Boardman Pro Carbon Race Prepared £3299

For weeks up ‘til now, the editor had been promising me a Boardman Pro Race Prepared for test and never has a bike been more eagerly awaited.

When it did finally arrive, last Friday at 5pm, it left me with just enough time to make what small personal adjustments you can to the bike [like flipping the Ritchey WCS Carbon stem? Ed.] before riding out to a local 10 mile TT.

With a fair old wind blowing, the deep-rimmed Zipp 404 clincher wheels and the bike’s race geometry helped produce some initial nervous moments, something that disappeared completely later on. Next sensation that had me momentarily baffled was the ease in which I was churning along in a relatively high gear; had Boardman specified a compact chainset? No, the beautifully crafted SRAM chainrings clearly stated 53/39.

“10 seconds; five, four, three, two, one – go”. Heaving myself off the start line, the bike lurched from side to side. Never have I ridden something that reacts so instantly to physical input. Every ounce of force is transmitted to the drive train, nothing is wasted, the bike weighs so little and the aerodynamics are so good that headwinds and crosswinds appear to have no effect. The Pro Carbon Race Prepared is so utterly rigid, so clean through the air and so well balanced that, coupled with the apparent lack of any mechanical or rolling resistance, the whole sensation is akin to riding on rollers.

Having knocked 1’15” off my time from the previous week, I had to have more and the ride home took on the form of a solo road race effort. How did mere pieces of formed carbon manage to extract such energy without giving me any indication that I was nearing my limit? Arriving home, my legs went to jelly and next morning I could hardly walk. This bike is utterly awesome!