A New Era in E-MTB – The Canyon Spectral:ON

STORY BY Megan Hughes 1st March 2018

E-MTB isn’t some trend that will pass, it’s very much established and it’s here to stay.

Go to any riding hotspot and the evidence is there. With each passing season, more people are using electric assistance to hit the trails. For the uninitiated, e-bikes knock down the barriers that might have held them back from otherwise trying mountain biking. For the experienced, e-MTBs merely enable us to enjoy more of the good stuff, more of the time, to explore further and access new terrain.

The understanding of what it takes to make e-bikes work is so much better now than it was not so long ago. Somehow shoehorning a battery and motor into an existing frame does not work. Equipping standard components and expecting them to cope with the higher forces at play does not work. Designing a bike without taking into account the entirely different riding styles power assistance enables, does not work.

From the outset, Canyon engineers had a clear understanding of what they wanted to achieve from one of their most ambitious development projects-to-date; an e-MTB with true mountain bike trail performance. The all-new Canyon Spectral:ON is testimony to a merciless attention to the smallest details, as well as a commitment to producing the ultimate rider experience.

Equipped with 150mm of travel front and rear, the heart of the bike is the latest Shimano Steps E8000 drive system with 250 Watts fed by a 504 Watt/hr battery. The compactness of the Shimano system makes it possible to overcome the geometry barriers faced by most e-MTBs and build the Canyon Spectral:ON with short 430mm chainstays for outstanding agility, while its low weight and direct responsiveness result in a natural ride feel unmatched by other drive solutions.

When it comes to handling, the Canyon Spectral:ON adopts an unconventional approach to take e-MTB riding dynamics up a level. A 29″ wheel and 2.5″ tyre hooked to a 30 mm rim on the front rim pairs with a 27.5″ rear running fatter 2.8″ rubber bedded onto a 35mm rim for pinpoint accuracy in the turns and tenacious amounts of traction when climbing.

Other features on the Canyon Spectral:ON include geo adjustment that shifts BB height by 11mm and slackens head and seat tube angles, enabling the rider to optimise their setup for all-round or more downhill-based riding in a few simple steps. To better meet the demands of e-MTB riding, Canyon even developed their own saddle, dubbed the SD:ON, which has an unmistakable profile and is available in men’s and women’s options.

No detail has been left out. All bikes come kitted out with extra strong components to handle the biggest days out, time and again, including the stiffest single crown forks available, DH-grade 4-piston brakes and e-bike-specific DT Swiss wheels. Topping it all off, the frame even has space to accommodate that all-important bottle seamlessly below the battery thanks to the new Canyon Sideloader cage.

Four mens’ and two womens’ models of the Spectral:ON are soon available to purchase online. For more information about the range and the services Canyon provides around its new e-MTB line-up, go to https://www.canyon.com/on

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