I've got a canyon strive and tbh it's more bike than I need most of the time, but when I use it for DH it really is as good as a DH bike for the trails I ride. I've never used it's full potential. It climbs pretty well in xc mode but sometimes it really flattens the ride out.
What I want to know is, is there much difference between a decent trail bike and a decent enduro bike in terms of climbing ability, pop, liveliness? And do they really sacrifice much on the downs between them?
The reason I'm asking is that I'm tempted to get a new spectral, but feel there might be too much of a cross over in terms of ability to really justify a change. Can only really keep one.
The new Spectral is a pretty beefed up trail bike from what I have read. Not sure how poppy it is but I would guess it can do a lot of what the strive can do.
I think so. A lot of the enduro bikes out atm are designed to go fast. Trail bikes are a bit more fun imo.
The spectral is a really fun bike, very lively and poppy - for 2019 they've increased the travel to 150mm rear/160mm front so another 10mm at each end (apart from the smaller sizes). Presumably to differentiate it from the new Nueron which is 130mm travel. I'd expect a new strive to be a 170/180mm travel (29er) enduro weapon.
You can make your strive more poppy/lively fairly easily with nothing more than suspension and tyre set-up. The climbing is down to you. a [s]200g lighter[/s] 10mm shorter travel bike with a similar suspension design from the same manufacturer isn't going to make all that much difference TBH
[EDIT - turns out the AL spectral 5.0 is actually 200g heavier than the Al strive 5.0. if Canyon's weights are to be believed]
Just ride faster and harder.
I had a strive before my nomad. Can make it a hell of a lot of fun if you try... Depends where you ride as well.
Long lead time on the Spectral AL5. Tempting price though!
I wouldn't bother changing, the Strive pedals pretty well anyway - and can't you use the shapeshifter to knock it down to 130mm travel?
Maybe you need a mid-travel 29er instead though? They make most sense as trail bikes IMO.
As someone with a 130mm 29er trail bike & a big 160mm 29er, they do ride very differently.
There is a fairly sizable weight difference between the two for starters, which is noticeable on the climbs, that said the position on the bigger bike is more comfortable for climbing (it's a lot more progressive geo). In terms of liveliness/pop, yes I can notice a big difference between the two of them - that's partly down to setup but also the sheer difference in size of the two bikes. regarding DH performance, I could say 'it depends'. On flatter more flowy trails, the shorter bike is probably faster & it's more nimble, which I would expect. On rougher stuff, with less travel & a more trail setup on the suspension it gets pretty wild hanging on, that's not to say it can't be ridden fast, but it does feel much closer to the limit. The big bike is a lot more composed, and whilst i'm still getting used to it, having only ridden a trail bike for a few years it's taking a certain amount of brain recalibration with the extra speed it can carry in that sense.
I've never tried a Strive, but went from a 160/150 single-pivot Heckler with Fox 36/X2 to a 150/140 Spectral with 34/Float this year. Uphill, the Spectral is easier as it's a lot lighter and has 2.6 tyres vs the 2.3 on the Heckler. Downhill it doesn't flatten out the trail quite as much as the Heckler did - it's just as fast though, but I feel closer to the limit of control. Some of that is probably due to the difference in suspension though and I reckon fitting a better rear shock would help. However, it's much poppier and more fun all round.
For your question, I'd probably stick with the Strive and fettle the suspension if it's relatively new, but if it's a few years old and you're getting the new bike itch anyway then crack on!
Thanks for the replies.
It's a 2016 strive but bought march 2017 in sale as part of an insurance payout from previous bike. It's the cf9 so has fix front and rear but too many switches for me to figure out if it's ever really set up properly. I just find it overkill for fod which is where I mostly ride and wonder if I'm missing out by not using a trail bike but then think that I may suffer on the DH trails on that trail bike.
Plus the new spectral looks really nice!
Anyway I'm about to do a warranty claim as my next sl cranks are borked and I hard a loud crack coming from somewhere on the frame so maybe the bike might have to go back anyway!
Warranty worries me on CF. Ive an itch for a Spec CF8 but am more likely to get an AL5 and upgrade bits if necessary. You lot saying how fun they are is not helping!
Luckily their frames have a 2 year warranty and 4 year complimentary warranty, whatever that means. Also seems like their warranties are transferrable to 2nd hand owners too which is pretty good
Maybe hire a shockwiz for a week to help you tweak your suspension? I believe you can tell the shockwiz that you want a poppy and lively ride and it will suggest changes accordingly.
Keep the spectral and get a 100mm xc 29er, like a Scalpel