Hello from Flori-DUH

[Guest]

Hello All,
I took a 20 years+ hiatus from riding (last bike was a new 1989 Honda Transalp). I've been finding myself looking on Craigslist and bought this 1985 GS700ES this weekend. Almost 9,000 miles on it, was in storage for 12 years and brought back to life by previous owner. He put a stage 3 kit as well as a K&N pod.

Had to take a MSF course, which while I resented initially, proved to be time/money well spent. So now i'm doing figure 8 in the parking until I get my groove back.

I have one quick question. Given that I must have some penguin blood in me, I have short arms. My sitting position is a bit too forward and I would like to change to a taller handlebar. Can anyone tell me if that handlebar is stock? Any recommendation for a taller bar?

Thank you in advance

Best
Frank

[Rob S.]

Can't answer your question, but that sure is a pretty bike. I'm recently returned after a 24-year hiatus. Welcome aboard!

[Runeight]

My that's a clean bike. Love it.

[dorkburger]

Welcome, sweet looking bike. They actually appear to be the the taller 750e bars. ES bars are shorter.

[dorkburger]

Second though, I may be wrong. I just searched gs 700 e & es images and am not sure. I'll shut up and wait for those who know better.

[glib]

Those look exactly like mine which are stock.

[phydeauxmutt]

Can't help you with your handlebar question, but you are the second person I have seen that spelled the name of your state that way.

Not sure if it's a place I would want to visit.

[hjfisk]

Not sure what the height is , so measure them. I have a set of E bar risers which are taller then the Es risers if you need them. E risers are about 6" tall. If you are interested PM me and we can work something out

[DeepFrank]

Very nice bike, Glib!

[DeepFrank]

HJfisk,
PM sent. Thank you

[DeepFrank]

Can't help you with your handlebar question, but you are the second person I have seen that spelled the name of your state that way.

Not sure if it's a place I would want to visit.

The further south you go in Florida, the more you'll feel that car drivers are just out to get you. Miami traffic at rush hour is just insane. We also have a higher density of advanced age retirees that have not business driving and the high number of uninsured drivers... other than that, good year around riding weather except during the summer which can get brutally hot.

[eil]

Lucky duck, that's my favorite-looking GS. Once I get my garage done, the first decent looking 700ES I find is going to occupy it.

[Vmass]

Nice Bike and congratulations!

I am currently in central Florida and ya, driving here is quite interesting even for a skilled Boston driver! The volume and speed of traffic is what initially gets your attention. Once I adjusted to this, I actually found the driving fairly predictable. One thing that can catch newbies off guard are the opposing turning lanes that proceed at large intersections simultaneously. Many of the roads here are 2-4 lanes wide, each direction. Some have two turning lanes per direction which proceed at the same time. If the lines in the road are not clear, it can get a little close if you are in the outside turning lane. The other thing that can get annoying is the amount of time you can sit and wait to safely jump out of a parking lot onto a major road. And surprisingly, drivers tend to wait and don't jump out in front of traffic.....until I got here!