stock suspension adjustment

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DTG

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Im fairly new to the fz, I have an 03, wondering how low can you have the stock suspension adjusted? im a mere 5'6 and cant flat foot this beast of a bike, if I slide to one side of the seat at stops I can flat foot one side, but it still doesnt feel very safe, say for instance if it was a sandy intersection with spring just arriving here in MN for example, I could easily drop it. any input would be great, ive thought about getting lowering links put on but am kinda scared of dragging parts and crashing because of it. any input would be great for this newb here :)
 
I'm 5'3 and I haven't lowered mine at all. I'm very careful when coming to a stop and depending on what boots I wear, I can reach the ground better. I've considered lowering recently but every time I see pics of me in a corner, I change my mind quickly!

That said, I have dropped my bike in a couple of gravel parking lots but each time I don't think being able to flat foot the bike would've helped. It's one of those things that you either get comfortable doing or you don't. I tried a lower seat but my knees don't like it and it didn't help that much.

My biggest annoyance is having to get off of the bike to move it around, it's about the only time I think about wanting it lower. Of course, at 5"3, every bike I've ridden, except for the cruisers, are "too tall" and I might not be the best source of information.

I haven't had any issues using one foot on stops. If the footing looks a little suspect, I'll dangle the other foot even though it has no hope of reaching the ground because it adds some balance. Once the one foot is secure, the other goes on the rear brake.
 
You can get lowering links that will get you down another inch or so which should help. I'm 5'6" and my inseam is 29-30 so I feel I'm right at about the cofortable max height for feeling like I have the thing under control at stops and I have a Gen II which I think is a tad lower than a Gen I. You might want to do a search on the net as well as the site and see what kind of lowering links you can come up with. To keep the steering geometry close to stock, you'll have to lower the front to compensate for the rear and I doubt you'll want to go more than an inch up front.
 
thanks for the replies guys, as posted about the cornering, thats kinda an issues I was worried about with lowering, I think im gona have to just deal with the height its at lol, think I would rather drop it a few times then crash it cornering.
 
I am 5'9" with an inside leg of 32.5" I want mine higher to help my hip out but I have no issues about the height my friend who is smaller like way small used to ride a DT off road bike and it was high.He used to keep the bike up right and slip to the side while in stop.Once you pull the clutch out you just move over to the middle of the seat if you slow down in on coming traffic you can balance the bike ready for the lights to change without needing to put feet down.Just similar to a cycle bike just drag the back brake and inch the bike foreward and try and time the flow of traffic.
 
I am 5' 7" in seam of 32" and do not feel the bike being to tall at all. I also ride 2 up with my wife and even then no problems. What I would recommend is playing with suspension settings, Pat's motorcycle page has some good starting points. Start there then fine tune.
I guess growing up riding motocross you get accustomed to being tippy toed on a bike, even then not sure why it would be a problem as all you are doing is balancing the bike not moving it. Moving it I always have side stand down one hand on bars and one on seat handles, few close calls but no drops....touch wood
 
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