So I’m about this close <thumb and forefinger about 6mm apart> from spunking the cash on a new Canyon Strive. Probably the Strive CF 8.0 Race.

The Spectral looks nice as well – half a kilo lighter (£ for £) and 150/140mm rather than 160/160mm. No Shapeshifter for what it’s worth (I’m not sold on this technology although I’ll admit I’m intrigued to try it). It’s now available in carbon and looks pretty too – Spectral CF 9.0 EX.

I’m fairly sure I want a longish travel (160mm) bike, mainly for the stiffness and not worrying about breaking it. The point of this thread is not to discuss the merits of 150/140 vs 160mm bikes.

However, I can’t help notice that Joe Barnes has ridden the EWS all season on the shorter-travel (Alu) Spectral. It’s available with Pikes so it shouldn’t give up too much in front-end stiffness to its bigger brother, although the frame looks a bit weedier out back. Whereas Barel (At least at the end of the season) was on the Strive – and of course won the final round. Naturally, there’s the argument that if 140mm is enough for Joe Barnes, it’s probably enough for me. But I’m wondering this: Why isn’t a team rider on the flagship ‘Enduro’ bike? The Strive looks perfect for the EWS – what am I missing?

Maybe he prefers the geometry of one to the other? I think the Spectral head angle is steeper and top tube is slightly shorter than the Strive.

Maybe the team/manufacturer are hedging their bets on which bike will be best/trying to sell as many of one as t’other?

Probably because they are sponsored and are paid to promote all
Canyon Bikes – What make the Strive the “flagship model”?

Has he not rode both the strive and spectral this season? Rougher tracks on the strive, less so on the spectral? Also he might prefer riding a 140mm bike as he always used to ride an orange 5.

Maybe try asking him via Facebook or twitter?

At a guess, maybe racing at that level he might see additional moving parts as potential failure points. Or maybe the shorter travel bike pedals better. Or maybe it just fits him better.

Drop him a tweet and ask, he’ll probably be happy to rep his sponsor and explain…
https://twitter.com/Dudes_Hazzard

🙂

Edit: way ahead of me there jimjam

The Strive is the one that’s had all the R&D and has been heavily promoted this summer. OK, I know it’s new but I haven’t really seen any press release / videos / general media noise about the Spectral.

I don’t mean the Strive is a flagship model overall. I’m sure that Canyon will sell many more Spectrals than Strives, and as a ‘trail’ bike for 90% of riders it’s probably the better choice. But the Strive is their dedicated Enduro bike and I’m surprised that the team isn’t unified in using it.

P.S. I’m aware Enduro is just a label and riders will use whatever bike they want.

Obviously the best option would be to ride both bikes back-to-back on my local trails, but that’s never going to happen. I can’t seem to manage that with ‘normal’ brands.

Hes racing fast. Shorter stiffer bikes are faster.

I wouldn’t pay attention to what they are riding unless you’re a proper whippet.

Hes racing fast. Shorter stiffer bikes are faster.

The Spectral is shorter and the Strive will be stiffer I’m sure. At any rate, most people would say that longer bikes are generally faster, except on super-tight stuff. From what I’ve seen a lot of the EWS is pretty open – a few tight sections on some stages but nothing crazy. Most people seem to opt for long/low/slack.

Anyway, this isn’t a ‘what bike for me to ride the EWS on’ kind of thread – it’s just I’m trying to understand what’s wrong with the Strive that means a team rider doesn’t want it.

It never occurred to me to ask on Facebook. Makes sense.

I wouldn’t pay attention to what they are riding unless you’re a proper whippet.

Maybe I think I am? 😆

glasgowdan – Member

Hes racing fast. Shorter stiffer bikes are faster.

From what I’ve seen a lot of the EWS is pretty open – a few tight sections on some stages but nothing crazy.

That’s cos the open bits are easy for the journos and photographers to get to….

Superficial

. From what I’ve seen a lot of the EWS is pretty open – a few tight sections on some stages but nothing crazy. Most people seem to opt for long/low/slack.

It’s regularly described as World Cup DH on trail bikes. Take a look at this.

Dirt TV 2014 Enduro World Series Round 6 Whistler | Full Highlights

Yeah, and most people are riding long bikes for DH. I don’t mean that it’s not hard, I just mean that generally, I haven’t seen many sections that are so tight / switchback-y that a shorter bike would be beneficial.

Having said that, I don’t know if I’ve ever ridden an EWS track (probably not) and as pointed out above, the patchy coverage may mean tracks are tighter than I realise.

Hob Nob to the forum please, paging Hob Nob….

IIRC the spectral is 140mm both ends.

The fork is a 150mm fork but internally spaced to 140

^^^ 150mm forks are on certain spectral models

Maybe on the CF, but their site says all ALU models are 140mm.

Unless their site is wrong.

Edit: just checked, all CF are 150 all alu are 140.

Only slightly relevant, but here’s a video of Martin Maes in Valloire, really shows the speed these guys are racing at and just how long some of the stages are.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpFxIIK7YmE&list=UUew-XynokXzvaLr-zRV8APg[/video]

And another one from whistler, which probably gives no idea of just how rough it is. Both stages look fantastic. I know I’d want 160mm if possible for that kind of craic.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXTplTd1StE[/video]

Maybe on the CF, but their site says all ALU models are 140mm.

Unless their site is wrong.

Edit: just checked, all CF are 150 all alu are 140.

All alloy EX models are 150/140

Joe has been changing between the Spctral and the Strive all season

I’d put it down to personal riding styles. If you watch the dudes of hazard & EWS videos Joe’s the sort of rider who prefers to hop over and avoid obstacles rather than just plough through, so I guess the spectral with it’s short wheelbase helps with that.

It’s also worth noting he’s been running a 160mm 36 on his spectral so it’s giving up nothing to the strive up front/

These aren’t downhill tracks, you need to be very fit as pedalling will make or break the results. The guys that can handle a shorter bike sufficiently will be quicker on them. In essence, a shorter bike is faster though may have issues with very rough stuff. But we all know that anyway.

Why else would one of the world cup rounds this year have seen so many riders opting for 160mm over 200mm?

Why else would one of the world cup rounds this year have seen so many riders opting for 160mm over 200mm?

the SA round? it’s basically a motorway, there’s no need for a DH bike there (if you’re a WC Dher) – shorter travel bikes in that case pedal better and are lighter, which is why they use them.

longer bikes tend to be a faster than shorter ones (which is why bikes are getting longer – even Peaty is running that front end extending headset in his DH bike to get more length…) – they’re more stable at speed and are more planted in corners, which allows them to go round corners faster. IME in really tight, steep stuff a longer bike is faster too, not a shorter one.

Joe’ll be picking his bike depending on the course and how he wants to ride it – it’ll be up to him whether he chooses to ride the strive or the spectral, not Canyon.

I’ve got a strive which i’ve had for 12 months. It’s brilliant, however i’ve been eyeing up the spectral 29er since going 29 on the hardtail.

If I was doing it again i’d go spectral, but can’t bring myself to take the hit and get one and sell the strive.

As others have said, there’s far more to it than just suspension travel….some rounds have been more ‘pedally’ and i suspect he’s chosen the shorter travel frame for those rounds and for the rougher more technical stuff he will go for more squish…same reason lots of the guys at the SA DH round have used less travel on their DH bikes (down to 180mm in most cases), some have put their usual DH dual crown forks on Enduro frames for that round (Spesh and Nukeproof do this i beleive), some have experimented with 29ers at SA and others still have opted for a full Enduro set-up with single crown forks etc etc….

….Jared Graves got Bronze in 2013 on his Enduro bike in SA, interviewed before the race he said that he’d spent most of the year riding Enduro anyway so was used to the bike and didnt feel Peitermaritzburg warranted a DH rig anyway….which makes sense really, ride what you’re familiar with for confidence reasons and then adapt the bike to the track.

(must resist, must resist….oh bugger i cant, runs for cover; makes a mockery of people using 160mm AM/Enduro rigs for Swinley though….bah, there i said it….)

Gotta love people basing purchasing decisions on what a pro rides. If you tried to follow Joe he’d be gone in one turn regardless of what bike he was on so how could you deduce anything from that?

deviant – Member

(must resist, must resist….oh bugger i cant, runs for cover; makes a mockery of people using 160mm AM/Enduro rigs for Swinley though….bah, there i said it….)

To an extent – lots of non-pro folks appreciate the margin for error that more travel gives.

It’s also worth noting he’s been running a 160mm 36 on his spectral so it’s giving up nothing to the strive up front

Didn’t realise that. Good knowledge – thanks.

(must resist, must resist….oh bugger i cant, runs for cover; makes a mockery of people using 160mm AM/Enduro rigs for Swinley though….bah, there i said it….)

It would have been better if you had managed to resist. I have my reasons for wanting a 160mm bike and it has nothing to do with Swinley (or any other trail centre for that matter).

Gotta love people basing purchasing decisions on what a pro rides. If you tried to follow Joe he’d be gone in one turn regardless of what bike he was on so how could you deduce anything from that?

🙄
1) If you had read the thread, this isn’t about being a fanboi or wanting a bike for the EWS. I’m trying to work out what’s ‘wrong’ with the Strive that it’s not Joe’s go-to bike for racing.
AND
2) You have no idea how fast or slow I ride.

Actually as it happens most of my riding is pretty slow – picking my way through the most difficult trails I can find, often hiking to find a ridge line and generally mucking around. I know I’m not after a bike for roosting turns at 30mph. Suffice it to say I’m not looking to emulate Joe Barnes.

I’m pretty sure he was on the “flagship” Strive in La Thuile.

I’m pretty sure I read somewhere that he chose the Spectral in Finale Ligure because it pedalled better for the long transfer stages. Quite why he didn’t just use a Strive in XC mode, I don’t know.

If you’re looking for steep and technical, I’d look for something long and slack. However, I’m on an SB66 riding in the lakes, and I’d probably choose the Spectral over the Strive for the simplicity and lighter weight.

(must resist, must resist….oh bugger i cant, runs for cover; makes a mockery of people using 160mm AM/Enduro rigs for Swinley though….bah, there i said it….)

. But I’m faster round Swinley on my 160mm 650b enduro bike than on my rigid 29er xc bike. …. Your preconceptions are all wrong !

What’s the current lead time on a spectral these days?

What’s the current lead time on a spectral these days?

April 😐

Click ‘Availability’ in the shop page of Canyon.com. It’s less of a wait for the Alu frames, though.

I’ve pulled the trigger on a Spectral CF 9.0 EX. It is available in February in most sizes.

I’m struggling to find any faults with this bike. I reckon this bike will be plenty, plenty stiff, – Carbon frames tend to be stiff anyway, and its built up spot on, – Pikes up front, CCDB Inline and the Mavic Crossmax XL, wide Renthal DH carbon bars – it could be a dark horse as a bit of a weapon. This is a very aggressive trail bike, – basically a lighter, slightly smaller travel enduro bike. For “most” enduro tracks, I’m betting it has plenty travel and will be a well fast bike. Most tracks only have a few steep sections, – an aggressive trail bike can have lots of advantages.

To add to the above, – I’m thinking of raising the Pikes to 160 up front, but I’ll wait and see how I get on with the 150 for a while.
The 140 travel on the back is actually a big plus for me, – I’ve had a few 160 travel bikes and they can really suck the life out of your pedal strokes when you are pushing it, – unless the suspension is very good.

Sorry aroche, I’m on mobile browsing, what’s the cost of your new cf? There is a lot about the canyon that appeals but the lead times are a consideration

Cost is 3999 euro for the EX version, – EX is basically an EVO build in the Canyon line. There is nothing compromised on this build that I can make out, – everything is high end. Medium and Large for the EX is available on the week of the 16th February – if there are no delays of course! You don’t pay anything until they are ready to ship btw.

https://www.canyon.com/_en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b=3667

Are you about to win an EWS?
If the answer is no just buy the bike you like the look of as it’ll make f all difference. 🙂

I like your thinking regarding ordering one, this bike would be on my list for sure. Thanks for the info!

glasgowdan – Member

These aren’t downhill tracks

One of the tweedlove EWS stages on inners day was all downhill tracks. The easy stage, mind 😆

I’m going to push the boat out here and say they both ride the bike they like the most, and it’s of basically no relevance to us dobbers. Joe used to mostly race on an Orange Five, maybe that’s just what suits him?

Perhaps shorter travel is better for “creative line choices” 😉