Chris Harrison, a good friend of mine has just done a very good blog about riding positions. Very informative. Hope you find it helpful as well https://www.hudgellsolicitors.co.uk/news/road-traffic-accidents/are-you-sitting-comfortably/
Not sure what bike I need to position myself as quoted useful though, but my Blade is not designed for correct posture !
I have a problem with the advice, logical and accurate as it is, in that body shape dictates are a huge factor here. I am a shortarse, not ludicrously so, but the issue is compounded by me having a short body but long legs (5' 8" but 33" inside leg). On the Blade and in fact on all sportbikes I've had, this means that several things conspire against me. I have to ride balls to tank, which restricts my ability to hunker down behind the screen as shuffling my backside back makes my should armour cups foul the base of my helmet. Also, in my 'most upright' riding position, my elbows are almost locked, and as I drift into ergonomic autopilot they tend to lock out completely, bearing my torso weight onto my wrists (I broke my left elbow and wrist last October and this is causing me some issues riding). So even taking Chris' advice on board, the best solution for me is not a sportbike, and that's a very hard decision for me to make.
I sympathise with you. Especially as I am 6 feet 5 and have the same inside leg measurement as you and arms to match I think the term used to describe me is "Gorilla" Anyway, joking apart, like anything, whilst advice can be given, it has to be generic as there can never be a 1 size fits all type solution. I can turn it around to a certain degree in that I cannot get comfortable anymore on a pure sports bike because they are just too dammed small for me physically. I dwarf the new blades to the point where I feel I could pick it up stick it under my arm and walk off with it. I think it os all relative, but for many, I hope the advice Chris gives is of benefit. But I understand where you are coming from..
TBH I find I ride anything but like described on this... If you have an R1200GS that paper was probably right... but not a 'blade... Maybe my neck is a bit stronger than average. And maybe I can hold myself up with my core better than most. H
Interesting I had a read. Reminds me of the Display Screen Equipment (DSE) argument that I had at work - the standard was the usual sitting bolt upright with the top of the screen 1' below the level of sight. All the research was from the 1980s and illustrations showed big cathode ray tube displays, desktops and secretary typing away merilly whilst sat bolt upright. Long arguments that this was all rubbish. Scanned the net, ran reports produced latest evidence research - completely ignored in favour of the bolt upright secretary looking straight ahead into the Cathode Ray Tube monitor. After mentioning this many times, how flawed and outdated their evidence was, what sunk it was a simple request - I asked them if they could provide posture guidance for DSE screen users who do not touch-type - quite a few in the office including some of the more senior managers. The bolt-upright position assumes that the typist is a touch-typist who rarely looks at the keyboard. Non-touch typists nod constantly, that is look at the keyboard and then up at the screen. Clearly if the screen is high above their keyboard, then they will be forced to nod their heads up and down hugely many thousands of times a day. Result, they redrew their guidance that also included use of laptops. Anyway, what I found in my research was the idea that slouching was not itself a bad thing, as it is the most relaxed posture and it does not require muscle strain in order to maintain the position. Whereas sitting bolt upright requires a constant muscle input for the posture to be maintained. How does this relate to Motorcycles - well you are very limited in how you can rearrange the relationship between the seat - the controls -the ride height - and the visual display (the road !). So probably some bikes will fit you better than others Conclusion - bikes are inherently uncomfortable. If you want to arrive somewhere relaxed drive a Bentley - or better still have your butler do it
I am 6' 2" and thought I was too big for the blade (2015 model). I've returned to sportsbikes after a hiatus of a few years (was on a Honda Dominator ) ...took me a good few days to feel comfortable and more than once I thought I'd made a terrble mistake - not any more. Slightly off topic...I enjoyed the other article by the same author on the 'SMIDSY' - a good read. Adding to that visiblity list (in said article) I was told or I read somewhere (i forget now) that approaching junctions a decent way to force the driver waiting to pull out on you to see you is to swerve from side to side; not massvely, more like weaving...something to do with it not being a natural movement for vehicles or something Anyway, just my tuppence.
Chris Harrison (the guy who wrote both articles) is a good guy and knows his stuff. He and I have known each other for a long time and we share many similar views. The "Weaving" scenario on an approach to a junction is not recommended. It is an idea that someone has come up with without having thought it through. By all means do it of you wish, but think about the issues and liability of it goes wrong (which it has) and you get someone like me having to investigate It does not bode well either from the claim point of view or a potential court appearance. Best option is to take the most dominant position without compromising your safety, and if you are able to turn off your main beam, then you increase your safety bubble even further.