The head angle has been slackened by a whole three degrees and the wheelbase has grown by more than seven centimetres in the same frame size. Canyon has thus injected the update with significantly more composure and equipped it for all the challenges of the EWS in the battle against the clock. In combination with the very low bottom bracket, this results in a mixture that not only makes you fast in corners, but also embeds the rider deep into the bike and ensures confidence when the going gets tough. Thanks to the one-to-one Shapeshifter inherited from its predecessor, the geometry and suspension travel can be adjusted in a flash at the touch of a button on the handlebars. A small gas pressure spring, which changes the linkage of the shock, raises the bottom bracket in uphill mode, steepens the seat-steering angle by more than one degree and tightens the rear triangle for more propulsion during intermediate sprints. As the bottom bracket height is still in the green zone at 348 millimetres even in the high mode, both modes can even be ridden downhill depending on the route requirements.
The Canyon is also at the forefront when it comes to suspension and impresses with a nice balance of fork and rear suspension and a good compromise between comfort and feedback from the ground. The rear end now has 158 millimetres of travel for more plush suspension. Due to the long reach, we rode the Strive in size M, unlike the competition. The length can be adjusted by ten millimetres via an insert in the headset. The frame stiffness is low.
PLUS: Low centre of gravity: fast, customisable with Shapeshifter
MINUS: Low frame rigidity, not very playful
Conclusion on the Canyon Strive CFR:
Max Fuchs, BIKE Editor: The new Strive CFR is no longer a playful enduro bike, but it's super fast in every section of our test track. The low bottom bracket and well-balanced suspension ensure confidence. Thanks to the Shapeshifter, the enduro bike also climbs well, even though it is no lightweight.
Technical data Canyon Strive CFR
General information
- Price: 6299 euros, available from the sender
- Info: www.canyon.com
- Weight: 15.4 kg
- Suspension travel: 168/158 mm
- Frame material: Carbon
- Frame size: S / M / L / XL(tested in M/42 cm)
Equipment
- Fork: Fox 38 Float Factory FitGrip2
- Shock: Fox Float X2 Factory
- Crank: Race Face Next R Carbon
- Gear system: Shimano XTR 1 x 12
- Gear ratio / bandwidth: 32; 10-51 / 510 %
- Brake system / Disc (front / rear): Shimano XTR BR-M 9120 / 203 mm / 203 mm
- Telescopic post / stroke / Ø: Canyon G5 dropper post / 170 mm / 30.9 mm
- Wheels: DT Swiss EX 511 rims; DT Swiss 350 hubs
- Tyres: Maxxis Assegai / Minion DHR II 3C MaxxGrip /-Terra Exo+ Protection TR 29 x 2.5 / 2.4
- Ease of maintenance: medium
The results of the Canyon Strive CFR in the complete comparison test of the 6 enduro bikes in the Enduro Special from BIKE 6/2022 can be conveniently downloaded as a PDF below the article.
The test report costs 1.99 euros. Why not free of charge? Because quality journalism has a price. In return, we guarantee independence and objectivity. This applies in particular to the tests in BIKE. We don't charge for them, but the opposite is the case: we do charge for them - tens of thousands of euros every year.
