Many folks think that they might like the RT, but are worried that it is too big or that they wont be able to manage the bike if they have a short inseam.

Charles Ferguson From San Antonio, Texas has the right attitude: "I will not accept that I am too short (28.5" inseam) for the RT, it is just too over tall, so here is how I've addressed the problem. 

1. Comfort seat to lowest level was not enough so I traded it for a regular OEM seat (which is lower than the comfort seat) and had it done over by Sargent with their "nosejob". Seat problem solved, both height and comfort.
2. Regular thick soled boot, not a special lift or anything like that. Boot problem solved.
3. Adjusted OEM shocks to the lowest level and was not happy with the ride and still was not low enough. So got custom made Works Performance shocks to my specs, result was lower by 1.5 inches. Suspension problem and ride height solved.
4. Had center and kick stands cut down so they operate properly with new ride height.

Now the bike is not too tall and I am not too short, everything is Just Right."

Charles says "I had never dropped my bike but had come very very close and never felt really comfortable. Now I am much more confident and am happy with all the modifications that have been made."

Another RT Rider I know went to Corbin and they did an extreme nosejob on his seat that allowed him to flatfoot the bike with the seat in the lowest position.

Mileage Eater-aka Frank From Columbia, SC reports that he has "lowered my RT with the shorter shocks. When I did that I also shortened the sidestand and the centerstand. Also don't forget to reaim your headlight. You do loose some of your cornering clearance, but it is not that significant. I am now totally flat footed without any luggage or passenger, which is real nice. Would I do it again? Probably yes, the sidestand and centerstand are a pain. You need to have a good welder at hand. 

Vincent points out that You basically have three options, lower the bike, have the seat lowered, or both. As for lowering the bike, Works will custom make shocks about 1" lower and I believe the price is in the $7-900 range. As noted above, you may have to shorten your side stand and center stand. The other option is to have the seat worked on. A company like Sargent, http://www.sargentcycle.com , can do custom work and lower the seat and make the sides a bit "thinner" to get more ground contact. Call Sargent and tell them what you want to do and they will give you an idea on how much they can shorten the seat. They can also make the seat more comfortable than stock! To have the seat work done is probably in the $275-$390 range. Good luck and let us know what you decide.

Bill Cromie  From The Netherlands pointed out an excellent resource: "For those with this problem, checkout this site: http://www.nebcom.com/noemi/moto/sbl.faq.html " This is really a great resource for folks who consider themselves too short for the bike of thier choice.

Ian Jackson From Scotland reports " My solution was +5/8" on the soles and heels of my BMW goretex boots. Pared my "comfort seat" down a least 1" with an electric knife, sealed it with latex liquid and stapled back the cover (don't take the front part of the cover off). Backed off the suspension preload a bit below "Normal". Also after 5K miles my bike is a "little" lower. By the time you have done all that AND done the other things you see in these posts your brain and the RT will be one and, like me, you will be able to ride two up with great confidence.

Another idea is lower the seat mount itself. Fernando Belair of Los Angeles CA says "The rubber bumpers that the front of the seat slides onto measure 34mm OD by 10mm ID. If you can get your hands on a round rubber block of approximately the same density, and can have its 10mm inside hole drilled about 5-6mm off-center (this will take a special abbrasive or circular drill as a wood/metal drill will not work), then install them in place of the OEM bumpers, making sure that the "short side" is up, you can drop the front of the seat about 1/4 inch. If this tilts the seat too far forward for you (a common complaint even in stock trim), then you can cut the rubber bumpers that the back of the driver's seat sits on by an equal amount (1/4-inch). Just make sure that the posts that the rear bumpers ride on do not become the primary support for the rear of the seat. If they do, shorten them by 1/8 inch and you'll be fine. With such a small reduction in seat height, you should not have any problems with the "tongue-in-groove" mating of the front seat to the rear seat and the entire mechanism should latch in place just like it was meant to."

Kris from Mountain View California has a different opinion on flat-footing the bike: "I don't flat foot... not sure that many here do. I'm jealous of those that can flat foot (like Cary!), but when it comes right down to it, I don't need to flat foot either. I've found that I prefer balancing the bike with the balls of my feet, if something starts to move I'm able to spring the bike back to center much easier. When I do find myself resting on one foot (flat), I've found myself more likely to lose my footing and more likely to watch the bike fall."

There are many people who are able to ride their RT's even if they are a bit vertically challenged. However, one of the primary complaints they have is slow-speed handling. It can be easy to drop the bike at slow speed no matter what your size. Short Cut from Pleasanton, CA notes "Something I find that really helps the low speed handling is dragging the rear brake. You can make tighter low speed turns this way and it gives better stability than the front brake at slow speeds. In fact this bike also responds really well to dragging the rear brake while entering really tight corners like hairpins. This is a dirtbike technique that works well on this bike too."

Fernando Belair says "Squaring up" when coming to a stop helps a lot (also making sure the passenger is in as vertical a position as possible). Shorter shocks help (and from my experience with Works Performance, they can be designed so that things don't drag in the corners as readily as you think, although a bit more than with a standard length). Boots with heels are a must, as well."