That's a very brave admission Maria. So I guess Lois has it right?

Small bikes is what I'm constantly preaching to macho guys for riding off road. I've seen plenty of tough guys come into dirt riding, think they need big power...they buy a 650 to start, and in a year after lots of tears, crashes and injuries, they sell if off and never come back to a dirt bike. Shame. Doesn't have to be that way.

Listen, since you're down there and changing bikes is probably NOT in the cards....why not let's all figure out how to make your bike better for you.

First off....you're partner's gonna have to step up and take on some of your load...or maybe ditch the hair dryer and liter bottle of your fav shampoo!?

To me, 30 kgs. is quite a bit. I would have a hard look at your gear. Are you really camping all that much?

OR...have you thought of selling off your Alu hard bags/racks and going to soft bags? That would lose about 10kgs. 10kgs. is HUGE.

But the main thing that I would look at is lowering the bike. Like one inch at least, maybe a bit more depending on how tall (or short?) you are.

Dog Bones
The rear link "Dog Bones" can be shortened (I think...or is it lengthened?)
anyway...whichever.This should allow you to lower the rear end by an inch or more easily. Yes, you will have a bit less ground clearance but unless you are riding aggressively off road, you will never miss it.

You need to keep the bike balanced...so that means the front has to come down an equal (or near equal) amount too. Do this by simply raising the fork tubes up in the triple clamps by about one inch. Easy to do: loosen triple clamp bolts, raise tubes equally left and right. Do not over tighten bolts on Triples.

You can also back off spring preload a bit. Don't go too far. If you soften preload too much the bike will wallow around at speed on the highway. But by backing off the preload (rear is most important) when you sit on the bike it will "sag" (technical term) down more....so you're feet will touch down sooner.

Yet another thing you can do is to have someone skilled modify your seat. Pleny of talented upolstry shops.Scrape off some foam at the front and on the sides. Many times seats splay your legs outward because they are too wide in the front, making it harder to reach the ground. So make the seat not only LOWER but narrower. Mostly in front/middle of seat.

NOTE: anytime you come to a stop, you need to scoot your butt up forward as far as possible. This will allow getting your feet down on uneven surfaces with less drama. Also, pick your spot to stop. Always use your LEFT foot to reach the ground....right foot on brake. So find a curb, ridge, high spot,
berm, rock, what ever to perch on. Get it? I've done this my whole life because I'm a shrimp...and I've adapted...so can you. Another important trick is to get over to one side (left) and scoot your left butt check off the seat to allow your leg more reach. YOu probably use this one already. Works great,
looks funny!

That's about all you can do when on the road. Any machinist worth a crap can MAKE new Dog bone links for you. Use the old ones as a model and find out about what length you need to make them. When you see them you will see how simple they are.

Figure out correct length by removing the dog bones from the linkage and move rear of bike up and down and mearsure to know what you need. Much easier than it sounds. Any City or large town could have a good machinist.

Once the bike is lower your life off road will change.

Remember Patrick's first rules of riding in the dirt:

1.Where you look is everything. Never look a meter in front of you...look way out down the trail/road about 10 or 15 meters. If you focus on that evil rut right in front of you...you will drive into it and crash...guaranteed.

A. Learn to read terrain and anticipate, pick the best line. What's under you now is secondary to what's coming up. You will amazed the difference this will make in your riding...but you have to continually remind yourself to look far ahead. Never look at ruts, you will crash.

2. Breath. Many riders when in stressful off road riding simply hold their breath. Totally unconcious. Leads to arm pump and exhaustion.

3. Stand up. You almost always need to be standing. Get used to it. You will ride better, have better vision and make the tough stuff easier. Relax your grip on the bars.

4. Keep your speed up. Going too slowly, especially in rocks is recipe for disaster. A bit of speed will see you through. Work up to this. Always push for more speed. It will make you better, safer and stronger. The throttle is your friend.

Good luck, I hope things can be improved !

Patrick

Old man Rodney on his KTM 950S in Utah. Former professional Flat Track racer, Master's Class Cross Country Champ. (66 years of age)

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Patrick passed Dec 2018. RIP Patrick!