The Canyon website jokes that the CFR's ultralight frame is made from unicorn hair and with the weight and color of this bike, you'd almost believe it.
Olympian Emily Batty has teamed up with Canyon after more than a decade with Trek. With this change, Emily has new custom-painted bikes, a new colorful kit, and a new teammate, Canadian U23 National Champion Laurie Arsenault, who will be riding and racing a similar bike setup to Emily's.
Emily’s two race bikes will be the Canyon Lux CF SLX and the Canyon Exceed CFR. Both will feature Canyon's integrated cockpit, Schwalbe tires, XTR everything, and DT Swiss 1200 wheels.
Today we have some glamor shots and info about the team's raciest bike, the Exceed CFR hardtail.
Emily’s two race bikes will be the Canyon Lux CF SLX and the Canyon Exceed CFR. Both will feature Canyon's integrated cockpit, Schwalbe tires, XTR everything, and DT Swiss 1200 wheels.
Today we have some glamor shots and info about the team's raciest bike, the Exceed CFR hardtail.
Frame: Canyon Exceed CFR, size XS
Fork: Fox 32 Step-Cast, 100 mm, 60-70 PSI
Tires: Schwalbe Racing Ralph (R) and Racing Ray (F) 2.25" 18-23 PSI
Wheels: 29" DT Swiss XRC 1200, 25mm or 30mm
Drivetrain: Shimano XTR 1x12, 10-51 cassette, 32t-36t chainring
Brakes: Shimano XTR
Pedals: Shimano XTR
Cockpit: Canyon CP008 integrated cockpit, 70mm stem, -17 degree rise
Saddle and grips: Ergon
Fork: Fox 32 Step-Cast, 100 mm, 60-70 PSI
Tires: Schwalbe Racing Ralph (R) and Racing Ray (F) 2.25" 18-23 PSI
Wheels: 29" DT Swiss XRC 1200, 25mm or 30mm
Drivetrain: Shimano XTR 1x12, 10-51 cassette, 32t-36t chainring
Brakes: Shimano XTR
Pedals: Shimano XTR
Cockpit: Canyon CP008 integrated cockpit, 70mm stem, -17 degree rise
Saddle and grips: Ergon
The Exceed CFR frame claims to weigh just 835g / 1.84 lbs in size medium, making it one of the lightest hardtails money can buy (just behind the Specialized Epic and Unno Aora, which both weigh a claimed 790g). Although it's a purebred XC race bike through and through, it has relatively balanced geometry designed to make it shine both uphill and back down, with a 69-degree head tube angle, a 75-degree seat tube angle, and a 392mm reach on Emily's XS bike.
Canyon says this version hasn't been weighed yet, but considering the stock build comes to about 19 lbs, it's likely that this one is pretty absurdly light.
The Fox Factory 32 is the step-cast version, which cuts down weight and aerodynamic resistance by narrowing the fork's lowers, thereby also providing spoke and rotor clearance.
Canyon's integrated cockpit is one of the cool weight-saving features of this bike.
Emily runs Canyon's integrated cockpit CP008 with a 70mm stem and negative rise of 17 degrees, keeping her in an aggressive race position. The intriguing one-piece bar and stem combo, designed specifically for Canyon's XC racers, helps minimize weight and improve aerodynamics. It also features a unique cable routing system with ports in the headset that allow the rear derailleur and brake cables to enter the frame with minimal extra length, further shaving grams.
XTR everything.
The team will run Shimano XTR brakes, pedals, and 1x12 drivetrains. Unlike many XC competitors who will be racing SRAM's AXS wireless system, the Shimano racers rely on mechanical systems, though we may see that change sooner rather than later. A 10-51 cassette provides plenty of range, especially using chainrings from 32t to 36t depending on the course.
Tan walls and stylish valve lock nuts add flair to this bike.
Each bike will have a Schwalbe Racing Ralph 2.25" (rear) and Racing Ray 2.25" (front) mounted on DT Swiss' top-of-the-line XRC 1200 wheels. There will be some variation here, with the internal rim width of either 25mm or 30mm depending on the course and tire pressure ranging from 18-23 PSI.
4iii makes attractive, unobtrusive yet effective power meters.
In terms of other bits and bobs, the team will use 4iii's Shimano crank power meters, Wahoo electronic training gear, Ergon parts at the critical bike-body contact points, and Momum tubeless valves and bike care products.
The team: Emily Batty, Laurie Arsenault, mechanic Mark Batty, and manager / trainer / Emily's husband Adam Morka.
The Canyon Lux CF SLX will take over when the courses demand more suspension, and will sport almost the same parts as the Exceed CFR, with the addition of a Fox DPS Float shock at 110 PSI.
The Canadian duo is set to start the race season April 24th at Bike the Rock for the 20th anniversary of the classic German event. For blog posts, schedule information, and more about the team, visit mtbracing.com.
91 Comments
In turn, you may agree with me that the *other* half of the fun is making snarky comments in the comment section of a popular website of the your sport of choice.
Naming your Carbon after Shimano's very popular group level? Not subtle and terribly confusing.
It is absolutely a marketing miss to utilize the same naming convention of another product that is immediately recognizable in the industry and then up-spec, as a skimming consumer will assume that it is specced w/ the very recognizable product. Marketers and product managers should be making things as simple as possible for the consumer (remember, we're all kinda dumb) to limit the risk of confusion.
If somebody told me they bought a new MOUNTAIN BIKE and rattled off SLX, of course I'm going to think it has a Shimano SLX build level. Of all other acronym possibilities they fell on SLX after Shimano has had it for years and years? Not the brightest move.
Just wait til I start a new company that makes MTB bars and stems. I'll call it FaceRace. And I'll have models called X01, Advent, and XT. Nobody should get confused right?
The places they’ll run the hard tail are the places weight is critical, so kind of makes sense not to have the dropper on the Exceed.