Small chick on a little bike

Ok so I have to vent somewhere and maybe get some help. About a month ago I bought a beautiful 1980 KZ750 that needed some love. I have put some simple work into it to get it running well. New(er) front tire, tune up, carb's cleaned, etc. Nothiing cosmetic yet. So it's finally running well and all that is left is for me to learn how to ride it. I am quickly coming to realize that this bike may be WAAAY TOOO big for me. It's my first motorcycle and I am excited about it. I expected to have some difficulty but it is just so heavy and tall. I rolled it into the grass today getting it off the center stand and it took me almost an hour to push it out by myself, almost dropping it on myself a number of times. I am so worn out I can't even get it back up on it's center stand right now. I don't really know what I am looking for here. I guess maybe someone to pitch in and tell me it's possible for me to learn to ride this bike. Or maybe someone to recommend modifications that will help learn to ride this bike. I am 5'2" and 127 lbs. I just am sick and tired of people saying the only thing I will be able to ride is a ninja 250. I don't want a little crotch rocket like that. But I may have to sell this thing if I can't build some major muscle. Words of insight from more experienced riders would help. I mean, anyone is more experienced then me. Thanks for listening to my sad rant.

Sincerely,

Stephanie

Try searching ,"lowering my bike".

Usally the lower the bike the more comfortable you will be.

Are your feet flat footed when sitting on the bike? Roy

Hello
first of all, which 750 do you have? Is it a standard sport model or is it a LTD/CSR stile of bike. Is it the 2 cylinder or the four cylinder model? In 1980 Kawasaki made both types.
There is no reason that you can't ride a 750, it is probably the best intermediate to larger sized bikes ever developed. The two cylinder however has a much higher center of gravity than the four cylinder. The two cylinder seat height is also a couple of inches higher than the two cylinder. Don't worry about not being able to put it up on the centerstand. My brother who is 5'11 and 190# has an ipossible time of it also on his 91 ZR750 Zephyr. Wit your slight build you may have wanted to started out with a KZ550, but a 750 should also be handleable for you. But we still need to know more particulars about the model of the bike. before we can give more advice.

1980 KZ 750 LTD 4

Did I miss that somewhere in her post, 750/4 LTD?

lol...You didn't miss anything in the post. My bike model is in my avatar thing next to my name. It is a four cylinder LTD model. I cannot sit on the bike and have my feet flat on the ground. I did manage to figure out a way for me to get it on the center stand by myself but was just too beat for it this morning. The 2 ideas I had were to either lower the whole bike or make a custom seat that will drop me an inch or two. I just can barely move this thing by myself. I'd like to think I am pretty strong. My job requires me to be able to lift people on a regular basis but I use my legs for that mostly. I just want to be able to ride this thing and I am so worried about it falling over on me because I can't even put my feet flat.

What I do to get a bike onto the center stand is to drive it onto a piece of wood, 2x4, if not running I put the 2x4 under the bikes frame/ exhaust and use a floor jack. I don't need to strain on a 600lb bike, riding with a back ache is no fun. Looks like a nice bike, you may be able to remove the seat covering and trim the foam down a few inches to make the ground a little closer.

Many of the people that own these older bikes cant put their feet flat on the ground at the same time. don't let that bother you. Can you have one flat while the other is still on the ball of the foot? Why do you think that a lot of people ride with boots that have a 2" heal? And I am not talking just about woman! That is my next question. do you ride with riding boots or with sneakers? If the latter, than DON'T Get yourself a good set of fissionable riding boots. with about a 2-3" heal It will make all the difference in the world. Second of all set the rear suspension as "soft" as it will go. This will lower the bike while you are on it. Eventually you can get shocks for the back that are about an inch shorter. You can also lower the front forks about one inch with no problem since you are such a featherweight . There are other things you can do but try the boots and rear shocks first.

Otto

My wife had the same problem with my gs its just too tall and too top heavy. It started to lean over and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Now she has her own bike a virago 250 and she can stand over that thing and wiggle it back and forth between her legs. I dont know how much money or mechanical ability or how much mechanical ability your friends have but you can throw a shorter set of shocks on your bike and put some spacers in your forks that will lower the forks. Your seat can also be cut down that would probably be the easiest to do and the cheapest. You can just remove the seat cover carefully and then I hear an electric steak knife works well to cut down the seat foam and then reinstall the seat cover with a staple gun.

the height of the bike is only half her problem.
she said it just plain heavy.
they do make smaller bikes that are not crotch rockets.
did you take the learn to ride course?
if you do i think you might find the little 250's they use are shorter and lighter for you.
that's just a suggestion.
you can lower the 750 but if it's heavy to push all you have is a short heavy bike.

My Mom was a short woman who rode a Honda 750four. She had it lowered and also had car tire tread sewn on the bottom of her boots. She rode like that for years. kawsakiman does have a point about it being to heavy to lift. If you can lift it off the ground by yourself then you should be able to handle the bike.

IMO, one of the key ingredients here is confidence, which comes from knowledge and experience. A rider course is a good idea. You can learn and gain skill in a controlled environment and then apply that to your LTD.

That being said, a bike that fits is a huge plus. I'm 6'3" and 215lb. I would not like to spend the rest of my riding years on a Rebel 250. Maybe you should consider a ride that fits you better physically.

I could ride a Rebel, and you could ride a Goldwing, it boils down to what you are willing to compromise and how hard you are willing to work to ride what you want.

By the way, why you pushin' that thing so much. Ain't that why God put those four cylinders on it?