Canyon tells us that as they continue to grow, they see more women riding at the top of the sport, especially on the road. Their title sponsorship of the Women’s World Tour team Canyon//SRAM has certainly seen them develop top-level bikes just for women riders, but now they are taking that even a step further to give all women the same wide range of choice that men have enjoyed.
So what Canyon has done is create a new disc brake only WMN Road range. And while it sticks with just three key framesets for now – the Endurace WMN AL, Endurace WMN CF SL & Ultimate WMN CF SLX – they’ve tailored the fit and build options to give smaller riders better selection. The redesigned Ultimate WMN CF SLX Disc is even more aero now than the existing men’s/unisex version. Check out what the big (and small wheel) deal is after the jump…
Pretty much the core of the WMN Road range to Canyon has been developing the new geometry & fit around their XS frame size (166-172cm/5’5″-5’8″ height), since that is the one that is the most requested by women. Canyon is a firm believer that women’s bikes should offer the same basis as men’s for getting the same body position on the bike.
Canyon was reluctant to make too many broad generalizations about different body geometry of women as a whole, but after looking at the 60,000 points of rider position data they’ve collected for women they did settle on a fit for riders who are typically shorter, lighter, have shorter arms vs. their torso, narrower shoulders vs. torso, and generally greater pelvic flexibility.
While the previous generation of rim brake WMN’s bikes used essentially the same geometry as the men’s bikes with an extra smaller size, the new geometry effectively goes with shorter reaches and marginally higher stacks across the board to make it easier to get the same optimal arm & torso angles on the bike.
Staring for the WMN’s bikes from the XS frame (Canyon keeps comparable sizing terminology so any rider can smoothly move back and forth from women’s to unisex geometry depending on their individual needs) and the shorter reach meant they could optimize the angles and handling of these bikes for smaller riders. It also meant that the two smallest sizes 3XS & 2XS make the move to a new 650b wheel size across the three bike line-up to maintain the same ride character and performance of the larger bikes.
Each of the new WMN Road bikes is available in a bike size range from 3XS-M. That ends in Canyon’s sizing spread from 3XS up to 2XL being one of the broadest in the industry, and there very few riders who couldn’t be comfortably fit on their popular disc brake Endurace.
Ultimate WMN CF SLX
Besides being smaller the WMN Road bikes get lighter construction due to lighter riders, with proportionally lower power outputs. That means that the new Ultimate WMN CF SLX is even lighter than the men’s bike (down to just 765g claimed for the XS), while retaining the same stiffness-to-weight ration for a similar ride quality.
The lighter tubes also get more slender profiles that also deliver better aerodynamics, thanks to less frontal area. (Be careful guys about trying to get the more aero frame, unless you have the same lighter weight and lower total power output that mesh well with the WMN frames.) The bikes are very much not the typical ‘shrink it and pink it’ that some women’s lines end up with, as Canyon took a much more technical and analytical approach.
Not just lighter, but more aero, the new Ultimate WMN CF SLX builds on the Ultimate’s race pedigree as one of the most respected in the pro peloton. It gets a WMN-specific variation of Canyon’s Sport Pro geometry.
It gets all the same features as the other disc brake bikes in the family, including 12mm thru-axles, flat mount calipers, a hidden seatpost clamp, aero fork, plus new smaller cockpit sizes. It is offered in four builds starting at 3000€ with SRAM Force, up to 6200€ for a SRAM Red eTap bike with Reynolds carbon wheels. Colors on offer vary from the Canyon//SRAM team replica to more understated black on black.
Endurace WMN CF SL
The Endurace WMN CF SL also builds off the same performance character of it all-road endurance predecessor. Built for women who love to go long, it gets the same comfort-boosting tech and features for all day rides. It uses a slightly more relaxed and upright WMN-specific version of Canyon’s Sport Geometry. Tech features out of the disc Endurace family carry over, including the Comfort Kink seattube, spec with VCLS 2.0 seatposts, plus 12mm thru-axles, clearance for 33mm tires, and aero fork and downtube shaping.
It is also offered in four complete bikes, starting with the 2000€ Shimano 105 build and climbing to a 5900€ bike again with Red eTap and Reynolds carbon wheels. The Endurace again comes with understated color schemes, either this aquamarine blue or the stealth black version.
Endurace WMN AL
The Endurace WMN AL pretty much takes all of its design and technology cues from the carbon bike, but in a more affordable aluminum platform. Canyon calls the new bike the “smoothest-riding and most versatile women-specific aluminum road bike” on the market. It gets the same WMN Sport Geometry and endurance road hydraulic disc brake tech, while lowering the cost of entry to all day comfort.
The alloy bike gets just two complete build options – the 1500€ 105 bike and a 1700€ version that steps up to Ultegra. Color choices are a deep red, or stealth black with a bit of aqua detailing.
The entire new Canyon WMN Road range is available to order now. Actual availability and delivery times vary with a couple of sizes and colors. Some are expected to ship before the end of May, with a few heading out at the start of June, and the majority remainder before the 1st of July.
As for Americans waiting for Canyon’s arrival, you can expect these to make their way to the states later this year.
