Boardman Elite Cxr 94 Ultegra Di2 Mens Cyclocross Bike Review
Boardman Elite Endurance SLR 9.iv review
Di2 for less than the residue
GBP £ii,800.00 RRP | AUD $v,999.00 | USD $3,800.00
Published:
Boardman Elite Endurance SLR nine.iv review
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Robert Smith / Immediate Media
Robert Smith / Immediate Media
Robert Smith / Immediate Media
Robert Smith / Firsthand Media
The Elite Endurance SLR is Boardman'south take on a sportive bike, with the emphasis very much on the sport side of sportive.
- What is a sportive?
- Electronic or mechanical shifting, which do you adopt?
While 73-degree angles don't devious far from the norm, a 581mm stack height (vertical altitude between the centre of the bottom bracket and the head tube) and 394mm accomplish (horizontal distance between the centre of the lesser bracket and the head tube) on my large, 58cm equivalent, test bike, mean the SLR is lower than near endurance machines while maintaining a mid-length reach to the bar.
On the bike that translates to a lower, faster ride position, with the standard 100mm stem, without feeling stretched. The handling feels wonderfully balanced and the bike perfectly positioned underneath you. What is also immediately apparent is the lack of mass. With the SLR frame weighing 850g and the complete wheel but a touch over 7.5kg, the 9.4 is a low-cal ride for the money.
That becomes clear when the road rises; the agile handling and the lite weight of the SLR get in a formidable climber. The SLR5 wheels, at just over 1,500g a pair, compare favourably with wheelsets plant on similarly priced bikes.
Robert Smith / Firsthand Media
The modern, wide blend rims are built onto classy sealed cartridge bearing hubs, the same as those on Boardman'southward more expensive carbon wheels, using proper butted stainless steel spokes in a lightweight 20 forepart, 24 rear setup.
The wider alloy rim shapes the Vittoria Corsa CX graphene-infused clincher tyre brilliantly, making the most of what is 1 of the best clincher tyres around, providing excellent grip, suppleness and strength. Corsa CXs aren't cheap by any standards, then to see them as original equipment on a bike at this price is another feather in the SLR's cap.
Add in a nifty saddle from Prologo and a carbon seatpost, and the Boardman looks even better. Gene in Ultegra Di2 gearing with its slick, direct and wonderfully consistent shifts, plus Ultegra brakes working the alloy rims perfectly, and mechanically there is very trivial to mistake on the SLR. That includes the toll. A similar way and similarly equipped bike from Trek, Cannondale, Specialized or even online specialists such as Coulee, would be at least £500 more.
Robert Smith / Immediate Media
The sharpness of the SLR's handling, taking turns tight and making quick direction changes, is wonderfully addictive. I found myself looking for opportunities to snap the bike into activeness, slaloming between cat's optics and road paint. Any chance to flick the millimetre-over-a-metre wheelbase of the SLR into action was always a thrill.
The ride feel is firm and confidently flex-costless from side to side, simply is never hard or harsh. There's little in the way of fatiguing road vibration either, but y'all practise go a harder ride from the stiff blend bar than is ideal, which isn't helped past the rather soft, thin cream-backed bar tape. An upgrade to better quality record, or even changing to a carbon bar, would make the Boardman sensational rather than simply brilliant, and, for the money, that's not a bad identify to commencement.
Boardman Elite Endurance SLR nine.iv specs
- Weight: seven.55kg (L)
- Frame: Boardman C10 carbon
- Fork: Carbon, tapered steerer
- Gears: Shimano Ultegra Di2 fifty/34, 11-28
- Brakes: Shimano Ultegra
- Wheels: Boardman SLR Elite 5
- Stalk: Boardman Elite carbon
- Seatpost: Boardman Elite carbon
- Bar: Boardman SLR alloy
- Saddle: Prologo Nago Evo
- Tyres: 25mm Vittoria Corsa CX G+
Product Specifications
Product
| Name | Elite Endurance SLR nine.iv |
| Brand | Boardman |
| Brakes | Shimano Ultegra |
| Cassette | Shimano Ultegra eleven-28 |
| Cranks | Shimano Ultegra, 50/34 |
| Fork | Carbon, tapered steerer |
| Frame Material | Boardman C10 carbon |
| Front Derailleur | Shimano Ultegra Di2 |
| Front Tyre | 25mm Vittoria Corsa CX G+ |
| Handlebar | Boardman SLR alloy |
| Rear Derailleur | Shimano Ultegra Di2 |
| Rear Tyre | 25mm Vittoria Corsa CX Grand+ |
| Saddle | Prologo Nago Evo |
| Seatpost | Boardman Elite carbon |
| Shifters | Shimano Ultegra Di2 |
| Stalk | Boardman Aristocracy carbon |
| Wheelset | Boardman SLR Elite 5 |
Authors
Warren Rossiter is BikeRadar and Cycling Plus magazine's senior technical editor for road and gravel. Having been testing bikes for more xx years, Warren has an encyclopedic knowledge of road cycling and has been the mastermind behind our Route Bike of the Yr exam for more than a decade. He'southward besides a regular presenter on the BikeRadar Podcast and on BikeRadar's YouTube channel. In his time as a cycling announcer, Warren has written for Mountain Biking U.k., What Mount Bike, Urban Cyclist, Procycling, Cyclingnews, Full Bike, Full Mount Bike and T3. Over the years, Warren has written virtually thousands of bikes and tested more ii,500 – from upkeep route bikes to five-figure superbikes. He has covered all the major innovations in cycling this century, and reported from launches, trade shows and manufacture events in Europe, Asia, Commonwealth of australia, North American and Africa. While Warren loves fast route bikes and the latest gravel bikes, he as well believes electric bikes are the futurity of ship. You'll regularly find him commuting on an ebike and he longs for the mean solar day when anybody else follows suit. You will discover snaps of Warren's daily rides on the Instagram account of our sister publication, Cycling Plus (@cyclingplus).
Source: https://www.bikeradar.com/reviews/bikes/road-bikes/boardman-elite-endurance-slr-9-4-review/
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