Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter, Britain’s mostest biking podcast, supported by nos amis at Britain’s foremost and most comprehensive biking website, www.bikesocial.co.uk, and Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists.

And in this week’s compact episode Simon (me) and Martin (him) natter about such diverse matters as:

• the second darkest winter in northern Europe since records began
• results from the Dakar rally, and whether the race is getting too tough (it’s not), and whether the IOM TT is harder
• will Michael Dunlop’s recent test on the MotoGP Suzuki GSX-R RR R at Sepang, Malaysia, presage an entry in the 2018 Senior TT, and do we think he was worried about taking to the track alongside MotoGP regulars?
• what else might or might not happen at the first MotoGP test session of 2018 at Sepang?
• why has Hutchy jumped on John McG’s ‘unlucky’ Honda Fireblade for next year’s TT?
• more news on the Ducati, Aprilia and KTM models affected by Brembo’s master cylinder recall
• first riding reports of Ducati’s V4 Panigale and Honda’s new Gold Wing are in – and if they’re as brilliant as everyone says, how can we tell when it seems like all new bikes are brilliant?

Plus (and sorry, we only have time for a few) your wonderful emails.

Thank you as ever for continuing to listen to our ramblings, and please get in touch at anything@frontendhchatter.com with your questions, thoughts, musings and chit-chat.

@SimonHbikes

@Mufga

Hello and welcome to Front End Chatter Episode 70, the world’s most eclectic motorcycling podcast, supported by www.biksocial.co.uk, the UK’s most informed and entertaining website, and Bennetts, the bike insurance specialists.

My name is Simon and that man over there is Martin, and today we’re nattering about:

• the masochism of riding in winter, and whether a hot bath at the end of it is worth the suffering
• the masochism of riding a Kawasaki H2 and an Enfield Himalayan in winter
• ...or the historical perspective of riding three generations of GSX-R750 on an old runway in Cornwall
• details of a Brembo brake recall in the USA; what it is, what bikes are affected, and whether there’ll be a recall in the UK
• how, despite the Kawasaki H2 SX and Yamaha Niken and BMW F850GS, the Kawasaki Z900RS might just be the best bike of 2018
• an enlightened approach to selling a used bike, and how faith should overcome fear...
• ...or just ask your local dealer to sell it for you
• why Honda’s Crossrunner is always overlooked when discussing used all-rounders
• the crazy new bike deals about last year, such as Honda’s Africa Twin DCT PCP deal of no deposit, 0% finance at £70 per month for three years – and the implications for the values of used Africa Twins
• how cold is too cold to go for a ride?
• and introducing the Hall Of FEC – what bikes are in, what bikes are out (starting with 2009 – which turns out to be a particularly bad year for new bikes)

Thanks for listening, please email your nominations for FEC’s Hall Of FEC, or indeed any other thoughts, questions, requests to:

anything@frontendchatter.com

Thanks for listening!

@SimonHbike

@Mufga