BOARDMAN SLR9.2 DISC
What’s quick, nimble and doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket?
All five of our home-grown heroes this issue are great bikes. The Genesis is a love letter to the classic British clubman’s bike and its frameset and ride quality are simply brilliant. Sadly, it can’t match its rivals here for value – but then quality steel doesn’t come cheap.
The Tifosi Auriga is a happy marriage between Italian influence and British design, and it’s a very capable race bike that’s obviously been honed by professional racers, which makes it a seriously fun machine to ride hard.
British stalwart Dolan, with its DR1, blends the company’s stellar racing heritage and serious sportive chops into what proves to be a prime quality bike.
Ultimately, though, it’s Lancashire versus Merseyside for the podium in this test. Ribble’s Endurance SL R is a superb machine. It’s light, agile and a huge amount of fun to ride; what’s particularly impressive, though, is that it
seems that Ribble has managed to maintain its value-for-money reputation while adding some very clever technical engineering, and that’s no easy thing – just ask the likes of Canyon.
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 (and it’s by the smallest of margins) is Boardman’s SLR 9.2 disc. It balances everything this tester likes about a bike: it’s quick to turn and accelerate. 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 that 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 this 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.