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Boardman's new Urb and ASR commuter bikes now shipping out

The flat-bar Urb commuter plus the sturdy ASR steel winter steed first shown at the NEC Cycle Show can now be picked up from £699.99 and £849.99 respectively

Boardman first shown off the final prototypes of their new ASR steel winter road bike and Urb flat-bar commuter at the NEC Cycle Show back in September, and now both bikes are now shipping via Boardman's website and in store at Cycle Republic. The URB is presented as a classy commuter that can also zip around quickly, and the ASR is aimed at winter training and commuting alike through the grim depths of a British winter.

Boardman CXR 9.4 review

Boardman Urb 8.4.JPG

The URB has three disc-equipped bikes in its range, with the lowest specced 8.8 coming with a 1x Sram groupset for £699. The 8.9 features a Shimano hub gear system for £849, and the top-of-the-range 9.4 (shown above) features a belt drive for the ultimate in low maintenance and Shimano Alfine Di2 shifting with Hydro brakes, rounding off a serious spec for the £1,999 price tag.
The bike has minimal decals for a sleek and stylish look, with mounts for mudguards on all three URBs in the range to keep things clean.

There are two Boardman ASR (or 'all season road') bikes to choose from, with the one shown here the higher-specced version including Reynolds Steel tubes, a Shimano 105 groupset, hydraulic discs and a carbon fork with an RRP of £1,299. The ASR has reflective details on both this frame and the black ASR 8.8 (with a 4130 Cro-Mo steel frame and Shimano Sora groupset for £849) for some extra night-time visibility, and mudguards as standard. There's clearance for up to 32mm tyres and rack mounts for commuting duties, and the geometry is tailored to meet the needs of rough weather riders who want superior comfort in potentially slippery conditions - meaning a taller head tube, longer top tube and slacker head angle with a shorter stem for better stability.

Both of the new bikes are now avaailable in all specs. The URB has small, medium or large sizes, and the ASR is in sizes small through to XL. 

Arriving at road.cc in 2017 via 220 Triathlon Magazine, Jack dipped his toe in most jobs on the site and over at eBikeTips before being named the new editor of road.cc in 2020, much to his surprise. His cycling life began during his students days, when he cobbled together a few hundred quid off the back of a hard winter selling hats (long story) and bought his first road bike - a Trek 1.1 that was quickly relegated to winter steed, before it was sadly pinched a few years later. Creatively replacing it with a Trek 1.2, Jack mostly rides this bike around local cycle paths nowadays, but when he wants to get the racer out and be competitive his preferred events are time trials, sportives, triathlons and pogo sticking - the latter being another long story.  

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17 comments

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
2 likes

I can understand why you're grumpy...

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
3 likes

Are you a little annoyed?

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Simon E replied to alansmurphy | 6 years ago
0 likes
alansmurphy wrote:

Are you a little annoyed?

Yes, I am!

When my road bike broke I really fancied a Boardman CX but it was too big for a shortarse like me. The sizing on the ASR is even worse  2

Avatar
Simon E | 6 years ago
1 like

ASR sizing is odd, a Small supposedly fits 5'8" to 5'10". That's even worse for shorter people than the other models in the Boardman range. It's bloody size-ist, that's what it is!surprise

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1961BikiE | 6 years ago
0 likes

And rounding off with the top of the range 9.4 with a serious spec for the price. Am I being thick cos I can't see a price.

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ffc65 replied to 1961BikiE | 6 years ago
0 likes
1961BikiE wrote:

And rounding off with the top of the range 9.4 with a serious spec for the price. Am I being thick cos I can't see a price.

It's 2k.....the price is on the picture

Avatar
alan sherman | 6 years ago
3 likes

A couple of things that could be improved are the fork mudguard eyelets. Put them in the traditional place! Also put cable adjusters on the down tube. In line adjusters suck.

How about a triple tiagra build for 999? And and longboards as standard mudguard? Have a dynamo hub lighting set as an upgrade option too.

Makes genesis look really expensive.

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kil0ran | 6 years ago
2 likes

Fantastic looking bikes. Odd there's no Tiagra ASR at £999 in the range, perfect bike for that group. Having switched from 105 to Tiagra I can't tell the difference between the two.

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ashliejay | 6 years ago
2 likes

i might need to get the URB 9.4 and give it drop bars, as it looks pretty rad, and the orange certainly stands out, and make it my super commuter/light tourer.

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Beecho replied to ashliejay | 6 years ago
0 likes
ashliejay wrote:

i might need to get the URB 9.4 and give it drop bars

buy an orange road bike

http://road.cc/content/forum/68194-convert-flat-bars-drops

 

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the infamous grouse | 6 years ago
2 likes

the URB is crying out for a dyamo front hub and sensible LED lights.

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cyclisto | 6 years ago
2 likes

Subtle graphics are very very welcome. That belt driven commuter if it had drop bars it would be great, even if it had to lose Di and hydros.

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embattle | 6 years ago
0 likes

It does have a nice look to it.

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Canyon48 | 6 years ago
0 likes

That URB is incredible. I'd have one if I had a need for it.

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simonmb | 6 years ago
5 likes

Cracking collection.

Need to sort out the rear mudguard on that last bike. It'll keep the rider's arse dry, but do no favours to anyone behind him. Or her. 

Three words spring to mind:

Ship. Ha'porth. Tar.

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javi_polo replied to simonmb | 6 years ago
0 likes
Jack Sexty wrote:

The ASR has [...] a taller head tube, longer top tube and slacker head angle with a shorter stem for better stability.

I have been reviewing the geometry in Boardman's website and found that the stack-to-reach ratio is around 1.45/1.50 in all sizes. I kind of expected a more relaxed geometry from the press release.

Avatar
alansmurphy | 6 years ago
1 like

The frame profiles were right tasty!

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