Raindrop et al, your ideas helped me, too (I've been offline for a bit due to life, or I would have been back to thank you sooner).

I tried a different bike and pedaled slower, both of which helped. I also brought a huge beach towel, rolled it up and placed it across the handlebar. That helped my reach issues a bit. I know it's not ideal, but I'm going at a pretty leisurely pace so I'm not worried about losing my grip.

Thanks for the ideas - back to class tomorrow for me.