| Author | Message | ||
     Skifastbadly |
Ok, so I don't know why this occurred to me today, but in the 28K miles I've put on the two Ulys I've owned, I've never scraped a peg. Now, I don't live in Florida or Nebraska, I lived in Utah and I live in Washington, where there are PLENTY of twisty roads and lotsa lotsa turns. I don't know how close I've come to scraping because frankly, my eyebones aren't focused on my feet when I'm going around a corner. And it does strike me that those pegs have lots of clearance. But maybe the rest of you guys are all grinding the ends off and I'm just riding like a granny. Tell me, do you guys scrape your pegs frequently or am I unnecessarily worrying about my testosterone? | ||
| Badrap |
Don't worry about it. The X is X-tra tall giving you more lean angle and harder to scrape the pegs. Ride within your comfort zone and don't worry about dragging your knee and foot pegs. | ||
| Britchri10 |
I never scraped a peg on a Blast, X1 or XB12X. (Total 29K in 3 years). Do what you feel comfortable with & don't sweat the details. Chris C | ||
| Reepicheep |
If you are scraping pegs on the street on a Uly, it's more than likely because you have poor body positioning. You can crawl WAY off onto the inside of a Uly on a hard turn, which means the bike needs less lean at a given speed, which means your suspension is working better, which is a better faster turn. If you are doing all that right and still scraping pegs, you are ***really*** hauling ass through a turn. Far more than "fast street riding...", we would be talking like intermediate track day speeds. A Honda riding buddy of mine with track experience was at the Buell inside pass day at Mid Ohio... he was on an XT (even lower than the Uly) with proper body form, and just FLYING through turns with this giant goofy grin. Another guy from his Honda forum was on a loaner 1125 and was determined to not let the Uly get away from him... and lowsided trying to keep up. It's the arrow, not the Indian, and scraping pegs and removing chicken strips are often more of an indicator of poor form than they are of high performance. (Message edited by reepicheep on March 07, 2012) | ||
| Froggy |
That is not correct. If the X had the same footpeg positioning as a Firebolt, that would be true, but the substantially lower pegs counter the extra height. 2006 XB12X Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Soft Contact, Left 39º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Soft Contact, Right 39º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Hard Contact, Left 40º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Hard Contact, Right 43º 2006 XB12R Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Soft Contact, Left 47º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Soft Contact, Right 47º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Hard Contact, Left 48º Lean Angle at Full Suspension Compression, Hard Contact, Right 50º | ||
| Tastroman |
Never touched the pegs down on my XT and doubt I ever will. Mad props to the guys with the skills to do it though. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I finally scraped a peg on my 9sx on a track day at Mid Ohio. It was the same day I finally got a knee down. Once you get to the peg on a 9sx, you are basically far enough to get a knee down as well. | ||
| Mhevezi |
If you start dragging pegs on a Uly, odds are you will start dragging the bar ends, tank pads and the entire side of that bike next. These bikes have TONS of cornering clearance so don't worry too much about it. +1 on the body position On my '99 M2, I scraped my pegs and brake lever all to hell, during 'spirited' riding. Heck, I even busted off the shifter running hard in the hills (thankfully, I was close to home & those bikes have torque to spare..) BUT, when I took some perf riding classes, and learned 'proper' form, I no longer drag pegs, or any other part of my bike. Hit the track, be safe & have fun. Oh, and if you have not yet read, "Total Control" by Lee Parks, you should. It's a great book, with much to teach. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Um, Froggy...are you saying EIGHT degrees isn't much? Hm...on my protractor, that's a pretty significant difference. I'm (at least I think I am) a fairly competent rider. Fast, consistent, carry good speed through turns...and I always have chicken strips about 1/4" on my bikes on the street. Because I position myself properly (or try to), and I don't pinch my apexes. If you're smooth...you can carry the same (or more) speed through the turns without putting hard parts on the ground. | ||
| Jasonb |
I'll add a book to the mix. I am currently reading 'the soft science of road racing' by Keith Code. Great learning read. My Uly is my second bike. I never drug a peg, but have drug my toe on both. They were on slow corners that I purposely ride aggressive. They are the two around my property ( think of a left and right around a block but no thru streets) | ||
| Froggy |
I never said anything like that.  | ||
| Yjsrule |
I've drug the pegs many times on the uly, I have not drug the pegs on my STT that I can recall. It has way more lean angle than the uly does. It sets almost as high and has the higher pegs. | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
I've never dragged a knee on anything. Have dragged pegs on my X1 plenty of times, never on the XT though. (it's especially easy to drag pegs on the X1 with a passenger!) That doesn't change the fact that I'm considerably faster through any given corner on the XT than I am on the X1. I'd love to get a knee down, pegs are cool too.. but developing perfect form, smooth riding, and keeping the rubber side down are higher priority goals. | ||
| Skifastbadly |
Ok I feel better. I'm going to get some curb feelers like my grampa had on the right side of his 58 Buick and hang them down from the pegs. Sorta like putting cards in your bicycle spokes. Thanks for the reassurance, badweatherbrothers. Except you Yj. | ||
| Keith_mahoney |
My Uly is my second bike. I never drug a peg, but have drug my toe on both. They were on slow corners that I purposely ride aggressive. They are the two around my property ( think of a left and right around a block but no thru streets) You should not be dragging your toes on anything. Put the balls of your feet on the pegs not your arches. | ||
| Uly_man |
"Ok, so I don't know why this occurred to me today, but in the 28K miles I've put on the two Ulys I've owned, I've never scraped a peg." The edge of a peg or a "Hero bob" is there to indicate, to the rider that they have reached the limit of turn/lean of the bikes design. If you are scraping a peg then go no further. Unlike older bikes, with fixed pegs most modern bikes have sprung mounted pegs. This is because a fixed peg contact will dig in and could drop the bike. You can run a Uly to the very edge of the rear tyre and not put a peg down. Which is as far, more or less you should go. Trying to get a peg down is a very dangerous thing to do and the only thing you might get out of trying is a wooded box and a granite tomb stone. These bikes handle VERY well and I can out ride most of the best sports bike on the road today. Clearly you are riding the bike hard. As said you need to move your body to balance the bike if doing this. In fact if you do not, because the bike is unbalanced you could have a problem. Ride safe Sir. | ||
| Etennuly |
Ski.....if you have to ask.....  (what I have always been told) I can tell you I have dragged pegs, I am hefty at best, that helps. I have dragged them on the Blast a bunch. I have dragged them on the Uly just a couple of times. I really dragged them on a STT once. I don't think my form is too bad, I was hanging off near knee drag on my Uly when it dragged. I found that on the STT, as I was pushing it into the pavement, the left peg actually snapped off before the front tire lost traction. It snapped and pushed my boot up from under the side of the bike, then I felt the front tire loose contact. It was amazing to me that it could still have traction at that moment. Chicken strips depend a lot on the contour of the tire carcass. I could melt the tread off the edge of my Scorpion Sync rear, while I have a hard time getting my Michelin Pilot Road II to the edge at all, even going faster on the same corner. The road really factors into the dragging thing also. Rt 429, "the Snake" in North East Tn., has been the easiest for me to touch them down because of the compression of the bike through the round, smooth, bowl like corners. I hit a slippery spot mid corner with my City-X one time that caused a peg drag, a flat sharp smooth 25 mph corner, I was laid over probably doing 50, when the back tire slid out and somehow I got it straightened back up just as it went into the grass on the berm. One of those "thanks for helping me through that one" moments. | ||
| Conchop |
If you have proper tire pressure in good tires and if your suspension is properly adjusted, you can do some real bonzai cornering on a Uly. You can get it so there are zero chicken strips on the rear tire and an itty bitty chicken strip on the front. You'll drag your feet, especially if your left toe is under the shift lever, before you drag pegs. If you ever feel a peg drag, you are way over and you may loose it. Trail braking in a corner is different on a Uly because of the nosedive. In WV, we have very few straights, and the bulk is corners. When riding hard with the rocket bike boys, I'd go deep in corners hard on the brakes, go off the front brake to unload the fork, drop way over, then juice it hard to stand her back up. BUT - you have to watch how you wheelie when exiting the apex - corner wheelies can quite literally take you in unintended directions -LOL Be careful - ride within your abilities - tempting the fates is always meaningful, but sometimes painful. | ||
| Mark_weiss |
I have more than 25 years of road racing experience and more than a couple of first-place trophies. Dragging pegs on the road is a bad idea. Nothing to do with the rider's skill, the problem is the environment. No matter what your skill level, you can always go fast enough to crash and crashing on the road is NOT going to be good. Clean peg ends and "chicken strips" on a road bike are signs of a smart rider. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
You'll never meet a motorcyclist that wrecks bragging about how he went past the limit of his tires. I'd much rather be a safe rider than a dead or road rashed rider. Dead and maimed motorcyclists make our sport appear way more dangerous than it really is. Nothing wrong in being bold on a bike if you really know what you are doing. Most that crash, clearly didn't know enough. | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
W/ regards to dragging pegs on the X1, I've always found that the left peg drags much more often than the right, yet I'm more comfortable with right turns. Probably means my body position isn't what it should be when leaning left. | ||
| Rsh |
Dragging pegs on the street is a bad idea, if you are interested in dragging pegs sign up for a track day. There is no shame in having chicken strips on the street. | ||
| Motorbike |
There is no shame in having chicken strips on the street. Thank you. I feel much better knowing that I don't have to hide my tires every time I stop.  | ||
| Mnrider |
The only time I drag a peg is when I'm crashing! | ||
| Hughlysses |
I wish I could find the pic Barker has posted. He has COMPLETELY ground off the peg feelers on his Uly and a significant portion of at least one of the pegs as well. OTOH Barker rides like a maniac as anyone who has tried to hang with him can attest. Of course he almost wrapped himself around a tree a month or two ago so he may have calmed down a little recently. | ||
| Etennuly |
After re-reading what I wrote above, I think I should explain. I totally agree with the peg dragging being a bad idea on the highways. But I will tell you what.....riding Buell motorcycles for over 75,000 combined miles, over seven years, in East Tennessee, on these crooked, curved, inclined, smooth, clean roads, and being a bit of a thrill seeking nut case.....some things cannot be helped. People come from all over the World to ride here for this reason. My Uly pegs have only touched twice, my boot edge several times, and I still have chicken strips on the Pilot Road II rear. Not so on the Sync. The time I felt a peg break off before loosing front tire traction on that STT was on a track as I was stuffing it into the pavement to avoid running over a fellow Bueller. As far as being a 'pussy'.....I was warned by more than a few HD riders whom I had known for some time, that "those Buells are dangerous motorcycles, you gotta be careful because they are too fast!" That told me TWO things. One is pussys don't ride Buell motorcycles.  | ||
| Tiltcylinder |
I've only managed to scuff the ends of the pegs on the XT. They're a little shiny, not hardly even a flat spot to speak of. Usually my size 12's touch first... Isn't that why track boots have toe sliders? It's always in a slow speed, 20 to 25 mph, very tight turn on a fun road. I'll be shifting and braking constantly, so the feet are out where they can operate the controls. I shift weight in the seat, maybe as much as one butt cheek off, but I never 'dangle' off the side. I always felt dangling is for the track, I'm riding for fun not prize money... I don't think I've manage to get the Blast's pegs anywhere near the ground. Don't have the confidence in it yet, I guess. My 'new to me' KLR showed no chicken strips after a spirited ride the other morning, yet it felt as if there was still a foot between the pegs and the pavement. I'll need to watch myself when it gets the tires swapped for more dirt oriented ones. If you want to drag things on the ground, I'll loan you my '71 sportster. The hard parts seem to drag on the road at the equivalent lean angle of the Uly on it's side stand! When the back wheel hops off the tarmac.. you know you've leaned over a bit too far. Forward controls make it extra exciting. Takes a little 'retraining' when going back to the noisy shiny bike... | ||
| Skifastbadly |
Tilt: Thanks for the offer to loan me the sportster, but I have an 04 Heritage and I drag the footboards on that pig all the time. Scared the poo out of me at first, but then I'm the kind of idiot who buys a Harley for his first bike and then works his way down. | ||
| Etennuly |
Down?  Oh, you must be talking about price!  | ||
| Skifastbadly |
Size and price, actually |
