Steg Pegz are two-inch rubber pucks that you lean the back of your boots against to reduce arm pump and upper body fatigue when standing. Steg Pegz consist of a bolt-on mounting plate and a choice of one, two, or three sets of rubber pucks that stick out from a mounting point to barely clip the inside edge of the back of your riding boots. Stegz Moto Technologies has mounting kits for 14 different brands of adventure, off-road, and motocross motorcycles. The two-puck kit for the Ultimate Motorcycling Yamaha Ténéré 700 Project Bike is $167 MSRP. Mounting time is under 10 minutes.
I heard about Steg Pegz from a forum discussion on the Yamaha Ténéré 700 Forum, and found out how well they work because I had forgotten I had mounted them, yet I found myself using them without knowing they were helping. I had installed them during a snowstorm about a week prior. I then performed a tubeless conversion, mounted new tires, and donned a four-season riding outfit and new boots. My main focus for this ride was the tubeless tire conversion, and being careful for the first 100 miles on fresh rubber.
I took off from my house for a few hours’ shakedown ride and, as always, I stood along the way. I got to my destination highway—a 55 mph road. For over 30 minutes, I was feeling out the new rubber, watching my tire pressure monitor for any signs of air leak, and generally enjoying riding without heated gear on.
I was about 45 minutes into the ride when I remembered about the Steg Pegz. At that moment of body part awareness, I realized that I had been unknowingly using the Steg Pegz for support the whole time. I then just slightly moved my knees outward and was almost blown off the bike. I had been keeping a comfortable, loose grip on the bars. When the 55mph blast hit me without the support of the Steg Pegz, I had to do a quick death grip.
In the moment, I thought it was a blast of 55 mph air. However, in reality, it was the taking away of the body support that the Steg Pegz had been providing. I kept a constant 55 and experimented with the slight movement needed to use and not use the Steg Pegz.
When off the Steg Pegz, my grip had to be tighter, and I was using my forearms to hold on. Using the Steg Pegz, I was back to a light grip on the handlebar and no strain on my arms. The difference was night and day.
My next ride was back to a road I had ridden before I mounted the Steg Pegz—a one-mile twisty uphill. Knowing my Steg Pegz were on the way, I had made a mental note of how my hands and arms felt doing this long, steep uphill. Now that I had the Steg Pegz installed, taking the same road at the same speed on the same bike, I had zero arm pump and could keep a light and comfortable grasp on the grips.
The installation on the Ultimate Motorcycling Yamaha Ténéré 700 Project Bike is two bolts to hold the mounting plate. Our bike has the OEM pannier racks, and they were exactly in the way—on the front pannier rack mounts is a flange for mounting the OEM Tail Rack. Because I won’t be installing an OEM Tail Rack, I used my trusty angle grinder to slice the offending flange off.
There is a fore and aft adjustment for the round pucks to be placed where it is natural for the calf of your boot to land when you are standing. Evidently, I guessed correctly the first time, because I didn’t even know my calf was touching the pucks until I moved it away from them.
One, two, or three puck kits can be purchased depending on how much puck you want your calf to lean against. On the Ultimate Motorcycling Yamaha Ténéré 700 Project Bike, a single puck doesn’t stick out enough for my leg position to reach.
The product is named after the inventor and owner, 2009 Australian State QLD Motocross champion Stephen “Stegz” Smith. He came up with the idea to help himself with arm pump during motocross races. As it turns out, his racing invention also helps non-competitive riders when standing while riding. If you are a sitting off-road rider, you might want to consider mounting a pair to give you more confidence standing, with the added benefit of less fatigue. If your bike isn’t listed on the fitment page for Steg Pegz, send Stegz Moto Technologies an email to find out if your motorcycle is scheduled to come into production.
