[Fernando Coelho]

After some careful consideration I decided to raise the height of the handlebars on my Ducati. While the ST4 already has a more upright riding position than the 998 or newer 999, I read in a few places that increasing the height by as little as half an inch more would take stress off your arms and wrists.

After some more research I was down to two heights, half-inch and three-quarter-inch. The half-inch is simple add-on where the three-quarter-inch requires a longer brake line. Since I wasn’t about to tackle messing with the brakes I opted for the half-inch setup.

The guys at Fast by Ferracci hooked me up with aluminum spacers and longer bolts. In about five minutes in my garage with a 6mm allen wrench the spacers were installed with no problems. I took the bike out for a spin and could notice the difference in riding position. While it’s not an extreme change and I didn’t go that far, I’m confident my wrists are going to be happier.

Next time around it will be a set of slip on Staintune exhausts, air filter and chip. Now that should get the ST4 sounding more like a Ducati should!

 

[Fernando Coelho]

The handling hasn't changed but the riding position is better. The 3/4 inch risers IMHO would have been too much of a change for that bike. The true test is coming up in two weeks when I take the bike on a 1200 mile (roundtrip) ride through the mountains on the way to NY.

Another option I considered was going with Helibars but after taking a closer look they would have been butt ugly on my bike. Ride position would have also changed enough that I think it would have compromised the handling of the bike.

Sell your Ducati? Geez, don't go to that extreme. Either find someone else to ride with or consider going out alone. You can always move to NC! There are plenty of riders here to tear up the twisties with :wink: