Front End Chatter #115

Explicit content warning

05/16/20 • 125 min

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain’s most teeth-sucking motorcycling podcast... but no! That was the previous episode! For FEC115, Simon and Martin have installed a 5G mast at Chatter Manors to deliver you, dear FECers, broadcast quality audio at what I think you’ll agree is the minor cost of second-degree skin burns among the local peasant population.

Thanks as ever to our comrades at bikesocial.co.uk – the worldwide web of motorcycling (check out their YouTube channel, it’s awesome despite Simon’s launch videos) and of course Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists.

And in this week’s worldwide web of waffle we discuss:

when is lockdown not a lockdown, and why it’s important to make our first ride back special
how MotoGP and WSB plan to keep calm and carry on – and if a race falls down in a season and there’s no-one there to see it, does it actually happen?

Plus!

taking an MT-07 off road, and is it better to have a single all-rounder, or two specialist bikes but each at half the value?
Fazer 1000 or FZ1 Fazer? And what are the best mods?
is there any way to keep cool on roasting hot days, and which bikes should be avoided? And do bikes run hotter today then they used to?
what’s our favourite engine configuration and is it the sole reason for falling in love with a bike?
drop visors – yes or no?
what modern gadgets are hardest to live without?

...and much more nattering and chattering, as usual.

Thanks for listening, hope it’s still helping in this crazy time and hope we all can ease back into riding without causing ourselves or other people any problems. Please keep your emails (and sound files!) coming to us at

[email protected]

with thoughts, advice, queries, questions and observations. Catch us both on the socials at:

@SimonHbikes

@Mufga

And please visit bikesocial.co.uk for all your biking infotainment (and their YouTube channel!), get your insurance from Bennetts, and get your kicks on the A66 – but easy does it.

Peace and biscuits.

And in this week’s worldwide web of waffle we discuss:

when is lockdown not a lockdown, and why it’s important to make our first ride back special
how MotoGP and WSB plan to keep calm and carry on – and if a race falls down in a season and there’s no-one there to see it, does it actually happen?

Plus!

taking an MT-07 off road, and is it better to have a single all-rounder, or two specialist bikes but each at half the value?
Fazer 1000 or FZ1 Fazer? And what are the best mods?
is there any way to keep cool on roasting hot days, and which bikes should be avoided? And do bikes run hotter today then they used to?
what’s our favourite engine configuration and is it the sole reason for falling in love with a bike?
drop visors – yes or no?
what modern gadgets are hardest to live without?

...and much more nattering and chattering, as usual.

[email protected]

with thoughts, advice, queries, questions and observations. Catch us both on the socials at:

@SimonHbikes

@Mufga

And please visit bikesocial.co.uk for all your biking infotainment (and their YouTube channel!), get your insurance from Bennetts, and get your kicks on the A66 – but easy does it.

Peace and biscuits.

Previous Episode

Front End Chatter #114

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain’s – nay, the world’s – most socially isolated motorcycle podcast, with Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons... and welcome to Episode 114 – the third in a series in which Martin literally phones it in.

Thanks as ever to our brothers and sisters at bikesocial.co.uk – the worldwide web of motorcycling (check out their YouTube channel!) and of course Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists.

And in this meandering soufflé of waffle we touch lightly on subjects as varied as:

what constitutes an ‘essential’ journey, and is a bike an appropriate vehicle?
Norton has been bought by TVS of India for £16... sorry, £16 million... so will any of that go to refund deposits, reimburse pensions and repay creditors? And what does it mean for future Norton motorcycles?
the MotoGP 2020 season guessing game continues with news of cancellations and possible fan-free races financed by an energy drink
plus! What have the MotoGP stars been getting up to in lockdown, and why they should maybe keep it to themselves

Plus!

why owning a Firestorm isn’t as fun as dreaming of owning one
should manufacturers be forced to reveal where a bike is assembled on the VIN plate?
how much influence does the bike press have, and if they covered smaller brands, would it sell more bikes?
do bikes have a soul?
is downsizing an admission of defeat?
more rear brake advice, this time from a MotoGP rider and WSB champ
the most embarrassing things we’ve ever done on a bike
can you go further riding on your own?

...and much more nattering and chattering.

Thanks for listening, hope it’s helping in this really crazy time. Please keep your emails (and sound files!) coming in with thoughts, advice, queries, questions and observations. Catch us both on the socials at:

@SimonHbikes @Mufga And please visit bikesocial.co.uk for all your biking infotainment (and their YouTube channel!), get your insurance from Bennetts, and get your kicks on the A66 – just not right now. Even for decking screws. Peace and health.

Next Episode

Front End Chatter #116

Hello you lucky people you, and welcome to Front End Chatter Episode 116 with Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons, brought to you via Durham with a detour to Castle Barnard. Front End Chatter is supported through thick and thicker by Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists, and BikeSocial.co.uk, internet's home of motorcycling. And in this episode, a still socially distant Martin and Simon rabbit on about: • the return of MotoGP, and whose Alpinestars Jack Miller will be filling at Ducati in 2021... and if they turn out to be Petrucci's, will the Italian then go and do the Dakar instead? • getting back on a bike after post lockdown, and is 'riding rust' actually a thing or is it just riders getting overexcited after a period of inactivity? • what bikes do we think are the best of all time in a FEC's Factor? • should we celebrate 125 episodes of FEC by doing 125 laps of a flat-track oval, or a roundabout? • will Kawasaki's supercharging technology eventually trickle down to smaller bikes in their range, or will it always be flagship technology? • is an R1250GS *really* the ultimate aspirational bike, or is it over-hyped? • will wearing an air-bag suit one day be as normal as putting on a helmet? • is it ever okay to cheer a rider crashing on a race track? ... and much more natter and chatter. Thank you for your continued appreciation, and please keep your emails with questions, answers, thoughts and ideas to: [email protected] Catch us on the Twitters: @SimonHBikes @Mufga ...and see you next time!