Front End Chatter

By: Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons
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  • Summary

  • Britain's best biking podcast, with Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons
    Copyright Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons
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Sports & Outdoors
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Episodes
  • Front End Chatter #207

    Front End Chatter #207
    Jan 9 2025
    Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain’s physics-bendingiest motorcycling podcast, a vision formed when eccentric inventors Simon Hargreaves and Martin Fitz-Gibbons slipped off a toilet seat and banged their heads on a sink. This is episode #207 which, as always, is powered by the suitcase of stolen plutonium that is Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists, and BikeSocial.co.uk, the first ​place you should point your browser for used-bike buying guides, in-depth product reviews, new-bike technical analysis, the week’s hotted two-wheels deals, plus so much more. And this week, in the absence of much going on in the biking world (other than Simon squeezing Christmas lunch into the panniers of a Triumph Tiger, and Mufga squeezing Christmas lunch into himself several times over), FEC takes a twenty-year trip back in time, back to January 2005, or more specifically the January 2005 issue of Bike magazine. A time when Britain was obsessed with sportsbikes, when Mufga was obsessed with dataloggers, and when Simon was obsessed by Troy Lee decals. How times have changed. Come between the covers with us (ahem) as Simon and Mufga spill the goss on how Britain’s biggest-selling bike magazine was cobbled together 20 years ago, including: •     Yamaha’s MT-01 – what it was, why it was made, whether it was a flop, and why Si had to push one down a hill •     KTM’s 990 Super Duke – why it came with the rudest promo video ever, and whether it’d take KTM from unknowns to the biggest brand in Europe •     Yamaha YZF-R6 – why a new set of forks and brakes made Si visit a burger van in the Peak District •     Ducati Monster S2R – why it made Mufga bar-hop through Monte Carlo, and why a WSB legend flicked the Vs at Chippy Wood, Bike’s own legend •     Plus the creeping rise of nostalgia in motorcycling; one of the ugliest group tests ever put on paper; the questionably relevance of riding MotoGP bikes; and a plethora of predictions gone horribly wrong. We hope you enjoy our spectacularly self-indulgent trip down memory lane. If you do, let us know which era we should revisit next by emailing anything@frontendchatter.com – and if you don’t, then instead email us with your thoughts, questions, observations, wonderings, ponderings about all things two-wheeled, modern or historical, for us to waffle about this year. Thank you for listening, and we hope to see you in Scotland on FEC Highland Fling (#1 & #2) in May, and/or the FECstival in October! Follow us on the socials: Bluesky @sihbikes.bsky.social @mufga.bsky.social Instagram @simonhbikes @mufga
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    1 hr and 41 mins
  • Front End Chatter #206

    Front End Chatter #206
    Dec 22 2024

    HOT NEWS! The FEC Highland Fling is here!

    Yes folks, come ride with Simon and Martin in Scotland in May 2025 – we've booked an entire hotel in the heart of the Highlands as a base for three days of riding the most stunning loops around the most iconic routes in the UK. It's majestic, it's mind-blowing, it's the best riding – and the best hospitality – you'll get in 2025.

    The FEC Highland Fling starts with a grand ride-in on Friday 2nd May through Glen Coe up to the hotel near Garve. After an evening of greetings and meetings, we'll spend the next three days exploring the finest roads and scenery Scotland has to offer – the north coast, west coast, and across to the Cairngorms, talking in all the Highland hits along the way. And, on the final night (Monday 5th May), Martin and Simon will host a special live episode of Front End Chatter.

    To register your interest in the FC Highland Fling, please send an email to anything@frontendchatter.com titled "I'm interested in the FEC Highland Fling, please send me more info."

    We look forward to seeing you in Scotland in May!

    Meanwhile....

    Hello and welcome to E206 of Front End Chatter, the UK's most Christmassy (he means 'Festive' – Ed) motorcycling podcast, brought to you gift-wrapped in last week's MCN by Simon Humbug Hargreaves and Martin Ho Ho Ho Fitz-Gibbons, supported as ever by the bike insurance baubles at Bennetts, and their multimedia minions at BikeSocial.co.uk. Get your insurance with Bennetts because their industry-wide offers and discounts will pay you back big time in 2025. Become a BikeSocial Member, take advantage, get involved, come to a discounted trackday and keep your eyes on your inbox for amazing events with which you can get involved.

    And on this week's FEC we have:
    • our fave bikes of 2024 (and a few of 2025)
    • more KTM woes, plus does talking about it make it worse?
    • the last new bike news of 2024, Ducati's down-sized V2 Multi
    • plus a whole heap of nattering on topics raised by you, the FECers, sent in via email to the FEC-Sac, to anything@frontendchatter.com

    Please keep your thoughts and ideas and musings and fantasies coming in!

    Thanks for listening, and see you in Scotland in May!

    Bsky
    @sihbikes.bsky.social
    @mufga.bsky.social

    Insta
    simonhbikes
    mufga
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    1 hr and 35 mins
  • Front End Chatter #205

    Front End Chatter #205
    Dec 7 2024

    Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain’s premium motorcycling podcast, hosted by Martin Fitz-Gibbons and Simon Hargreaves. This is episode 205, probably, and is supported in its endeavours by Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists – and bikesocial.co.uk, the number one place to go for bike-related news, reviews and product and kit tests. And check out Bennetts' YouTube channel, with all the lovely lovely lovely moving images contained therein.

    And on this week’s FEC we natter about

    • Motorcycle Live – was it any good, what was the vibe, any hot takes?
    • KTM – more financial woes, and they thought chocolate cams were bad...
    • Why the Govt’s failure to have plans to encourage the use of motorcycles isn’t the bad news it might sound like...
    • ...but we can’t still use all bus lanes
    • plans to introduce a blanket 50mph speed limit on Scottish single-lane carriageways
    • when is depreciation slight enough to make an upgrade worthwhile?
    • some EV stuff Simon doesn’t understand

    Plus loads... well, *some* more... please get in touch at anything@frontendchatter.com with your thoughts, musings, questions and ponderings.


    Or get us on Instagram:
    @Mufga
    @SimonHbikes

    Or Bluesky:
    @mufga.bsky.social
    @sihbikes.bsky.social
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    1 hr and 45 mins

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