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I am writing for my riding buddy who has a bit of lower back pain due to excess strain/injury. She is 5'2 with short legs, and just purchased the V Star custom because it is fairly light weight and low to the ground, recommended by many female and short riders.

My questions : is there anything she can do to relieve pressure on her lower back.. change handebars, a particular seat ...

the bike vibrates and leaves a buzzy feeling in her hands, is this common for Yamaha? Her Virago did the same. would different handlebar grips help? anything?

I really need suggestions to improve the comfort of this ride and especially from those who may have back issues. Please help, i don't want to ride solo.

a kidney belt will help to some extent.

are you referring to one of those belts liek a weight lifter would use?

i hope not that bulky, i guess i am also looking for some ergonomic solutions and still wondering about vibration.

thanks

Good question.

This is a common problem for some folks who ride cruisers. The average cruiser's riding position puts a rider's body roughly in the shape of a "C", with hands and feet stretched out in front. This puts most of the rider's weight at the base of the spine and can cause discomfort in short order.
Due to a previous back injury, I had this problem with a Vulcan I used to own. I was only able to get some relief by replacing the stock saddle with a far more supportive Corbin saddle which, sorry to say, wasn't exactly cheap. I also found I needed to swap the bars for a set that were lower and wider. However, there's a chance that neither of these will help her much.
Sadly, since it would mean trading bikes, the riding position found on standard bikes would be optimal for her. She really needs her feet to be positioned further back on the bike so her knees will be bent. This would go a long way in helping the situation. Also standard bikes give you sort of a forward lean which takes some weight off the spine and puts it on your arms and shoulders.
Hope my advice helps her out. Ridng bikes is a heck of a lot of fun except when it hurts.

excellent feedback. I do think that the standard bike setup makes sense but then we get into the seat height issue, they seem to be for long legged folk. I think her inseam is a 28 or 27.

I will make these suggestions to her and I agree also that riding is only fun when it is pain free.

Thanks much.

sbcvulcan wrote:
My questions : is there anything she can do to relieve pressure on her lower back.. change handebars, a particular seat ...

the bike vibrates and leaves a buzzy feeling in her hands, is this common for Yamaha? Her Virago did the same. would different handlebar grips help? anything?

My experience with Yamaha is that the vibration is a normal thing.

You can get a lumbar support to mount behind the operators seat position. They are quite common for larger bikes and you will see most of them on big cruisers but that is not to say they won't work on a smaller bike. From what I have been told, this is the answer. She will then have support for her back. Another thing that helps is to mount some highway pegs up front that allows the rider to alter their sitting position from time to time. I'm not wild about them but do use mine on long hauls

Well, I have degenerative disc disease from L1-L5, with a herniated disc at L4/5. I am currently riding my turbo, while I am awaiting parts to repair my shadow (accident damage). For me, the shadow is the most comfortable. I have a T-bag, which I slide over my backrest backwards, so the bag is in front of the rest. I have a spare backrest pad bolted to the front of my T-bag... that gives me excellent lumbar support, that is flexible if I encounter a bad spot in the road. That way, my backrest doesn't slam me in the back.

As for the grips, the best I have seen are the Kuryaken ISO grips.

Hope this helps!

Norm

I own a 650 V-Star Classic and have felt the tingly fingers... However, I only felt it during the break-in period and I think as you get more miles on it, you won't feel it as much...

Also, you have that vibration between certain rpms that I'm told all Yamaha V-twins have... I think it's called resonance...

Along with the grips you could also go one grade higher in gasoline. Sometimes running a higher grade will reduce vibration a bit. As far as your seating position the first thing I would do is adjust the handlebars to see if you can find a more comfortable posture.

Have you tried deading the handlebars? If you go to the local hardware store you can find some spray foam insulation for sealing cracks etc. around the house. If you take off the grips and fill the bars about 1/2 full of the spray foam insulation as it will expand as it dries it will greatly reduce the effects of vibration felt in your hands. P.S. be sure and throw a drop cloth /towel over the rest of your bike before doing this. Hope this helps.