The pictures were a big help. My brackets do not look like those at all. I suspect they are mismatched to the boards or "rigged". A friend has stablilized the right board for me, it's just 1" lower than the left. I'm tall and the bike is compact (which I like) so it doesn't seem to be a problem for now. As this is my first bike I have a lot to learn - thanks for the help.