Canyon Speedmax CF SLX Frodissimo limited edition espresso triathlon bike gets infused with Jan Frodeno's own coffee beans...

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There are subtle differences between the best enduro mountain bikes, and the best bike park shredders. So where does the Canyon Torque 29 fit in, exactly? Look at it one way and it’s clearly a park bike, with 170mm travel front and rear, MaxxGrip Maxxis tyres and big-hit DT Swiss FR2070 wheels. Take another look though and you’ll see the super-steep and pedal-friendly seat tube angle, 29in wheels front and rear, and you might be tempted to buy it as an enduro race bike. (You’d have to change those tyres for most UK trails though.) Need to know Alloy version of the new carbon Torque launched early in 2022 170mm travel front and rear, delivered through Fox Float Performance suspension Big sizing and three sizes, with the reach on the size XL 29 stretching beyond 500mm Burly downhill build, with solid rims tough tyres, but still reasonable weight at 16.9kg (37.3lb) Options galore: Torque comes in carbon, alloy, mullet, 29in and 27.5in versions The fact is, Canyon has built the new aluminium version of the Torque to wear many hats, from shuttling in the Alps to heavy trail bike duty, and everything in between. It already has a dedicated enduro bike in the Canyon Strive, and a downhill bike called the Sender, and the Torque is really there to be every bike to every rider. That’s the marketing spiel anyway, but we’re here to get to the truth of it and figure out the Torque’s real force. The new bike launched in carbon-only in 2022, and the recent addition of the alloy version here shares much of its geometry and features. The Torque 29 AL 6 is claimed to be stiffer than the old 27.5in bike it replaces, and also 200g lighter with updated tubing profiles, although 200g more would have made zero difference to its overall weight. We’ll get to all that in a minute. Canyon has made the geometry more aggressive, building in a slacker head angle, steeper seat tube, generous reach and longer wheelbase too. All standard upgrades for any bike in 2022. There’s no flip chip to tune it all with though, unlike on the carbon bike, instead you potentially get the best of both worlds because Canyon has fixed the head angle at the low setting, and the seat tube angle at the steep orientation. I measured it up at 63.4º on the head angle, and 79.8º for the effective seat angle with the saddle at 750mm from the centre of the BB. Very slack and very steep then, in that order. It’s a big bike too. In size XL, Canyon has been munificent with the bike’s geometry and sizing and it stands up well compared with the competition. The reach on my size XL measured up north of 500mm which is spot on for the size, and the wheelbase crept over 1,300mm, which puts it about on par with the biggest S5 Enduro from Specialized. It’s a four bar linkage bike, just like the …Continue reading »

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The Strive CFR has a high ceiling for speed, but you need to ride aggressively to bring it to life

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