Road

The Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon replaces the Road Team Carbon which is road.cc Road Bike of the Year 2017-18, and it's a lot of bike for £1,000. Every so often in this job you review a bike that makes you think, 'I'd happily ride this one day in, day out.' That's not entirely surprising when you're on a 10 grand superbike, but it's less common at the £1,000 mark. The Boardman SLR 8.9 is one of those bikes.

Of course, £1,000 represents a significant investment for most of us, but it's not stratospheric these days, and means the Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon is accessible via most tax-free Cycle to Work schemes. The highlight is the new frameset, which is good news because that's the heart of any bike. The frame was developed with the use of CFD (computational fluid dynamics), the idea being to provide improved aerodynamic efficiency. You wouldn't call this a full-on aero road bike but you do get features designed to reduce drag. The down tube, seat tube and fork legs have truncated aerofoil profiles, meaning that the trailing edge is cut off square – a design technique that's widely used in the bike industry (and elsewhere).

We can't offer any assessment of aerodynamics, but I can tell you that the Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon feels lively in use. You'll find lighter bikes out there at this price point – the £999 Giant Contend SL1 that we reviewed weighed 8.74kg, for instance, and the Specialized Allez Elite, also £999, was 8.77kg – but don't get too hung up on that. The SLR 8.9 Carbon offers a high level of stiffness for its price point. Okay, you'll probably notice a bit of frame flex if you absolutely hammer it in a quad-twanging sprint for a town sign, and a little from Boardman's own alloy tubeless-ready wheels, but that's about the extent of it. In general, the SLR 8.9 Carbon gives a good account of itself, standing firm when you launch into your best KOM efforts.

You get a tapered head tube that's home to a 1 1/8in upper bearing and a 1 1/2in lower bearing. This gives the front end a pretty solid feel that makes carving through the bends a whole lot of fun. You can smash it through the corners without the need to back off if things get vague.

The handling is quick but a way short of twitchy. You can manoeuvre yourself easily enough without any sense of skittishness. This is a bike that's simple to control – well, pretty much. I wouldn't say that the Tektro R315 long arm brakes, which have been specced to allow the use of mudguards and 28mm tyres, have quite the punch of Shimano equivalents. Don't get me wrong, they work fine, they just feel like they're lacking a little power when push comes to shove. One thing that surprised me about the SLR 8.9 Carbon is the level of comfort on offer here. I've ridden it loads over the past few weeks, including up the Col de la Madone in southeast France two or three times and the Col de Turini, and I've never given comfort a whole lot of thought. That's definitely a good thing because the only time I usually think about that ride quality is when it's missing.

One thing that surprised me about the SLR 8.9 Carbon is the level of comfort on offer here. I've ridden it loads over the past few weeks, including up the Col de la Madone in southeast France two or three times and the Col de Turini, and I've never given comfort a whole lot of thought. That's definitely a good thing because the only time I usually think about that ride quality is when it's missing. Boardman has dropped the seatstays on this model so that they meet the seat tube low down, while the seatpost is a slim 27.2mm in diameter and its clamping point is low – it's a wedge-type design in the top tube/seat tube junction. All of this helps to make for a reasonable amount of movement at the saddle; not so much that you bounce around when laying down the power, but enough to take the edge off holes and bumps in the road and to filter out a lot of vibration.

The saddle itself is made for Boardman by Velo, although the shape is reminiscent of that of a Fizik. Let's just say that the design looks as though it has been heavily influenced by the Antares. Saddles are always a matter of personal taste but I imagine that most people are going to get along with the generous amount of gel-feel padding on offer. The only thing that I'd really have preferred in terms of comfort would have been a larger diameter handlebar. Boardman's own alloy bar is a 31.8mm diameter at the clamp but slims down a lot from there. A chunkier bar would make for lower pressure on your hands... but that's a personal preference and I'm being picky. If you want to fit mudguards, the SLR 8.9 Carbon comes with eyelets. The ones on the inside of the rear dropouts are hardly noticeable when not in use and those on the outside of the fork legs aren't a whole lot more conspicuous. Subtle, then, but invaluable for year-round riding in the UK.

I've been riding the SLR 8.9 Carbon in a 58cm. This one comes with a 570mm effective top tube (the measurement if the top tube was horizontal rather than sloping), a 580mm effective seat tube (again, assuming the top tube was horizontal) and a 160mm head tube. The head angle is 73 degrees and the seat angle is 73.5 degrees. The stack height (the vertical distance from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the head tube) is 582mm and the reach (the horizontal distance between those points) is 392mm.

Divide the stack by the reach and you get 1.48 which is exactly the same as you get with Boardman's high level SLR Endurance 9.9. The geometry is identical. It's not nearly as relaxed as something like a Specialized Roubaix, though, where the 58cm model has a stack/reach figure of 1.67. Boardman's SLR Race, on the other hand, has a lower stack and a longer reach, putting you into a more aggressive riding position. The top and the bottom of all this number talk is that this is a performance-minded geometry but it's more relaxed than that of a full-on race bike. It splits the difference between a traditional race bike and an endurance bike. You feel like you're riding in an efficient position and the chances are that you're not going to get an ache in your back or a crick in your neck 10 miles down the road from trying to hold it.

The SLR 8.9 Carbon is built up with a Shimano Tiagra groupset, aside from those Tektro R315 long arm brakes that I mentioned. Tiagra might lack the prestige of Shimano's higher level groupsets (it sits fourth in the hierarchy behind Dura-Ace, Ultegra and 105) but it just works. Okay, it's a 10-speed rather than an 11-speed system but you don't particularly notice that difference in use; at least, I don't. You just adjust to these things.

You get a compact chainset (50/34-tooth) and a 12-28t cassette here which will probably suit most. I guess that some people might prefer an 11-32t cassette or even 11-34 to make things easier on the toughest hills. Handily, Boardman has specced the GS version of the Tiagra rear derailleur here so going for larger sprockets would be a relatively straightforward swap.

I wouldn't say that Boardman's SLR alloy wheels are anything to get particularly excited about but they've done a decent job over the past few weeks. After a good few hundred miles the front one is still perfectly true – bang on – while the rear one is near as damn it too. That's a good sign. It means that the wheels probably won't need much attention for a long time. The rims are tubeless ready, although the 700 x 25 Vittoria Rubino tyres aren't, so you'll need to swap them over if you want to go down that route. These tyres aren't especially lightweight or supple but they do offer durability and avoid flats pretty well thanks to a puncture protection layer.

Interestingly, Boardman offers the SLR 8.9 Alloy at exactly the same price: £1,000. The main differences are that you get an alloy frame (you worked that out for yourself, right?) – it's triple butted 6061 aluminium alloy – and a Shimano 105 11-speed groupset, which is a level higher than the SLR 8.9 Carbon's Tiagra. You also get a Fizik Antares saddle rather than Boardman's own. The tube profiles aren't exactly the same as those of the SLR 8.9 Carbon that I've been riding but the frames are recognisably from the same family. Smooth welding gives a carbon look. I'd guess that most people are going to be tempted by the lure of carbon, but who knows? We've not reviewed the SLR 8.9 Alloy so we can't comment on the relative performance.

The Giant Contend SL 1 that we did review here on road.cc is similar to the SLR 8.9 Alloy in that you get an alloy frame and a mainly Shimano 105 groupset, although you get a cheaper chainset and Tektro R540 brakes. The Specialized Allez Elite is also £999, it's also built around an aluminium frame, and it's also built up with a largely Shimano 105 groupset (with a Praxis groupset and Tektro brakes). You need to decide whether you'd prefer the higher level groupset of any of these three bikes or a carbon frame. That's down to you, clearly. What I would say is that I'd consider the Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon to be more upgradeable. It could certainly handle higher level components if you're likely to add them as and when the various parts wear out.

The Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon is a really good road bike, particularly because the frameset is an absolute winner. Add in a reliable Shimano Tiagra groupset, no-nonsense finishing kit and the ability to fit mudguards easily and this is a bike that'll give you a ton of enjoyment all year round.

Really impressive road bike that's built around a corker of a frameset, and the price is very good too.

Road.cc July 2018 - Full Review  Here

The Boardman SLR 8.9 Carbon is one of our Bike of the Year bikes for 2019. Impressively, while the Boardman Road Team Carbon’s spec evolved over the years, the bike’s price never crept over the all-important £1,000 mark in the UK, crucial both psychologically and in making it eligible for the UK’s Cycle to Work scheme’s tax breaks.

Just as impressively, Boardman’s team of designers has replaced the Boardman Road Team Carbon with a more modern-looking all-carbon road bike and a bang-up-to-date spec, happily losing a few features that were starting to show their age. Crucially, the familiar sportive- and distance-friendly geometry are unchanged, as is the £1,000 price of the SLR 8.9c (there’s also an aluminium model at the same price, the cunningly named SLR 8.9a).

To hit that very appealing price, Boardman has gone with a near-complete Shimano Tiagra groupset rather than the predominantly 105 setups on the similarly priced Cannondale CAAD Optimo, Giant Contend SL1 and Specialized Allez Elite – and the full-on 105 setups of Canyon and Rose’s £1,000 online offerings. The wheels have also stepped into the future compared with previous versions. The last few years saw the pretty basic Mavic CX22 rim, though Boardman was a comparatively early adopter of 25mm tyres, which are retained here. The new wheels are Boardman branded and have a modern rounded profile rim. They’re also future-proofed, as they come tubeless-ready, though you will have to swap the non-tubeless-ready tyres. As well as recognising the benefits of wider tyres, Boardman Bikes was also an early adopter of ‘sportive geometry’. Aware that the great majority of us don’t want a super-long top-tube and our nose down on the front wheel, Boardman relaxed the geometry.

If you compare the SLR 8.9c with today’s 54cm Specialized Allez Elite (which has a similar length top-tube to my medium-size Boardman), and which itself has become less aggressive, the Boardman has a marginally taller head-tube, higher stack and lower reach figures – albeit by a matter of just a few millimetres – as well as a compact handlebar. The result is a more upright riding position that’s comfortable, puts no strain on your lower back and is great for dodging through city traffic, as well as on longer, more adventurous days out. And while this makes it a great choice for the leisure, fitness and endurance rider, it’s still not so extreme that you can’t have a competitive outing on it. After all, its predecessor propelled Nicole Cooke to Olympic gold in Beijing. And this being 2019, you’re getting a frame created using ‘computational fluid dynamics’, which has resulted in some drag-beating aerodynamic touches, such as truncated aerofoil profiles in the fork, down tube and seat tube. It’s also as comfortable as anything you’ll find at the price, and you could up the plushness further by going for 28mm tyres, which you can fit along with mudguards.

The new, dropped seatstays will also help with rear-end comfort, as does the 27.2mm diameter seatpost. Yes, Boardman has finally ditched the oversize 31.6mm post it stuck with for a decade, though I’d have preferred a handlebar that kept its wide diameter further out from the stem than the Boardman’s did.

The handling is quick and lively but you always feel in complete control, even descending, while the solid front end, with its tapered steerer, is stiff enough for rapid changes of direction. And while the carbon does cushion the ride, you’re never totally insulated from the road surface, so the feedback is very good.

The step-down from 105 to Tiagra is painless, it works pretty much as efficiently and effectively with the loss of one rear gear. The only deviation from the groupset is the deep-drop Tektro brakes, but even these budget stoppers work pretty well thanks to their cartridge brake blocks, and they’ll allow mudguards and wider tyres. Not up there with 105 brakes, but not bad. One area where I think Boardman did miss a trick was in its cassette. Giant has moved to a 32t bottom sprocket and Specialized 34t on its 2019 bikes, whereas Boardman has stuck with a 28t sprocket for its bailout gear. I’d have gone for the 11-32 or 11-34 cassette, which gives you a little more at both ends of the spectrum. Thankfully the Tiagra mech will cope with a wider cassette, and if you like maximum help on the hills a wider-ranging cassette is well worth considering. Aside from the slightly limited gear range, one of my few other criticisms is that it’s only available in four sizes (and three women’s models) compared with six for the Specialized and eight for the Cannondale, for example.

I’d also have liked to see rear rack mount fittings to go with the very near mudguard fittings on the fork and inside the seatstays, which would have upped the versatility and its commuting credentials.

But limiting the size range is almost certainly one of the ways that Boardman has kept the price so attractive, and this is still pretty much the only £1,000 carbon bike readily available in your high street.

The Boardman Road Team Carbon is dead. Long Live the Boardman SLR 8.9 carbon!

Bikeradar July 2019

Boardman’s SLR 8.6 has an all-new and very neatly finished 7005 aluminium frame.

And if you’re only experience of riding a bike with drop bars is the notorious BSO – ‘bike-shaped object’ – bought for £100–£150 or so from somewhere other than a bike shop, then Boardman’s SLR 8.6 will be head and shoulders above it. And then some.

In fact, it has a lot of features far more familiar on bikes costing around twice the price, and this frameset could well be the basis for long-term upgrading.

Boardman’s SLR 8.6 has an all-new and very neatly finished 7005 aluminium frame. Unusually for such a modestly priced bike this features frame tubes with aerodynamic profiles – Boardman Bikes has invested heavily in its own Performance Centre complete with its own wind tunnel – and a full-carbon fork with mudguard mounts.

The up-to-date dropped seat stays, with their pronounced keyhole profile, should add rear-end comfort and their rack mounts factor in a little more versatility too.

The componentry is pretty much what you’d expect for the money, with Shimano’s 8-speed Claris levers, derailleurs and cassette accompanied by an FSA Tempo compact chainset and the same company’s deep-drop R315 levers. This is very similar to the kit found on comparably priced road bikes from Trek, Giant and Genesis, for example.

The top-tube is on the shorter side, the head tube slightly taller than average, putting it smack-bang into endurance territory The Claris setup works well, though I’d have still preferred a lower gear than that offered by the 28t sprocket.

The 34×32 bottom gear is certainly lower than would have been standard a few years ago and will get you up most climbs you’re likely to come across, but on steeper hills into double digit gradients you will find yourself out of the saddle and working hard. Shimano does offer an 8-speed 11-30 and 11-32 cassette which would ease climbs.

The dual-pivot Tektro brakes, again typical at the price, are okay but you’d improve stopping power by swapping the non-cartridge blocks for cartridge models when they reach the end of their life.

Apart from the frame, Boardman has made a few other welcome changes over this bike’s predecessors. The new Boardman-branded wheels have a wider profile than the earlier Road Sport’s Mavic rims, which allows the Zaffiro tyres to make the most of their 25mm width.

Boardman has also – finally – dispensed with the oversize 31.6mm diameter seatpost. Hurrah! Combined with the more compact frame and those dropped, shaped stays this means more comfort, without compromising performance. Should you want to upgrade later, say to a carbon seatpost, you’ll have more choice these days too.

One thing that has stayed largely the same, and which is very welcome, is the geometry.

The top-tube is on the shorter side, the head tube slightly taller than average, putting it smack-bang into endurance territory, without making it so extreme that you can’t get down reasonably low if you want to.

But the position is friendly to your lower back, which is ideal for commuting, fitness and leisure riding, while the mudguard clearance makes it a more-than-decent trainer too, or you can fit 28mm tyres for a little extra plushness.

Great to see tubeless-ready rims here too, another rare sight on bikes around the £500 mark. More familiar are the external cable routing and square-tapered bottom bracket. Both are tried-and-trusted features, and though not cutting edge, make life easier for the spanner-wielding home mechanic.

The cabling didn’t seem to have any negative impacts on the gearing, with front and rear shifting consistently accurate, though without quite the smoothness of Shimano’s more expensive groupsets.

The own-brand stem, bar and saddle are all good for the money and the bar end plugs have expanding wedges rather than just being banged in, another nice little feature. They also all contribute to an attractive, albeit slightly muted, overall look.

Boardman Bikes has been one of the market leaders for entry-level road bikes in the UK over the last decade and the company’s SLR range, launched in 2018, looks likely to further that reputation.

The SLR 8.6’s ride is great in city and country, on the flats and over hills — though I’d have liked a slightly lower bailout gear — and the price is very competitive for a first ‘serious’ road bike for leisure, fitness riding and more. Fancy a challenging sportive? Or your first 100-miler? This’ll do you proud for both.

Rack and mudguard mounts pile on the practicality, the all-carbon fork is very pleasing to see and the aero-profiled tubes don’t detract from the handling. The tubeless-ready rims add future-proofing, the all-round ride is excellent, and comfort is very good.

There are four men’s models and it’s good to see three women’s models with pretty much identical geometry. These have narrower bars, female-specific saddles and… pink highlights on the rims and beneath the down tube.

“A lot of bike for not that much money, Boardman’s SLR 8.6 is one of the best budget bikes around - 4/5”

Bikeradar May 2019

The Tiagra of Boardman manages an extra gear and the 48/32 FSA chainst gives a lower top gear and smaller jumps along the cassette, but the same climbing-friendly one-to-one ratio bottom gear.

A little slower that a road bike on tarmac but grips on gravel that to the Schwalbe tyres in a bounce-absorbing 38mm width and tubeless-ready rims. The handlebar's flared drops deliver control on tough surfaces.

The 31.6mm seatpost adds firmness through the saddle and the bar narrows quickly from the stem. Both minor issues on what is another competitively priced bike from Boardman

Cycling Plus Magazine November 2019

ADV stands for adventure, and this is exactly what Boardman has aimed the 8.8 at, a little bit of everything. As Boardman points out, we don't have thousands of miles of unsurfaced gravel roads so the company hasn't gone down that route specifically, instead of taking the fast-rolling features of a road bike with slightly more forgiving geometry for multi-terrain use. Compared with its SLR Endurance Disc model, for instance, the ADV has a much more relaxed head angle at 70.5 degrees compared to 73 degrees, and a slightly bigger bottom bracket drop of 70mm to lower the centre of gravity and aid stability.

The slacker front end means the ADV 8.8 never feels twitchy on loose surfaces, with similar steering and handling off-road to the SLR Endurance on tarmac, which is confidence-inspiring, especially if you dart between the two terrains mid-ride. On the road the ADV loses some of its steering sharpness but it never really feels ponderous through the bends. If you commute in all weathers this slower steering benefits in dodgy weather conditions like heavy rain or greasy, salt-covered winter roads. With a tapered head tube up front and full carbon fork, stiffness is impressive which also helps in the bends.

The gravel tracks I have near me are mainly wide and flowing, covering hundreds of miles as they criss-cross Salisbury Plain, and the Boardman really was fun to ride in this type of surroundings. It was being tested at the same time as the Canyon Grail, which is a much faster, more aggressive gravel machine, but I never thought of the Boardman as the softer option; a more relaxed ride maybe, but never dull.

Fast, rocky descents took a little more concentration to get the perfect line, and away from the Plain where the gravel tracks and twisty hardpack trails are a little more technical a more methodical and calculated approach was required, but ride the ADV 8.8 in isolation and you'll find it a fun and solid performer. As standard, the Boardman comes with Schwalbe's G-One Allround tyres and they are very good, both on and off-road. If you are going to spend a lot of time on the tarmac, though, as a commuter for instance, then a switch to some slicks will make for a better ride. I tried the 8.8 with both a set of 28mm road tyres I had knocking about and the 30mm-wide inverse treaded Ritchey Alpine JBs, and that really made for a fun cruising machine for the likes of commuting or day trips. The bike rolls well, so you can cover some decent distance, and its all-in weight of 10.57kg never really feels like a hindrance under acceleration or when climbing. Boardman has specced a 48/32t chainset option plus an 11-32t cassette so you have plenty of low gears to get you up the steep stuff anyway.

Like a lot of other bikes at this price point, the ADV 8.8 is fitted with a set of mechanical TRP Spyre-C brake callipers and while they are one of the better ones, braking performance can be... how can I put it?... challenging. You really need to pull them on hard if you need to stop from speed and there can be a few heart-stopping moments if you aren't planning ahead. There isn't a huge amount of feel or modulation and in the dry, you aren't really benefiting over a good set of dual pivot rim brakes, though you are obviously reaping the benefits in the wet. You're also experiencing less wheel wear if you ride and commute year-round: it's much cheaper to replace a rotor than a wheel rim.

Boardman has created the frame from 7005 aluminium alloy and it looks and feels to be well made, with a smooth finish to the welds and a tough paintjob. The graphics look pretty cool, too, to my mind making the 8.8 look a more expensive bike than it actually is. As I mentioned above, the head tube is tapered, which is standard fare these days but still good to see at the lower end of the market. It goes from 1 1/8in at the top to 1 1/2in at the bottom for maximum stiffness under braking and steering. It also allows for a larger crown diameter on the full carbon fork fitted to complete the package. All the tubing is on the larger side when it comes to diameters, although very few of them are actually round. It offers a firm ride, but like a lot of alloy bikes these days, it isn't harsh. The top tube tapers down as it gets near to the seatpost for added comfort, and the larger diameter seat tube (it takes a 31.6mm seatpost) paired with the down tube and chunky chainstays work in the opposite direction, to create a stiff bottom end for power transfer. Those who aren't fans of creaks will be glad to see that Boardman has gone down the threaded bottom bracket route.

One thing we have seen trickling down through the price range is the adoption of thru-axles front and rear, but Boardman has stuck with traditional quick releases here for both the rear dropouts and the fork. Thru-axles, if you don't know, are tubes that pass through the frame and fork one side and are screwed into a threaded part on the opposing side, locking them into the bike. It adds a level of security over QR skewers, as in the wheels can't drop out even if the thru-axle was to loosen, plus there are some benefits at the fork as it helps resist twisting forces under braking on account of the rotor only being attached to one side of the wheel. Quick releases aren't redundant, though, and they worked fine throughout the test period, especially as the brakes here don't have the amount of power that a hydraulic setup has. The frame and fork are set up for flat mount callipers for a smoother look than post mount options.

I mentioned earlier about using the ADV 8.8 for commuting, and to make this more pleasurable it comes with a full complement of mounting eyes for mudguards and a rear pannier rack. You also get two sets of bottle cage mounts. It's getting quite rare to see a frame that still has external cable routing but the 8.8 does use various guides to keep everything looking neat and tidy as it passes underneath the down tube.

Speccing Schwalbe's awesome G-Ones as standard is a bit of a masterstroke by Boardman, as they are great all-rounders perfect for the 'bit of everything' style of the ADV. They are fast on the road and grippy too, and take most things in their stride away from it; they're especially suited to hardpacked gravel and firm, dry forest trails. The trade-off is that they can be a little fragile, which I have found through testing them on various other bikes, but I had no issues here. Boardman provides its own wheelset, made up of ADV tubeless ready rims mated to Formula hubs. It's not a massively exciting package but it works well and the wheels feel very solid, taking plenty of abuse on the trails. Both the front and rear use 32 spokes set up in a two-cross pattern for strength. The bearings feel smooth and the pick-up from the freehub pawls is quick enough so I'd be happy to leave these fitted to the ADV without worrying about an upgrade – not something I often say when it comes to bikes below a grand.

Shimano provides the majority of the drivetrain by way of its 9-speed Sora groupset. It's great kit and good to see here as the shifting is positive and the gear/brake STI levers are a joy to use. As they mimic the design of the 105 5800 shifters and those of the next level up Tiagra model, there is very little to separate them other than the fact that those two get an extra sprocket or two. The cassette we have here ranges from 11 to 32 teeth (11-12-14-16-18-21-24-28-32), which as you can see has pretty close jumps at the bottom of the sprockets but they get larger towards the bigger ones. A jump of four teeth is quite noticeable but as they are predominantly for the bailout gears, I could live with it. FSA has supplied the chainset, primarily because Shimano doesn't offer a 48/32t chainset option in Sora. The FSA shifts across chainrings fine, and even though it looks a little dated with its cartridge bottom bracket setup, there is no need to rush out and upgrade. TRP Spyre-C mechanical brakes are starting to become the norm on bikes of this price, but as I said above they aren't the most powerful, even when paired with the 160mm diameter rotors. I ride a lot of disc-equipped bikes and most of them have hydraulics so I probably notice the difference between them and the Spyres more so than someone coming from cable-operated rim brakes, but just don't be expecting anything amazing in terms of a performance upgrade. Unlike a lot of mechanical disc options, the Spyre-Cs do move both pads onto the rotor so you get equal pressure applied. A lot of others on the market have just the one side that moves, pushing the rotor across to the stationary pad, so the Spyres do have a benefit there.

The rest of the finishing kit comes from Boardman's own box of bits. The aluminium alloy stem does the job, and like most adventure bikes you get a shorter length fitted than you would to the equivalent road machine: just 80mm here on the ADV 8.8. I'm a big fan of a flared handlebar on bikes designed for off-road use, as it gives a bit more stability when you are flying along in the drops. At the hoods it measures 440mm across but that increases by quite a bit by the time you get to the bottom. The bar is again an alloy offering but it is stiff enough for hauling up hills or when you load it up when cornering hard or braking. On all its bikes, Boardman seems to favour a 31.6mm seatpost over a narrower 27.2mm option. It is a minimal difference but going for the smaller option promotes a little more flex for comfort, especially if you swap out the standard alloy one for a carbon fibre post.

One thing that I wasn't totally enamoured with was the Boardman Road by Velo saddle; I just didn't really get on with the shape or its firmness. It's a personal thing, though, and swapping to a trusted favourite isn't a major hassle.

We've had quite a few of this style of bike in lately and at first glance the ADV 8.8 is one of the cheapest at £750, and it comes in a women's version too. If you want hydraulic braking there is an 8.9 model with 10-speed Tiagra hydraulic shifters, mechs and an upgraded FSA chainset for £1,000. The closest in price to the 8.8 is Raleigh's Mustang Sport, a similar beast with an alloy frame and carbon fork, but it only gets 8-speed Claris and it weighs 11.38kg compared to the Boardman's 10.57kg. A bike that I really enjoyed riding was the Kona Rove DL, which comes with a very similar setup for its £899 but it does get a Sora chainset. It has an aluminium fork instead of carbon and weighs a heady 12.17kg, although as I said in my review, it never felt heavy when being ridden.Then there is the Bianchi Via Nirone All Road – not quite as off-road inspired as the Boardman, and it costs £1,000 for very similar kit and weight.

On paper, it's hard to discount the ADV 8.8. It's relatively light against the opposition, and quite a bit cheaper. In the real world that doesn't change either: it's a fun bike to ride, has loads of versatility and really is a bargain.

Boardman's adventure bike has an impressive ride on and off the road, at a very competitive price

It also has a geometry that’s exactly right for fast road riding of virtually any denomination, be that racing or longer-distance events - Read the full Cycling Weekly review here -  Cycling Weekly SLR 9.2

Boardman has always been a brand that upsets the apple cart with a range of technically advanced designs that are also very well priced. The latest generation of bike from Boardman uses knowledge learned from previous SLR designs, as well as the current cutting-edge thinking from the biggest brands – all wrapped up in a package that, while it is the cheapest on test, is not the cheapest equipped.

The C10 SLR frameset used here blends a mix of modulus fibres. The stiffest carbon is reserved for the oversize bottom bracket and head-tube to aid with power transfer and handling. The chassis has a purposeful look to it, blending a Kammtail-shaped down-tube and seat-tube like the Tifosi, Ribble and Dolan. A Kammtail shape is a tube with a truncated airfoil; its shape ‘cheats’ the air into believing that the tail is still there (which is very aerodynamic) so it acts in a controlled manner and doesn’t create a disruptive ‘wake’ like a round tube would, which means more aero drag. These aero tubes are in contrast with chunky, squared tapered chainstays and a square profile top-tube.

The fork is wide-legged but very slender in profile and this, along with the dramatically dropped seat stays, gives the SLR a bit of a BMC air about it. With a claimed weight of just 900g for the frame, the C10 SLR is competitively light. Boardman should be congratulated for including so much tech at the price, but we congratulate them more for taking all of this CFD-derived aero trickery and smart, carbon consideration, yet still thinking about the end-user. You see, the SLR has a smart trick up its sleeve: hidden mudguard mounts both front and rear. Chris hasn’t forgotten the pain of being a cyclist in the British winter.

For the money, the 9.2 is extremely well equipped. When you look at bikes around the two grand mark, it’s pretty much Shimano 105 across the board. On the 9.2, however, you get full-fat, unadulterated Ultegra – and that even includes the premium Ice Tech disc rotors (in our preferred 160mm front and 140mm rear combination). Add in that a classy Fizik Antares saddle, Vittoria Rubino Pro 28c tyres and some decent own-brand wheels in the form of the SLR Elite 5’s; both rolled smoothly and felt light throughout our testing and didn’t give me a moment of drama. I don’t doubt the sub 1700g claimed raw weigh for these hoops as the SLR tips the scales at an impressively light (for the money) 8.45kg on my large test bike, making it the second lightest bike on test.

On the road, the SLR has plenty of character. The stack is low (584mm) and the reach in long (391mm). With proven racy angles of parallel 73 degrees and a short wheelbase of just 6mm over the meter, it’s a sharp, nimble companion. Get out of the saddle and sprint, and the SLR responds with a rigid, unforgiving response with n side-to-side flex when you’re really hammering. That also proves itself when you start to climb, sitting in and spinning on the well-chosen gearing (50/34, 11-30) feels positive, but get out of the saddle to up your pace and cadence and the SLR responds with real vigour.

Like most of its rivals here (bar the smooth steel Genesis), the SLR is a firm ride. Over broken surfaces, it can be a little ‘choppy’, but here Boardman has been clever in speccing 28c tyres, which you can run race firm and get the benefit of low rolling resistance. When the road surface remains rough, you can drop the Psi a little and enjoy plenty more comfort. I do have a few niggles. The chunky box section chainstays, which are asymmetric, meant that I occasionally scrubbed the heel of my shoe, slightly polishing the chainstay finish. I found the alloy bar a little firm and slim with the nicely sticky rubbery bar tape a touch on the thin side. But these are very minor niggles with what is a good-value bike at the performance end of the endurance spectrum.

“Boardman should be congratulated for including so much tech at this price” “Boardman’s reputation for value and performance continues.” - It’s quick to turn and accelerate, and it doesn’t beat you up over big distances… and it’s good value.

“It’s been a struggle to pick a champ in this test. But needs must, and a winner has to be chosen so the keeper of the gong this issue is Boardman’s SLR 9.2 Disc. It balances everything this tester like about a bike: it’s quick to turn and accelerate, and it doesn’t beat you up over big distances and, most importantly, it’s damn good value to boot.

In a world of tech-laden bikes from the new world that puts Europe’s heritage in racing in the background, it’s easy to forget the here in the UK we still have a buzzing bike scene. What’s most encouraging, however, is just how good this collection of British bikes is. In the tester’s humble opinion, these five are good enough to take on bikes from the biggest brands the world over; and in these uncertain times, that’s a real positive.

Cycling Plus Magazine August 2019

The year was 1992. A young man from the Wirral threw his leg over what appeared to be a space-age carbon bicycle, made by a well-known car brand, and promptly won the Individual Pursuit on the track at the Barcelona Olympics.

At the time, the nation was so thankful for a gold medal (Britain managed a meagre five golds at Barcelona, compared to 27 at Rio in 2016) that most people missed the true significance of the moment. Chris Boardman had not only made himself a household name overnight, but his approach to training and aerodynamic testing in the wind-tunnel had arguably laid down the blueprint for Britain’s dominance on the track and road in the modern era, and the subsequent boom in interest in cycling in the UK. So thank you, Chris.

Boardman – the brand, not the man – now has its own wind-tunnel facility, recently opened to the public in Evesham, Worcestershire. It’s something that product manager Matt Dowler tells me has been instrumental in the final developmental stages and validation of its latest range of top-end road bikes: the 9 Series SLR.

That said, the man himself is still very much involved with the design and testing. ‘We’d be foolish not to make use of his experience and knowledge,’ says Dowler. ‘He steers a lot of the aero testing we do, and he still signs off on anything with his name on.’

This is the most significant overhaul the SLR has undergone since it joined the range in 2012. Seven years on, Boardman felt aerodynamic performance was the area in whIch the previous SLR could be improved most.

‘We were happy with where the previous model was with regards to its stiffness and weight, and we’d always received such positive feedback about its handling and ride feel, so the goal for the new 9 Series SLR was to try to optimise it aerodynamically without affecting any of its good traits,’ Dowler says.

The SLR acronym rather unimaginatively stands for ‘super light road’, but thankfully it was immediately obvious that a little more creativity had gone into the frame design, in particular the tube profiles, when the 9.8 SLR Disc first arrived at the Cyclist office.

‘Mostly we’ve used truncated aerofoil profiles,’ Dowler says. ‘They’re perhaps a little wider than what you’d go for in an out-and-out aero frame, but this was to maintain the stiffness and rigidity we wanted. The square section top tube carries load well with almost no torsional twisting, so that really comes through in the stiffness and responsiveness of the front end.’

I would agree with Dowler. The SLR 9.8 Disc had a sprightliness about it, the lightweight chassis feeling solid as I stomped hard on the pedals up a steep climb I frequently use as a benchmark, coupled with a direct steering feel as I pushed the tyres to the point of scrubbing through sweeping bends on descents.

Speed-wise, I can’t say for certain how accurate Boardman’s claim of a 10 watt saving at 40kmh (versus the old SLR) is, but what I can say is rattling along at above 40kmh didn’t feel overly arduous. Did I say rattling? Well, yes. What the SLR 9.8 Disc delivers in terms of pace is not entirely matched by what it delivers in the comfort stakes.

It deals well with bigger blows – a pothole catching you off-guard, for example – and in these instances there’s a real sense of the impact being deadened quickly. However it’s less adept at absorbing high-frequency buzz. Unfortunately I experience this a lot where I ride, as most of my local lanes have been given that nasty chipseal surface treatment that makes roads feel like riding on a tiny rumble strip. I frequently found my feet taking the brunt of this on the SLR 9.8 Disc, with occasional pins and needles after long stretches of poor road surface.

‘The squarer tube profiles we use to be fast aerodynamically do have a slight compromise in their ability to deal with higher-frequency vibration,’ admits Dowler when I feed back my findings. ‘But now with 28mm tyres, and assuming they will be run at lower pressures, we can design a bit around that trend. We don’t need to go after every little bit of vibration.

‘Also, the SLR is not trying to be a Trek Domane or a Specialized Roubaix. We haven’t engineered in any specific shock damping solutions; it’s more about bridging the gap between that “endurance” style of bike and a thoroughbred racer.’

The key differences keeping it out of the latter camp are a slightly shorter reach and slightly higher stack than what might be considered traditional race geometry. Otherwise, I would agree that the SLR 9.8 Disc does indeed slot into the territory he suggests – not a cushy ride, nor an eyeballs-out racer, but a well balanced and fast all-rounder.

I can’t wrap up this review without mentioning the superb value this bike offers. The spec sheet reads like a wishlist of top-drawer components: Sram’s wireless shifting eTap hydraulic disc brake groupset paired with Zipp 202 Firecrest clincher disc wheels (that would comfortably set you back over £2k alone), and with a classy Zipp Service Course finishing kit, Fizik Antares R3 saddle and top-of-the-line Vittoria Corsa G+ tyres, it would be practically impossible to find areas to upgrade.

What’s more, during the time I was testing the bike, Boardman took the decision to reduce the RRP from its original price of £5,900 to £4,999, a drop of over £900. It’s hard to fathom how you get all this for under five grand.

With the SLR 9.8 Disc leant up outside a café after a group ride, I overheard someone scoffing at the Boardman, describing it as ‘looking like a poor man’s [Specialized] Tarmac’. But to that person and all the other brand snobs out there, I would say there is nothing ‘poor’ about this bike. Get over your preconceptions and you can book a few cycling holidays abroad with the nearly £5k you’ll save over the equivalent-spec Tarmac

The good people at Boardman tell us that this bike ‘combines our most aerodynamically efficient road frame with Shimano’s Ultegra R8000 groupset and Vision Team Comp 35 wheels, making it equally at home on the open road, a tight crit circuit or powering out of transition after a rapid swim leg.’ A triathlon? Steady on…

First impression: There is absolutely no doubt in our minds within only 10 minutes of riding the Air 9.2 that it’s a punchy thing. Its gearing is spot-on for level roads early in our test loop, allowing rapid progress to be made out into the countryside, turning out-of-the-saddle accelerations to crest small rises almost a pleasurable experience.

On the road: We hear a lot about lateral stiffness and vertical compliance. Fifty per cent of the time, it’s marketing bumpf, but sometimes a bike comes along that exemplifies this approach to frame building. The carbon seat stays of the Boardman contribute to comfort at the rear end by adding a little flex to the set-up to nullify hits from the rough tarmac. The girder-like chainstays, however, give this bike proper race- or group training ride-winning potential. There is minimal delay between stamping on the 52-tooth big ring and the delivery of power at the rear wheel. The Vision wheelset plays its part in this arrangement to the best of its ability, but the thought of putting some carbon clinchers on the Air 9.2 make us very, very excitable. The gear ratios on offer reflect the racy nature of this bike, with a 52-11 supplying serious acceleration downhill. But that’s not at the expense of an easier life uphill. The stiff frameset, not one jot if you want to get out of the saddle on a climb, and the expected rub from the rear brake caliper just never materialised (its arms have a longer drop than an Ultegra unit, allowing wider rims and wider tyres). Factor in that the Air 9.2 is by far the lightest bike here, and you’ve got a bike that’s an accomplished all-day ride and a sharp tool.

Handling: If you can accept the fact that you’ll be leaning on the front brake a lot for your speed arrestment duties, the Boardman is as engaging as it gets – certainly for less than £2,000! The rear brake doesn’t have the stopping force of a standard set-up, but it’s certainly better than the weak bottom bracket-mounted stoppers of yesteryear. Pin that front caliper hard with a squeeze of the Ultegra lever, and the bike slows; aim it at the apex of a corner, and it tips in with confidence. The 72.5° head angle ensures it doesn’t flop into corners. Instead, what you get is a progressive sensation which promotes the utmost confidence in the Vittoria rubber beneath you. We ran these 25c tyres at 95psi, which provides more than enough feel, and an acceptable cushioning from the worst of the road surface. In all, the handling is better than you’d expect of a mid-range tyre/wheel, and would only improve with an upgrade in this department. That said, this is clearly the best bike straight out of the box, satisfying the urge for speed, cornering confidence, and even comfort. Even at the full retail price of £2,150 – £400 more than its current offer price – it would still shade the win.

Frameset: Boardman’s own Performance Centre – a one-stop shop for aerodynamic efficiency – is where the Air 9.2 was born. Consequently, its frame tube profiles maximise its ability to slice through the air. With a top tube very similar in shape to the Giant’s (although we’d wager Boardman actually pioneered this when the Evo version of the Air range was launched several years ago), while the downtube is the only one here to boast the profile of a very thin slice of bread! The seat tube curves around the rear wheel, contributing to a very squat wheelbase of 978mm on our size S model. While we’re blown away by the work that’s gone into the design of this bike, we were less than charmed by the rough and ready mouldings in the top tube where the cables enter the frame. The overall appearance of the Boardman frame is almost organic; all sloping lines, curving tubes and stays. It’s not the prettiest of bikes, but does that matter when it’s getting you where you need to be with the least fatigue and the biggest grin? Its 72.5° head angle and 74° seat angle are not only the exact same angles the makers claim them to be, but also an ideal set-up to facilitate aggressive riding in comfort when the need takes you.

Groupset: When you consider the price of this bike, it’s extremely gratifying to know you’re getting a full house of Shimano Ultegra gear. Well, with the exception of the rear brake, tucked behind the bottom bracket, out of the airflow, is a TRP caliper, which might not be the strongest stopper, but certainly isn’t creating any drag. Beyond this, you’re looking at a 52/36 Ultegra chainset, 11-28 cassett e, Ultegra front and rear mechs and a front brake also from Shimano’s almost-top-of-the-range mechanical groupset.

Finishing kit: While some manufacturers opt to festoon their bikes with alloy bits and bobs, mainly to keep the price down, Boardman has gone the extra mile. Although the 400mm handlebars and associated stem are from the company’s own range of alloy finishing kit, the seat post is a clever, aero-profiled carbon unit whose angle can be adjusted between 73° and 75°, depending on whether you’re competing in a time trial, triathlon, or simply putt ing in the miles. Whichever discipline you’re partaking in, the accompanying Fizik Antares saddle is an absolute belter.

Wheels: Vision’s alloy Team Comp 35 wheels are handbuilt, feature bladed aero spokes, and sealed bearings. We’ve a lot of time for these durable, dependable, though moderately hefty hoops. Swap them out for a lightweight carbon wheelset, and this bike would wallop everyone on the club run. The 25c tyres are Vittoria’s Rubino Pro G+. The ‘G’ means they contain graphene, a tough wonder ingredient now found in everything from trainer soles to body armour. Although we had no cause to test their grip in the wet (where they’re said to shine), the dry roads of our test loop presented no barrier to rapid cornering, while the rubber’s suppleness contributed greatly to overall comfort.

BikesETC 9.4/10 April 2019

Boardman’s new range of Fazua-powered e-bikes offer really good value for money, and my experience aboard the ADV8.9E has been very positive. You’re getting a lot of the performance of more expensive e-road bikes at a much lower price point. The Fazua system is good for mixed riding, and offers useful assistance and good range. It’s built into a bike that’s solid and enjoyable to ride.

Pros: Good quality Fazua motor with sensible 1x11 spec and a well-balanced ride.

Cons: You need the key to turn the bike on & on the heavy side for a Fazua bike.

“We've designed the ADV 8.9e to offer maximum versatility for UK riding adventures”, says Boardman. “Blending the speed of a road bike with a more relaxed position and off-road focussed geometry means this bike can turn its hand to almost anything”. That’s pretty consistent with my riding experience over the last week riding this bike on a range of surfaces.

The bike’s geometry is easy to get on with. The head tube is slackened and the chainstays lengthened compared to Boardman’s more road-focused bikes, and the bottom bracket is dropped slightly. Those tweaks combine to give the bike a slightly more stable ride on more mixed surfaces. When you’re on the tarmac, though, the bike doesn’t feel compromised: the position is aggressive enough to make a reasonably aerodynamic position a possibility if you’re riding above the assistance limit, or trying to stay with a group. The overall geometry is very similar to the Pinarello Nytro, and a bit more relaxed than the Ribble SLe. That fits with the sort of riding the bike is aimed at.

With its 38mm Schwalbe G-One Speed tyres, the ADV8.9E is easily capable of taking on some rougher surfaces right out of the box. I’ve thrown it at some of the less technical off-road routes around here – farm tracks and fire roads, predominantly – and it’s coped absolutely fine. The frame is quite stiff but there’s enough give in the tyres to smooth out some fairly uneven surfaces, and more room in the frame for bigger rubber if you want to go a bit further from the beaten track. A swap to some better-padded bar tape is one of the first upgrades you’ll want to consider if you’re spending much time off-road, because the stock tape is pretty ordinary.

If you find yourself looking at a steep climb, either on the tarmac or off it, then you can rely on the Boardman’s sensible gearing and useful motor. The Fazua Evation system is, along with ebikemotion’s X35 hub motor, one of two systems that make up the majority of the e-road market right now. It’s a mid-motor with a 250Wh battery, a stated torque of 60Nm and peak power of 400W. In reality it doesn’t feel as powerful as other motors with similar numbers – the Bosch Performance Line motor is the closest – but in Rocket mode (the highest of the three available) there’s plenty of power to tackle even loose off-road climbs. The G-One tyres don’t look aggressive but they’re surprisingly capable off-road, especially if it’s dry.

The ADV8.9E runs a SRAM Apex 1x11 drivetrain. It’s SRAM’s lowest-spec 11-speed road kit, but it works brilliantly. It’s not as light as the more expensive groupsets, and the shift isn’t quite as refined, but functionally it’s fine and is solidly built to take a bit of mixed-surface abuse. The 42T single chainring is paired with an 11-42T cassette; that means you don’t quite get the high gears you’d find on a road bike but you do get a 1:1 bottom gear for winching your way up the steep stuff. If you’re planning to spend more time off-road than on then you’d probably benefit from switching out the chainring for something a little bit smaller.

If you’re on tarmac then the Boardman is easy to wind up to well above the 25km/h assistance limit on the flat. It’s not the lightest e-road bike out there at 16kg (the lightest Ribble SLe is under 12kg), so it’s not quite as much fun when you’re trying to keep your pace up on rolling terrain, but it’s still easy enough to roll round without troubling the battery too much. The motor decouples from the pedals quite effectively when you’re not using it, and the assistance fades in a pretty natural manner as you approach 25km/h.

If you’re convinced you’re not going to need the motor for a ride with few steep bits then you can drop the motor/battery unit out and just leave the bottom bracket gearbox in place, which will save you about 3.5kg. I didn’t do that, though, and I’m not convinced that many people do. It doesn’t make enough difference to the handling of the bike, and you never know when the motor will come in handy. The extra weight in the middle of the frame, low down, makes the Boardman a confident descender. With masses of grip from the tyres, and assured braking from the hydraulic discs, you can really pin the descents.

The longest ride I completed on the ADV8.9e was a 50km loop with about 800m of climbing, mostly on road but with a few rough sections added in for good measure. That used six bars out of ten on the bike’s battery, which is a bit more than similar rides on lighter Fazua-powered bikes, but not hugely different. A reasonably hilly 100km is still within range if you’re careful, which is about what Boardman suggests it’ll manage in Breeze mode (the lowest assistance). The battery state is visible on Fazua’s bar-mounted remote, as is the assistance mode. The remote isn’t the best thing about the Fazua system but it works okay. You can connect the bike to Fazua’s smartphone app to get more detailed bike information, as well as routing and social functionality.

One thing to note with the Boardman is that the Fazua motor/battery unit locks in place. If the bike goes to sleep you need to turn it on from the battery, and you need to release the battery to do that; so if you don’t have the key with you and the bike goes into sleep mode, then you’re a bit stuck. Not that I’d be that daft of course, but even so the Fazua system stays on for a long time, meaning it’s not going to die on you at a café stop or anything.

For £2,700, you’re getting a lot of bike here. Okay it’s not cheap, but if you want an e-road bike with one of the two most commonly-specced motor systems then it’s a lot nearer the bottom than the top price-wise. I’d probably consider the middle of the market to be around the £4,000 mark, with some bikes well above that. Ribble’s SLe range starts at £2,499 for a 10-speed Shimano Tiagra model, and you’re getting a lighter bike with a carbon frame there, but it’s a more road-oriented machine.

If you’re looking for a multi-purpose bike for a bit of everything, but you want something a bit lighter than a full-fat mid-motor bike, then the ADV8.9E makes a lot of sense. It’s very versatile with full rack and mudguard mounts and it can take a big tyre, but it’s still nimble enough to ride as a road bike with your roadie mates - it really has a lot going for it.

You’re looking for a well-specced e-road bike for mixed-use

eBike Tips July 2019 - Full Review Here