Ok, so im thinking of taking the plunge to get something a bit more capable DH. according to the weights and adverts it climbs ok too.

Has anyone got a strive and is dissapointed with it. I realise there have been some technical issues with the linkages etc but thats a risk im willing to take. Im more concerned of buying it having not ridden it and deciding i hate it.

Im thinking AL8.

No personal experience of the bike but for what it’s worth, August MBUK has a review on the Strive AL 8.0.

They test it against a Saracen Ariel 161, Vitus Sommet 1 and a Nukeproof Mega AM Comp.

Not too sure how good their reviews are, but maybe worth a skeet.

Mates dad (57) has one and everyone agrees it’s a lovely bike. Seems a tad heavy to me, but not massively. He loves it!

i’ve got one and so far its been faultless apart from the crappy sun ringle hubs which need lots of looking after.
can blow through its travel a bit if your over about 12 stone but this is more a problem with the ctd shock than the bike, it’s easily fixed with a volume reducer.
i’ve used mine for everything from uplift days to 40 mile natural rides and i’ve never felt like i was on the wrong bike.

Had one for just over two years and love it. The spec then was a bit different, so the problems b45her had I’ve not had, but at 6’2″ I’ve found the large to be just right and the geometry sorted. I’ve done big and long mountain trips in it and the fact it can go up pretty well as well as being more fun on the way down has been great.

There’s a review in the new IMB e-mag thingy.

Are they keeping it 26 for 2014?

No idea. Most companies are keeping 160 options on the beefier range of bikes. Anyone near Cardiff have one in a medium I could look at and sit on (cheeky I know).

The wheels are the only poop looking component I agree. But the weight, and feedback I’ve read seem to make it the best all rounder.

I have a 2012 Strive, great spec and price. Rides very well, playing with volume reducing spacers at the rear (non-ctd shock) at the moment to get it how I want. Seems really sensitive to air pressure changes too.

Ride it everywhere- XC loops, DH at Aston Hill, taking it to the Alps next month. Best bike I’ve owned.

geologist – Member
Are they keeping it 26 for 2014?

Barel has been riding a 27.5″ prototype in the Enduro World Series so there could be a new one along shortly. Looks to have some kind of adjustable rocker linkage, since that’s the only bit that’s shrouded (literally) in secrecy.

Yup, I reckon the Strive will become 650b for 2014.

They are incredible value though – the AL 9.0 SL looks amazing

Looks nice – as a full bike it doesn’t really look like it needs anything changing. Usually if I contemplate buying a bike, I factor in personal stuff like wider bars / shorter stem / dropper post etc but Canyon seem to have got all that done. It definitely looks as though it’s been designed by people who actually ride, and money is spent in the right places.

The Canyon brand is definitely growing on me. I’ve always associated them with the other cut-price German brands like Cube / Ghost / Rose / YT Industries. I.e. perfectly functional bikes but hardly aspirational. But Canyon seem to be doing all the right things IMO. Their road bikes / frames get fantastic reviews too.

Chap was riding one on a club ride this Tuesday evening. 9 of us, and to be fair it was overkill for what we were doing and he wasn’t the quickest downhill (not the bikes fault I might add), but he was at the front for every climb. So that either tells us the bike climbs fine, or he climbs fine, probably a combination of both!

That picture looks like a horst linkage driven by a rocker (similar to the Nerve and many other brands), so they’re ditching the single pivot of the Strive in favour of a common design with the Nerve.

Worth waiting I reckon, even if it just means you get a heavily discounted 2013 model.

I’m with you on that niceandy. Be nice if the pound got stronger too. Aren’t the 2013 discounts on now. I’m sure they can’t discount like other brands as the margins are smaller.

If you look on the site they’ve sold out of most models – or had last time I looked

Good spot niceandy, interesting change. Having said that if it’s 650b then i’m out if and when I need a replacement.

Bit disappointed with the direction since I bought mine in 2012- some components have been improved but they switched to the 34 rather than 36 fox for 2013 and ditched the carbon seat stay.. if 2014 brings a better linkage but ropey lady-wheels then a shame I think.

I got a Strive just before Christmas (AL8) and I love it. The rear end is a bit linear and runs through the travel quite easily, I should probably look into resolving this but I’m too busy having fun on it to worry. I’ve had no problem with the pivots or anything to do with the frame though, oddly, both fork and shock (both fox) have had to be sent back to Mojo. The shock was knackered straight out of the box – which turned into a blessing as Mojo replaced it with a top of the line kashima job.
The bike is obviously built for coming down – and it’s bloody good at doing that – but I find it climbs really well, far better than my meta5 which tends to lift at the front with every pedal stroke on steep stuff. I don’t find the bikes weight is a problem or even notably heavy when compared to friends bikes of a similar type.
I’ve not had any problems with the hubs as mentioned above and living in the Borders I’ve been through as much mud and grit as anyone (sod’s law they’ll go on my next outing)
A friend also has a Strive from about 3 years ago and it’s been great for him and he’s the sort of rider who puts components through their paces.

My only issue has been with the uk branch not responding to phone calls but I think I’m right in saying they’ve got a new uk office and that this problem should now be history. I’d have no hesitation in recommending the bike. It makes me want to go out biking all the time, which about as good a compliment as a bike needs.

I have had my 9 SL a few weeks now and I’d say the points MBUK have raised about the frame and the way it rides, are spot on. The bike is fantastic spec for the money but like has been said above, the rear is very linear and blows though it’s travel with ease, due to a combination of the frame design and the large can CTD shock. At 16st I had to fit the largest volume reducer supplied in the Fox kit which has made the rear a lot more progressive from the mid stroke and cured the blowing through problem, at the expense of some small bump sensitivity, but not much.
The forks are also very linear and it is well known the 2013 34 CTD TALAS suffers from this, diving under braking is very noticeable. Fox have changed the internals design of this fork for 2014 and is apparently much improved. I’ve read on PB that a relatively inexpensive mod kit will be available to bring the 2013 fork up to 2014 spec but I’ve yet to confirm this with Mojo.
The bars are maybe a touch narrow for this type of bike, at 725mm, but I think this is down to personal preference. I have 685mm bars on my Giant Anthem so when I climb on the Strive, it feels like the bars are wide to me anyway. With the massive value for money spec the Strive offers, a change of bars isn’t going to be a financial killer.
For a 31lb bike, it climbs really well. I drop the fork travel on steep climbs especially if there are tight switchbacks and the bike handles beautifully. Downhill is limited by my lack of skill/ability, but I can say, the bike has given me much more confidence going down than I ever had before I bought it.
Knowing Canyon are about to start supplying the 2014 Strive with Float X rear shocks and the 2014 TALAS forks, I would say the OP should wait until seeing what the new spec and pricing is before taking the plunge. One thing is guaranteed though, you’ll be buying a lot of bike for your cash.
So far, I’ve had no tech issues with the linkages but having read on the web that some parts of the linkage had been known to loosen, I torqued everything up to spec before using the bike. Nothing was loose except the rear mech sheer bolt, which if I hadn’t checked could in time have cost me an XTR mech plus any other damage had it become mangled.

After 2 years of riding the Canyon Strive, it developed a crack on the down tube just above the bolt/screw for the bottle holder. Only noticed the crack after the ride when putting the bike on the car rack. No crash, no fall, but Canyon says that its not covered under their warranty as there was a slight buckling/dent at the crack area and offered to sell me a crash replacement at 1100 Euros plus US$307 for shipping.

I’ve heard of a handful cracking on the down tube weld to the shock mount. But I am surprised at the quibbling from Canyon and a replacement at that much £££ ain’t gonna rub with most people.

Specialized and Marin and others tend to resolve issues like this no questions. A mates ancient Marin fs died and was replaced with a slightly newer old stock frame.

Frankly Canyon’s after sales service is pathetic. We have 2 Canyon bikes in our family, these are the last 2 that we will be buying from them. Last year the Reverb Seat post on my new Strive gave out after less than 6 months of riding. After many email correspondences with Canyon, and getting no where with them, I sent the seat post to the local agent. They looked at the post and advised me that there was premature wear in the inner piston. They replaced the part and advised me to seek Canyon’s assistance with a warranty claim since the seat post came with the bike and unfortunately was not purchased locally. Canyon’s response to my subsequent email for assistance was that the repair was expensive…and silence after that. Great job!