the bike it's gone and I feel fine. I can sit in a wooden chair without any pain at all. As far as the soreness I feel while riding for long times without a stop, some of that can be negated by standing on the pegs and the like or something like that. The highway pegs or swing out pegs (I don't remember the exact name) sound like they could be nice too and might help with the changing of seating position to get a little relief.
I think I'm going to look into a throttle lock of some sort. I got the ISO grips for metric bikes because the stock grips weren't going to cut it. The stock grips were just too small and my hands were cramping really bad. I got a throttle boss with the ISO grips and that was certainly helpful on the long ride but I was starting to notice the benefit that would be had from being able to take the right hand off the throttle, even if just for 30 seconds or so.
I think I've covered most everything. My next trip planned for this weekend is to go Tucson to Show Low to Safford to Wilcox and back to Tucson. Google Maps says it's 520 something miles and estimates a ride time of 11 hrs. If I can survive that, I should be set for my trip around the western states next month. Not that I want to do 500 miles every day but knowing that I can do that much in one day if necessary will help me feel a little better about the upcoming trip.
One other things I've learned. I'm going to have to find a cooler or something and find a way to strap it to the bike some how. While I have luggage space for clothes, the essentials, some snacks, etc. I am going to need something to hold all the danged water I'm going to suck through. I drank 4.5 liters just on the most recent trip. whew!
Anyway, thank you all for allowing me the opportunity to post my experiences here on the forum and for everyone's supportive help to date.
BlackEyes1
First let me start with some of the farkles I've done so far. I have the MCL Bar Risers, Kuryakyn ISO grips, a throttle boss, and a Corbin seat (OMG am I glad I have that).
So I don't know if anyone else has experienced this but the Corbin seat seems to improve my posture. That is, I find myself more inclined to straighten my back out when in it. I guess I was hunched over a bit with the stock seat but never really noticed/considered it until now. Also, I don't remember who posted it but I had read recently in the forum about using ones legs to bear some of the body weight. So I'd never really tried or considered it, I just sat on the seat and rode along. On the trip I tried numerous different positions (partly just to break up the monotony and stiff joints) and I really tried to use my legs a little more than I had in the past. I found that this relieved some pressure from my arms/hands and again helped more with posturing. Additionally I've found that I need to use my leg muscles a little more anyway with the Corbin seat because I seem to slide forward in the Corbin seat when I hit the breaks. The downside of this is of course that with me using my legs to more properly distribute weight and such on my trip, I found that as I got into Tucson I'd slide right up into the tank at lights. I was pretty beat near the end and I just didn't have the strength to hold myself back. Maybe I'll just have to build up muscles in my legs. At least I know now that as the day goes on I need to be more cautious and leave extra extra stopping distance.
Other than the sliding forward issue, I am very happy with the Corbin seat. I still get tired and sore with the Corbin and maybe that is just something I'll get used to but it's much better than the stock seat. With the stock seat, any trips over say 100 miles meant that I couldn't comfortably sit down in a chair for 20 - 30 minutes after getting off. With the Corbin seat, even though I get tired and sore after awhile, as soon as I step off the bike it's gone and I feel fine. I can sit in a wooden chair without any pain at all. As far as the soreness I feel while riding for long times without a stop, some of that can be negated by standing on the pegs and the like or something like that. The highway pegs or swing out pegs (I don't remember the exact name) sound like they could be nice too and might help with the changing of seating position to get a little relief.
I think I'm going to look into a throttle lock of some sort. I got the ISO grips for metric bikes because the stock grips weren't going to cut it. The stock grips were just too small and my hands were cramping really bad. I got a throttle boss with the ISO grips and that was certainly helpful on the long ride but I was starting to notice the benefit that would be had from being able to take the right hand off the throttle, even if just for 30 seconds or so.
I think I've covered most everything. My next trip planned for this weekend is to go Tucson to Show Low to Safford to Wilcox and back to Tucson. Google Maps says it's 520 something miles and estimates a ride time of 11 hrs. If I can survive that, I should be set for my trip around the western states next month. Not that I want to do 500 miles every day but knowing that I can do that much in one day if necessary will help me feel a little better about the upcoming trip.
One other things I've learned. I'm going to have to find a cooler or something and find a way to strap it to the bike some how. While I have luggage space for clothes, the essentials, some snacks, etc. I am going to need something to hold all the danged water I'm going to suck through. I drank 4.5 liters just on the most recent trip. whew!
Anyway, thank you all for allowing me the opportunity to post my experiences here on the forum and for everyone's supportive help to date.
BlackEyes1
