At a posh art gallery in central London this week Boardman Bikes whipped the wraps of its 2011 range. Now in its fourth year, the bikes that carry the name of the former Olympic and world cycling champion Chris Boardman expand to cover 22 models in total, but most interesting to us a bigger push into the off-road sector.
The new range has been nearly two years in development and is split into two camps; the Elite and Performance Series. Nearly all the bikes in the range, which covers road bikes, cyclo-cross and mountain bikes, have been updated with new tubesets, tapered headtubes a common sight and some spec changes.
Elite Series
Designed for the ultimate in performance, the Elite Series boasts many changes over the previous bikes, with every part of the frame on the EM hardtail being tweaked and fettled.
Says Chris Boardman: “Every detail on the Elite range is there for increased performance. For example, the lightest, strongest and stiffest way from A to B is a straight line – which is why you won’t see a curved tube on a Boardman frame unless there is a performance reason for it. Every tube profile has been carefully developed inline with the specific requirements of the frame.
“Main tubes have been designed for the best combination of aerodynamics, stiffness and lightweight. Forks and seat stays have been designed to minimise turbulent airflow with a rotating wheel, chainstay design and manufacture is all about stiffness and strength. Component integration has also been embraced for further performance gains = superior machines within their class.”
The Elite series will be available in selected specialist stores late spring/early summer with a pre-order system in place shortly.
Performance Series
As well as building a reputation for performance products, as you would expect from a bike carrying the name of one of Britain’s finest ever cyclists, value for money has been a strong focus since the brand launched a few years ago. That continues with the Performance Series, where many of the developments found in the Elite models trickle down to the value offerings.
The Performance Series will be available on April 2 and will consist of five hardtails and two full suspension bikes. Highlights of the range include the all-new the Pro Carbon MTB featuring internal cable routing, tapered steerer, Rock Shox SID fork and SRAM X9 at £1,599. Bikes occupying the £500 to £1,000 price range have been reengineered too, with “an emphasis on attention-to-detail”.
“For this latest line-up, we’ve built upon the success to date and taken findings from R&D; re-engineering the range, adding excellent new models, utilising highly developed carbon and alloy frames as a strong basis across the platforms,” says Chris Boardman.
“The result is a comprehensive range of bicycles for 2011 – there’s a bike for everyone from the elite to the everyday rider. We’ve put every ounce of our passion for cycling into the range and I have complete faith in these bikes and I’m more than happy to let you be the ultimate judge.”
More info on selected models later today
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