Yeah, I am short. I know that a bike can be lowered, I've been on a few that are and sometimes I still have trouble reaching the ground flat footed with BOTH feet. I have a 92 GS500E which is bone stock and I can only put one foot down flat.  I am sure I can lower it, this is where I hope to get some feed back.  Are there spring kits or is there a way to adjust seat height a different way?  I looked around and found that there are:  corbin/mustang gunfighter style seats, but can't find anything for a GS500E

A friend of mine replied: "There is no reason you need to have both feet flat on the ground! I'm on my toes on most bikes, doesn't affect the way I ride at all. I even know some local racers who can only reach one foot on the ground, and when they are on the street they just shift their weight off of the seat and put one foot down...it's really not that hard."

To truly be safe you should be able to get both feet down. 

You can try to adjust the suspension a bit.. it can help a little. As far as lowering search "dog bones"

Unfortunately, sport and sport/touring bikes only get taller from the GS.  If you intend to eventually get a bigger bike, use the GS as a training platform for learning how to deal with a tall bike.

One-footing a bike requires a good sense of balance, and smooth control inputs.  Both are skills that you should be working on anyway.  Work on coming to a stop smoothly, while always looking at the horizon.  It is natural to drop your gaze towards the ground as you brake.  Avoid doing so as you will lose your visual reference to horizontal.  Use the brake and throttle as speed rheostats, not light switches. 

Practice your balance by riding in a straight line as slowly as you can.  Work on your figure 8's inside parking lot spaces.  The GS can do a figure 8 inside 3 spaces if you work hard enough.  Look all the way over your shoulder in the direction of the turn, weight the outside footpeg though the turn.  Lock to lock S-turns are also helpful in learning your balance and becoming confident at slow speeds.

With practice, you will be able to come to a complete stop, stand motionless for a moment, then gently touch your left toe.  When starting, you'll pick up your foot smoothly just as you add throttle.  Eventually, you won't even think about putting down both feet.  The only times your right foot will leave the peg is so you can work the sidestand or because of oddly cambered pavement which requires you to put your right foot down instead of your left.

Practice makes perfect.   Feel free to ask more questions, I'll try to answer 'em. 

kilmer:

If you're a fairly new rider, having both feet down can be a real confidence booster. Guess how I know this. 

My '92 GS500E came to me lowered, but I had my SV650S lowered (after I'd pandy'd* my bike one too many times). Lowering does change the geometry of the bike, but I haven't noticed a huge difference, other than that tight U-turns are a little more challenging, and I have to make sure that I have enough clearance when there are dips in the driveway (the road kind, not the human kind...  ).

I saved my original links for the day that my ability surpasses my vertical challenges (if that ever happens  ).



*pandy: verb, to drop one's bike, generally at low or no speed   

Waaay back, one of our former members, who was also vertically challenged (and BTW looked great in leather), had the seat of her GS shaved down by a bike shop that specializes in that. It bought her an inch or so more in addition to the lowering links.

Ebay has links all the time...click here

Hey Pandy! 

Half the time i stop with only my left foot on the ground, it works great if ur stopped in the middle of a hill. I'm tall enough to flat foot so im holing it up with less of and angle using one foot but you shouldn't have too much of a problem.

I also only put the left foot down when I stop, unless the bike is leaned to the right for some reason(road camber, etc).  I can't totally flat foot with both feet, but I'm close.  I started on dirt bikes which are ridiculously high seated.  I am barely tiptoes with both feet on a YZ 125, and usually just lean to one side.  I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you.  With time you won't even notice that you're feet aren't flat on the ground.  If you only take one foot off, then it will be flat, and you won't have to worry about it then either.  I second Geep's suggestions about practicing slow manuvering.  It's a good way to build confidence on the bike.  I've sat on a lot of other sport bikes, and I can't flatfoot any of them, but I'm confident that I could ride them with ease because I know my balance is good on a bike.  Yours will be too, and you won't have a problem.  If you know anyone with a motocross (or most any offroad) bike, take it for a spin and really feel what tall is.  Some of the dual sports are very tall as well.

WOW

Your friend is right, there is no need for you to have both feet flat on the ground at all. This is actually bad because it doesnt give you the proper balance needed when stopped. Save the time and patience and sign yourself up for an MSF course. I'm 5'3 and I ride my 03 GSXR 750 and 05 CBR 1000 with no problem.

I'm 5'4 and I dont worry so much about both feet on the ground ,the proper method when you stop is one foot on the ground the other over your rear brake lever and no hand on the front brake just in case someone smacks you up the rear if you have your hand on the front lever the forks will cross up and down you go with just the rear brake on the bike should hopefully just move forward of course depending on how hard you are hit, well thats the theory anyhow

I'm 5'3, 28" inseam with a Kat shock, so my bike is taller than yours, and I still haven't lowered it. Just ride it, you'll get used to it.

Thanks for the responses!  I don't have issues with it now, it's just something I thought about.  I've been riding like this for several months now with no issues and I live in an area where there are tons of hills everywhere.  My street is a hill, and every road I take is on some kind of a hill and usually stop on a downhill or uphill.  I usually stop just like someone posted with my foot on the brake and my left foot on the ground.  I rode bout 150 miles last weekend which was great fun.  Got the bike with 5,600 miles and have well over 6,000 now   MSF is something I plan to take, I just haven't had the time...