Front End Chatter

Hello and sorry and welcome to Front End Chatter, and episode 222 of the motorcycling podcast that may (or may not) owe you an apology. That grovelling worm is Martin Fitz-Gibbons, and that recalcitrant rascal is Simon Hargreaves. Having spent several months avoiding facing up to the monster they unwittingly (in both senses) created, they're back with two hours of unrehearsed waffle about all things biking. As always they'd like to atone for their two-wheeled transgressions to Bennetts, Britain's best motorcycle insurers, represented on the interwebs by both BikeSocial (bikesocial.co.uk) and BikeClub (bikeclub.bennetts.co.uk) – between them a bewilderingly big bonanza of motorcycling news, product reviews, used bike buying guides, industry expert advice and so much more.
 
In this contrite (but alas not concise) episode of Britain's best biking podcast, Simon and Mufga discuss:
 
•     Bikes for which manufacturers owe us an apology
•     Riding a Manx Norton (ah) followed by a Norton Manx R – read more in Bike magazine
•     BMW's R1300RS and Moto Guzzi's V100 Mandello S – read more in Bike magazine
•     Touring to Spa on BMW's ludicrous M1000XR – read more in RiDE magazine
•     How 'downgrading' tyres can improve a bike's ride and handling
•     What went on at the 2026 Isle of Man TT
•     Every biking engine layout, what they have in common, and which is best
•     Whether speed limiters ruin sports-tourers
•     The glory days of grey imports, and why they died out
 
Thank you, one and all, for choosing to pour some Front End Chatter into your ears. Please keep sending your questions, thoughts, comments, wonderings and ponderings to anything@frontendchatter.com
 
Until next time – whenever that may be...

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, the motorcycling podcast, and none other than Episode 221 – they said we couldn't do it, but we've naysayed the naysayers. His name is Martin Fitz-Gibbons, editor of Bike magazine, and my name isn't but that's not important right now – what's important is we thank Bennetts, Britain's best motorcycle insurers who put more back into biking than insurance companies who put less back into biking, and some of whom put nothing back but merely take take take. Good people one and all. And also uber-thanks to the bikesocial.co.uk, the world of wokecycling on the web and on the YouTubes, with loads of news, views, new bike launches and road tests – all the good stuff. 

Right, on with the show – and today Martin and Simon, for it is he, opine about, in no particular order...
• Suzuki's marvellous DRZ-Z4S and how old can be better than new
• the loss of Phillip Island as a MotoGP circuit
• Honda Hornet 1000 recall for excessive oil consumption
• UK bikes sales stats for YTD up to Feb
• fab epic bike doc by FortNine called Yalla Habibi
• plus a selection of your fine emails from the FECSack. 

As ever, please keep your questions and queries coming to anything@frontendchatter.com

And thank you very much for listening!

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, the podcast home of all things motorcycle-related, albeit tangentially sometimes, which, let's be honest, it's a slow news decade and we have to talk about something so why not just gossip? He's Martin Fitz-Gibbons and he's Simon Hargreaves, a pair of motorcycle content creators. And they're Bennetts, Britain's Best Bike Insurers, to whom we are all indebted, sometimes quite literally. And they're bikesocial.co.uk, where the web meets the world of bikes. 

And on the pod this month we natter about – blimey, where do we start? 
• Bennetts pull out of BSB sponsorship – the why and the what it means for BSB
• The Buccleuch Arms Hotel, famed as the best hotel in Scotland and catering especially for motorcyclists, is up for sale! Details within
• Moors The Merrier FEC Tour in 'almost sold out' shock!
• 2025 new bike sales nearly 20% down on 2024
• Voge R625 ain't half bad
• Kawasaki Z1100 SE is more than half good
• revolutionary solid state battery-powered bike with 10min recharge and 300mile plus range, 'Verge'-ing on the ridiculous
• 62 historic MotoGP bikes worth zillions seized in Mexican drug bust
• what's your top speed, ever, no names officer
• which bike is the GOAT of all time? 

All this and more! And it's all in one episode! 

Send your questions, thoughts, comments, brain farts, top speeds and nominations for Greatest Bike Of All Time to anything@frontendchatter.com

And don't forget to book onto the Moors The Merrier Tour with us! It's in July, it'll be sunny, it's a weekend, and the beer is... well, it's not free but you might get a pint out of it! 

May your god go with you.

Hello and welcome indeed to Front End Chatter, Episode 219, in which Martin and Simon use their vast misunderstanding of motorcycles as a basis for interminable waffling on a podcast. As ever, they are supported in their efforts by Bennetts, Britain's best bike insurers, and bikesocial.co.uk, all your motorcycling info needs on the web. 

And on this pod, Simon and Martin natter about: 
• the forthcoming FEC Tour 2026 – The Moors The Merrier – on July 17-20th in the N Yorks Moors
• smashing phones on bikes
• Triumph's Tiger Sport 800
• why bikes aren't as fast as they used to be, and why no-one cares
• Honda's CB1000GT
• Honda's VR3
• Honda's NW7
• BMW's F450GS
• Norton's Atlases
• CFMoto's KTM 990 Adventure
...and much much much more.

Thank you for listening, please spread the word amongst your peers, and please sign up to the FEC Tour by emailing anything@frontendchatter.com and registering your interest. Onwards!

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain's Best Biking Podcast presented by 'Fox Mulder' Hargreaves and 'Dana Scully' Fitz-Gibbons – because, spookily, this is FEC Episode 218; exactly the same number of episodes as TV's The X-Files. Except it's not spooky at all because it's not a coincidence. It's inevitable there's a TV show with exactly 218 episodes, and it's the X-Files; if we waited until FEC 219 to make the connection, it would be the same number of episodes as the original ABC run of the American improvisational comedy series Whose Line Is It Anyway? Insert your own joke here. 

And thanks as always to our benevolent benefactors Bennetts, Britain's Best Bike insurers, and bikesocial.co.uk, the website/YouTube channel for all your biking needs. And remember to become a BikeSocial Member – it's automatic if you're insured with Bennetts, or it's £60 per year or £6 per month if not. But it means you get access to loads of competitions, offers and money-off deals on a veritable panoply of kit – basically, if you're thinking of buying anything for your bike, check to see if it's on the list; you might be able to save more than the cost of membership.
For a list of current offers and discounts, visit rewards.bennetts.co.uk/categories
Right, on with the show, and this week Simon and Martin natter about:
• Triumph's new Trident 800
• Ducati's new Monster
• Kawasaki's new KLE500
• Honda's new CB1000F
• Yamaha's new Ténéré 700 World Raid
Plus
• BMW R1300 GSA v RS v RT, and the merits of riding 600 miles for one photo
• Has motorcycling got too easy; if you don't have to earn it, is it worth anything?
• What's it like riding Honda's RC213V-S in 2025?
• Riding 'signatures'
• What's the easiest engine to work on?
• And loads of other hot air and nonsense

Thanks for listening, please tell your motorcycling pals and spread the FEC message of love, hope, friendship and riding as far and fast as possible at all times...
And please continue to grace the inbox and anything@fronteendchatter.com with your thoughts, questions, queries and general bantz.

Aye. Carry on.