Chris Sodding Boardman

[LEE]

"GO COMPARE...GO COMPARE...GO COMPARE...GO COMPARE....GO COMPARE"

Happy now?

You see, things could be worse.

Why get shirty about Boardman bikes?

I really don't see what the fuss is about.  It's ITV.  It's a commercial station.  It's an advert selling stuff.

Check out other adverts...News just in.....they are all spouting a load of bollocks.

Guess what....the actual teams in the TdF are ...News just in...ADVERTISING PRODUCTS AS WELL!!

The whole bloody thing is a 4 hour advertising session.

If it wasn't for Boardman bikes, Garmin, SKY TV, Moviestar and so on, there wouldn't be any Tour de France on TV.

Let's get real about advertising.

Buy a PVR and hit the "jump forward 3 minutes" button

[GruB]

I don't mind the ads, or the bikes.  It is that stupid phrase about the podium.

[citoyen]

Haven't you done things for your employer/business that have made you want to cringe?

Not on national TV.

Anyway they're a very small price to pay for live coverage of every stage and a reasonable length summary prog. every day.

Agreed. However, that's no excuse for the ads being so awful. Have you seen the brilliant Skoda ad on Eurosport? That's what they should be aiming for.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/cNunotJ14o8&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/cNunotJ14o8&rel=1</a>

d.

[Redlight]

I don't mind the ads, or the bikes.  It is that stupid phrase about the podium.

I think the "Born on Tour" one is worse - given that he never actually finished one

[citoyen]

I think the "Born on Tour" one is worse - given that he never actually finished one

To be fair, most of his DNFs were due to crashes/illness rather than being a quitter à la Cipollini. Also, he has hormonal problems, apparently, which means he was never able to recover quick enough to cope with the rigours of stage racing. That and the fact that he wasn't swimming in EPO, unlike most of his contemporaries.

He's often been criticised for his inability to climb, but it's all relative - like pretty much any pro, he would far outclass any of us mere mortals on the mountains.

d.

[Hot Flatus]

Racing isn't an activity, it's a state of mind


....therefore you can win an Audax 

[DrMekon]

Me and my 5 year old overtook a mamil on a boardman when testing our tandem. The other day, the advert came on, and he blurted out "Born on slow", which he now thinks is the funniest thing ever.

I'm sure they are fine bikes, but the colour scheme looks poundshop, and the association with halfords does them no favours. The cheesy ads are the icing on the cake.

[Hot Flatus]

<lbs gossip>

My lbs man told me that the carbon frames are/were so flexy that the bike changes gear if a heavy rider gets out of the saddle. Loads of warranty returns, he said.

[Rhys W]

<more lbs gossip>

My lbs guy is very sceptical regarding the composition of the carbon fibre that they're made of. They couldn't make them that cheap out of quality materials, the implication being that not all the fibres are carbon. Or possibly they are more resin than they should be.

[Biggsy]

Where are the frames made?  What is the price to Boardman Co of a carbon frame made in China?

[Mr Larrington]

Pat McQuaid reckons that there are people out there selling four thousand quid soot bikes with frames made in China for about $30.  No, I don't know why he mixed up the currencies either.  BikeBiz, however, reckons he's talking bollocks.  No change there then.

Light composite bikes made in China slammed by UCI execs | Bicycle Business | BikeBiz

[LittleWheelsandBig]

Read Alan Bush's comment in that link and you'll find that, for once, the UCI is making some sense.

[CyclistsAnonymous]

LBS gossip is usually just that. Frames snap, flex and bend regardless of material, carbon fibre is no different.

Go to the right place and you can find a frame for cheap. When I was looking at buying frames and complete bikes for CA in 05/06 I was astounded at the prices you could get complete bikes for let alone just a frame. $30/40 for a frame is not unrealistic but then I'm talking about steel and alu. I also remember a time a while back when a lot of guys were buying extremely cheap Ti frames (low 3 figures) direct from China. On top of that I also directed one of the old guard on ACF to a Taiwanese factory I was in touch with to get a full carbon frame/fork set and he picked it up for about £200. If that was you get in touch because I can't remember who it was.

Bottom line is if you know where to look you can get a frame/fork/full bike for pennies. Made in China isn't a marker of cheapness anymore but if you really want a quality item from a production line you still can't beat Taiwan. As Brant from On One once told me when I was discussing China vs Taiwan bikes; You can't polish a turd.

I also got much the same line from Steve Fenton of Pro-Lite. I can see things changing over the next few years where more and more people will buy frames direct from the manufacturers in the FE and cut out the middle men. While that might save the consumer some cash I don't think it'd do the industry much good.

[mrcharly-YHT]

As Brant from On One once told me when I was discussing China vs Taiwan bikes; You can't polish a turd.

On-One? That would be the company who shipped a new frame to a forum member. Rusty

Yeah, he's right - On-One can't polish anything.

[clarion]

That'll be Brant formerly of On-One, now of Ragley, I believe.

[Hot Flatus]

In the case of this lbs gossip, it probably wasn't just gossip given that the lbs in question has a strong relationship with the distributor of Merida bikes.

And who makes/owns Boardman?

[Hot Flatus]

As Brant from On One once told me when I was discussing China vs Taiwan bikes; You can't polish a turd.

On-One? That would be the company who shipped a new frame to a forum member. Rusty

Yeah, he's right - On-One can't polish anything.

Would that be the On one that sold me a bike that couldn't take a back wheel, a track chainset that turned out not to be,and  a bike that had a mind of it's own?

I wouldn't pay too much attention to anything they have to say regarding quality

[spesh]

Pat McQuaid reckons that there are people out there selling four thousand quid soot bikes with frames made in China for about $30.  No, I don't know why he mixed up the currencies either.  BikeBiz, however, reckons he's talking bollocks.  No change there then.

Light composite bikes made in China slammed by UCI execs | Bicycle Business | BikeBiz

Hmmm... [my bold]

At last week's homologation presentation to journalists at the HQ of the Union Cycliste Internationale in Aigle, Switzerland, the UCI president Pat McQuaid was critical of lightweight pro-level frames made in China.

"Bikes have become too light. They're hopping all over the place; they jump when they hit potholes or whatever. They don't have the same reactions as when we had the old steel bikes. If we continue to reduce the weight [of bikes, these problems] will increase.

UCI Luddism strikes again? The blazer brigade have been attempting to crack down on innovative frame designs since the 1990s, ostensibly on the grounds that racing cyclists from poorer nations were being priced out of access to decent machinery. Makes you wonder if McDuff is manufacturing "soot bike fear" as a pretext to impose a "UCI spec" steel-framed bike to be used for elite-level races. 

[CyclistsAnonymous]

Couldn't comment on any of the above issues with On One as I've never bought from them or dealt with them as a customer. My dealings with Brant were purely professional regarding frame factories and prices. There are plenty of similar horror stories out there involving other brands, big and small and I wouldn't dismiss years of experience on that basis.

[Mr Larrington]

UCI Luddism strikes again? The blazer brigade have been attempting to crack down on innovative frame designs since the 1990 1930s, ostensibly on the grounds that racing cyclists from poorer nations were being priced out of access to decent machinery.

FTFY

Also, given that the weight of a UCI-legal soot bike is negligible compared with the weight of a UCI-legal rider, all this hopping about stuff sounds suspiciously close to being Clearly Bollocks.

[citoyen]

Maybe they should introduce a handicapping system like in horse racing, based on the combined weight of rider and bike - make the lighter riders carry ballast.

d.

[Chris S]

The PVR is your friend.  Record the coverage and FF through the blipverts.

MythTV - it records the programme and then removes the Ads 

[spesh]

Maybe they should introduce a handicapping system like in horse racing, based on the combined weight of rider and bike - make the lighter riders carry ballast.

d.

In order to get a uniform rider+bike weight throughout the peloton, you'd have to stick a ridiculous amount of ballast on the smallest riders' bikes, and that would unfairly penalise them.

Check out the size difference between Cavendish and Greipel for example, it just wouldn't work...

[citoyen]

Check out the size difference between Cavendish and Greipel for example, it just wouldn't work...

Damn, you're right. I was thinking that such a system might benefit the likes of Wiggo, but hadn't considered that it would adversely affect Cav.

d.

[Auntie Helen]

Yesterday Boardman said, with reference to Cav's interview where he said he was afraid of letting the HTC guys down, "I was always a miserable bugger" for the same reason. That slightly warmed me to him.