Just wondering, the OP stated that he wrecked his Sportster, have to wonder how that happened? and is he heading down the same path with the Dyna?

The Harley with the wide bars could mitigate the width of the bars by leaning toward the front and inside I believe the term is COW.

Thanks! I appreciate it.

I agree on the forward controls. I always try to be respectful when discussing it, because guys with forward controls always take it the wrong way.

Yes, of course you can ride, and ride well, with forward controls. However, there is absolutely no doubt that it makes riding aggressively more difficult.

It makes it more difficult to turn the handlebars, because in order to turn the handlebars one arm must bend more and one arm must bend less, and if both arms are already almost straight, it's tougher. If your feet are not under you so that you can help support your body weight, it becomes much more difficult to shift your weight from one side to the other. Unless you hit a sharp bump. Then your weight is going to shift alright, straight up. And, you really can't lean your torso forward and into the inside of the curve, because the setup of the bike is making you lean your torso back.

Again, there are plenty of Wide Glide and Breakout and V-Rod owners who love their bikes and wouldn't trade them for anything. Love you guys!

Hey Gents,

Wow I appreciate all the feed back. I'll try and generally address what I read and give a little more back story and detail. I've only been on a sportbike once, and I've never been to the track (although I'd very much like to) but I have been riding since I was a wee lad, so despite all my bad riding habits I Like to think I have a few good ones as well. That being said I do like to believe I know how to lean into a corner, although I'll be the first to admit I have a lot more to learn. I break my elbow, I scoot forward and of course I lean. One day I had an epiphany, took a chance and threw my weight into a turn. Since then I've learned a lot better technique and enjoy blowing through curves much quicker and with a lot more confidence. As for my sporty; I low sided in a curve after riding over a bunch of gravel some truck was kind enough to leave behind for me - I was admittedly not following the suggested speed. Overall I know I have room for improvement and a lot of that is being consistent and sometimes even just not being lazy in a curve lol. Those pics are pretty legit and a good example of what to do and what not to do, and although I hate to admit it, I was at one point doing a whole lot of the incorrect body position - but can also say now, I've got it figured out. However, and I think this was basically addressed; different motorcycles obviously offer different spectrum's of performance and in this case clearance. I have Tbars and mid controls and I believe this offers me the best setup (on a FXDB) to put myself in a position for aggressive cornering. Despite all these factors I was still honestly surprised at the amount I was scraping... I'm thinking I'll just have to replace pegs until I can save up enough coin for the shocks, and again thanks everyone for the responses, generally I think if we assume (which I'd like too ) that my position is solid, I'm going to need some more clearance.

Hey, thanks a bunch for coming back and continuing the conversation! Props to you! You have no idea how many times somebody asks a question, a bunch of folks offer up answers, and the guy never comes back.

If you've already experienced what happens when you really lean your body inside the bike, then you're already on your way. Ain't it amazing?!? You can actually feel the bike start to lean less, like it actually straightens up a bit right underneath you, but it just carves its way through the turn.

Yup, I think you may be right; you're learning that Harleys do indeed have some pretty serious limits to cornering clearance, and if you're there, the only solution is in how the bike is set up. Your bike has about 30 degrees of lean angle, which is as much as any Harley has, but it's nowhere near what a sport bike has.

Seriously, though, if you're grinding off the heads of bolts, you're in dangerous territory, so be careful! Hard parts don't fold up, and I know you know what that means. Every pound of downforce on a muffler bolt is one less pound of downforce keeping your rubber on the pavement.

Ride safe!

I drag'em all the time, including my exhaust. You get used to it and know when to expect it.

Hey, absolutely, whats the point of asking a question if you're not going to listen to the wisdom someone has to offer?

Leaning into a curve is definitely one of the best feelings one can experience on two wheels.

Thanks again, fellas

Yup.

COW= Chin Over Wrist

We teach that in the ARC (advanced Rider Course.)

Unfortunately, using "COW" promotes speed. Occasionally, a rider may find them self "steamrolling" into a corner at too high of speed. Especially after using "COW" in a series of turns back-to-back-to-back.