MCN's Stephen English, Asphalt & Rubber's Tony Goldsmith, and MotoMatters.com's David Emmett discuss the start of the MotoGP season. Subjects include Rossi's revival, Marquez' start to the season, the return of the British riders, and much more.

This is a trial run. The audio quality is pretty bad, especially with bikes in the background. But we wanted to try this out, before taking it seriously, and trying to put out a professional version of this. Made in collaboration with Asphalt & Rubber.

Test Podcast, Alpha version, Paddock Pass

On the Monday after the Grand Prix of the Americas at CotA, Austin, Texas, I took my recording gear to the track, as we were due to record an episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast. I also wanted to grab some audio of the Suzuki GSX-RR MotoGP bike, to be used on the podcast. 

After I had grabbed some audio on the entrance to Turn 1, I switched the recorder back on, and took a walk down through the paddock to the Media Center, which is at the opposite end of the main straight. On my way were the sounds of a paddock being disassembled and cleaned up after a race weekend. Forklift trucks raced to and fro, shifting flight cases from A to B ready for shipping. Circuit workers were taking stands and billboards apart. Trucks drove through the paddock to collect their cargoes. And in the background, you can hear the Suzuki GSX-RR circulating, sometimes distant, sometimes closer. 

As I approached the media center, I heard the Suzuki approaching one more time. I took a quick detour to the start of pit lane, and recorded the bike in all its glory, as it hammered out of the last corner and on to the front straight.