CANYON ENDURACE WMN CF SL DISC 8.0 Di2
£2999 Women-specific design for endurance riding
Canyon, along with Liv, is one of only a few bike brands that feels women benefit from a distinct, bespoke frame geometry in addition to touch points, such as saddles and handlebars. This is based on data it has gathered from its online fit system, in addition to information from other sources, such as body dimension databases.
Designed for endurance riding, as the name suggests, the Endurace also represents exceptional value for money as Canyon is a direct seller and the lack of brick and mortar stores saves the brand normal overheads. For riders looking for a handson experience there were (before lockdown) regular demo events and Canyon has a 30-day returns policy for unused bikes, a UK customer service team and a six-year guarantee.
Frame and forks are carbon, with internal cable routing and flat-mounted disc brakes. Canyon sizes its bikes up differently to most other brands. At 5’9”, or 174cm, I would usually ride a size 54cm or medium, the Canyon sizing chart indicates that
I ride a size small. However, the reach (369mm), head tube (143mm) and seat tube length (535mm) are short by comparison to other bikes aimed at riders of the same stature as me, and therefore I suggest that if you sit towards the higher end of the recommended height range you consider going up a size.
The range itself extends from 3XS to M, which is good news for more petite riders sized 160cm/5’2” and under who often have limited choice. These smaller sizes don’t just have sizespecific componentry in terms of crank length and handlebar width; the two smallest sizes also have 650b wheels, rather than the traditional 700.
Canyon says this means it doesn’t need to compromise the geometry, and therefore handling, of the bike to fit proportionally big
wheels into a small frame, giving shorter riders the same ride feel as taller riders.
Electronic shifting in the form of Shimano Ultegra Di2 provides super-smooth action and a range of gears well-suited to endurance rides. The Ultegra 34/50t crankset, coupled with an 11-34t 11-speed cassette, provides plenty of low gears for powering up climbs and trucking along, and enough at the high end of the spectrum for a good lick of speed on flats, although the sprinters out there will miss having a higher range to really get the most out of their power.
Shimano Ultegra hydraulic disc brakes provide plenty of stopping power that responds to subtle control from the shifters. This makes braking, and controlling speeds on descents, comfortable, easy and confident.
A great deal of the comfort comes from the carbon S15 VCLS 2.0 seatpost. It has a leaf-spring design with a shock-absorbing polymer that isolates the saddle and therefore the rider from road-based vibrations.
Compliance is also built into the frame and the slightly dropped seatstays allow more flex and movement in the seat tube.
DT Swiss’s E 1800 Spline DB is a good-quality tubeless-ready wheelset providing a comfortable and sturdy ride feel even across rough ground, although, as ever, future upgrades to a lighter and stiffer set will give the bike an efficiency boost.
The finishing kit includes the aluminium Canyon H17 Ergobar handlebars and the comfortable Fizik Argo Tempo saddle with alloy rails.
In action, the Endurace WMN feels agile and comfortable and is a great all-rounder, sitting firmly in the middle ground between bikes that excel at either. It’s not as nimble and lively as the Liv Avail, for example, nor as supremely comfortable as the Trek Domane, but it is perfectly good at both. It even coped well with some unexpected gravel grinding. You won’t be disappointed if what you’re looking for is a sprightly bike that can handle rough roads and keep you fresh enough to keep going over distance, and you’ll certainly have lots of fun doing it.
It’s hard to go wrong with the Endurace, and at this price point it makes owning a bike with an electronic groupset a whole lot more affordable.
“Compliance is also built into the frame and the slightly dropped seatstays allow more flex and movement”