First rule of Fight Club ? Don ’ t talk about Fight Club ... etc . What if it ’ s your job , your brief – to talk about Fight Club ? Part of the problem writing any sort of article that aims to inform the reader with a little insight before purchase , or just to broaden the knowledge base , is that it ’ s mostly subjective . We can deliver basic facts , but how much do I really know about the coefficients of thermal expansion on wear factor in the cylinder walls of a modern triple , the percentage vagaries of molybdenum steel versus carbon steel on frame breakage , or the peak-demand drop-off curve in an electric-battery-configured bike ? I know these things , notionally , and that ’ s about the limit . I am neither neuroscientist nor metallurgical guru . I am , however , a man who ’ s ridden a lot of motorcycles . I own a laptop . I have opinions ; and a genuine , occasionally sentimental , heart . I can only give an honest response to how the bike works , feels , looks and fits with my individual set of criteria , based on experience , taste and observation over 50 years , and hope that it helps rather than annoys . I am ,
as they say , what I am . It starts with first impressions on the floor . I ask myself , “ Does it appeal to the eye , and why ”, and immediately we are deep in ‘ subjective world ’. Naturally , I ’ m drawn to motorcycles that reflect the fantasy of my teens to my thirties , and I think that ’ s true for us all – whether now or in years to come . So , admitting to that personal preference is , as a matter of course , going to colour any review . Then I start the bike , listen , and then check out any electrickery , before clearing all that out of my head and riding away . The second major question is , “ What were they thinking ?”. Usually this is pretty clear , although it can take days , and a few kilometres to get a concrete picture , but it ’ s my key to unlocking the bike . Once I understand , or FEEL that I understand , I set about measuring their achievement in that delivery . The major flaw in this process – and there are many – is that by focusing on the thought behind what the manufacturers are trying to achieve – ( if anything other than sell more of the same ) is that in narrowing that process , one
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