Lower handlebars

After a large number of track days, I decided to start addressing some areas that I think will improve handling and feel on the track. The first is a lower handlebar. The stock "buck horn" type handlebars are high and wide. These provide easy steering inputs but seem a little touchy on the track, probably compounded by the smaller 17" front wheel (compared to the 18" stock wheel). Also, the higher bars make it tougher to get my body forward and inside of the center of the bike. The outside arm has a long reach to the bar when leaned over and the inside bar is at an odd angle once hanging off. This angle makes the "screw driver" grip more difficult to achieve. I bought the flatter bars provided on the Vance and Hines XR1200 race series site. Most racers are using the fully flat bars, but I wanted to keep some of the advantages of higher bars for comfort on the street. I chose the bars with a 2" rise. The swap was easy, taking about 20 minutes.

From the photo below, the new handlebars (left) are about 2" shorter than the stock bars with a slightly different bend.

The new look is lower and still comfortable on the street.