- You've got to love a brand new bike!
This is the new Canyon
Ultimate CF Evo Disc.
(zapping)
This bike is the latest in an evolution
that started the Canyon
all the way back in 2004
with a bike that was
called the Project 3.7.
The idea behind that
project was to explore
the boundaries of
weight-saving on a road bike.
All the components were modified by hand,
shaving every single gram possible
and the result was one
of the lightest bikes
the world has ever seen,
to this day in fact!
The Project 3.7, as the name suggests,
weighed just 3.7 kilograms.
Two years after that, the Canyon engineer
had moved onto something different
called the Project 6.8.
Yes, you guessed it!
This bike weighed in at 6.8 kilograms,
which even back in 2006,
while in particularly revolutionary,
there were plenty of
bikes that were smack bang
on the UCI minimum weight limit.
However, there was a key difference
with the Project 6.8 and
that was that it used
fully functional hydraulic disc brakes.
And, this new Ultimate CF
Evo Disc is, in effect,
a combination of those two concept bikes
from many years ago in that it's
an ultra lightweight,
disc-brake equipped road bike.
Some of Team Katusha's
key members will be using
this very bike in the mountainous stages
of this year's Tour De France.
Some of you remember that
a couple of years ago
Canyon released their Ultimate
CF Evo 10.0 rim-brake bike,
which was frankly ridiculously light.
That frame weighed in at 685 grams
and the forks at 270 grams.
In order to make that
frame and fork so light,
Canyon used a very
special material indeed.
So special in fact was this carbon fiber,
they had to request access to it
from the Japanese Defense
Minister, Tomomi Inada.
But for this bike, things have developed
even further than that.
Canyon engineers have said that this is
the most advanced carbon fiber layout
that they have ever used.
It is a combination of ultra-high modulars
and ultra-high tension carbon,
which makes this Evo perform as it does.
That layup has resulted in a bike
which Canyon claim will
maintain it's stiffness
throughout it's entire life cycle.
Each one of these framesets
will be hand-crafted
by one of Canyon's top engineers
and it is only the top,
most experienced expert
that will be getting their
hands onto these framesets.
The result is the fact that this frameset
is even lighter than the
previous rim-brake version.
You'll be wanting to know exactly
how much it weighs, won't you?
Well, I'm about to tell ya!
In a size medium, which
is what we've got here,
with Rick Zabel's team bike,
the frame weighs 641 grams
and the forks weigh 285 grams.
That means that this frameset in total
tips the scales at 926 grams.
Now that is ridiculously
light for any frameset,
let alone a disc-specific one
with all the extra strength that you need
around the chain stay, seat
stay, and front fork leg.
Now further to the super
material that is used
in the construction of the frame,
Canyon have also shaved a
few more grams off elsewhere.
Now those places include
the front derailleur mount
which is integrated into the structure
of the carbon fiber frame.
And, also here, the seat-post plan
where they're using
titanium bolt as opposed
to the steel ones you'll find
on the stand at Ultimate CF SLX Disc.
Up at the front there,
Rick is using the standard
Canyon H11 Aerocockpit,
so bars and stem.
At 120 millimeters at
the length of the stem
and 410 millimeters are the
width of the handlebars.
However, there's a good
reason it's the standard one
and not the brand new one.
This thing is so fresh, just out the box,
literally the mechanics had
just finished building it up
before we started filming it.
The handlebars haven't yet arrived.
Apparently they'll be coming here
in the next couple of days.
Those new handlebars and stem
are called the Evo cockpit CP20
and it's the lightest
integrated handlebar and stem
that Canyon have ever made, 270 grams.
The reason for that is it uses
the same carbon fiber wonder material
as the frame and the forks
but they're still just
as aero as these ones.
This bike is also so
fresh that the mechanics
haven't even had a chance
to put the proper Canyon
graphics on the downtube yet.
Although I've been reliably informed
that they will have done that
by the time Rick needs to use this bike.
So if you add everything
up, the weight of the frame,
the forks, and the new
arriving aerocockpit,
the Evo cockpit CP20,
this is 235 grams lighter
than the standard Ultimate CF SLX Disc.
It's certainly minimalist
when it comes to weight
but also, actually, when
it comes to graphics
which are particularly subtle.
I'm a fan of that, I've got to say!
Now despite the fact that this frameset
is incredibly lightweight,
it is not fragile.
It has a higher stiffness to weight ratio
than the standard Ultimate
and Canyon have been at pains to tell me
that this is not a bike
you need to confine
to the smoothest of tarmac roads.
It is a bike which can ride on all roads,
including the cobbles of
Belgium, where we are now.
Let's move on to what's on
this new frameset, shall we?
Well, the groupset is provided by SRAM.
It is their flagship Red AXS groupset,
which as you know is why, as
you ought to know is 12 speed.
The cassette that Rick currently has here
at the rear is 10 up through to 28,
whilst the double chainings
there at the front are 37 by 50.
As some of you will
remember from our first look
at this groupset some time ago,
SRAM has spent a lot of time developing
their Centerline X rotor system here.
The 160 millimeter
rotor there on the front
and 140 millimeters here at the rear.
And, that is a suitably
lightweight groupset
for a very light frameset.
In total it comes in 2,518 grams.
Moving on to the wheels,
I'm sure you'll all recognize them.
They're the very distinct
looking Zipp 454 NSW,
distinct because of this
design around the rim.
The reason for this design
is to enable the wheel
to still be incredibly
aerodynamic but easier to handle
when you're navigating your
bike through crosswinds.
454s on here at the
moment but I have no doubt
that once they get into the mountains
he might opt for something
a little bit lighter.
On those wheels we have
Continental's Competition
Pro Limited 25 millimeter
tubular tires, which are ever popular
amongst the riders in the Pro Peleton.
I always forget the freehub sound test.
I'm going to do it right
here at the beginning.
You can insert it randomly into the video.
(whizzing)
And, I think all that leaves
me to talk about is the pedals,
which are the Look Keo Blade Carbons.
The bottle cages are provided by Tacx.
They are carbon fiber.
And, finally, the saddle.
It's a Selle Italia team edition
is all I can see it say's there.
Looks particularly heavy to me.
We'll weigh the bike in
just a few moment's time.
But one thing that is
one of my favorite parts
of the bike is the custom
Wahoo Element bolt,
which I've just taken
off the handlebars there,
in Team Katusha colors.
I like that!
The moment of truth, here
we go, 6.88 kilograms.
So this bike is coming at 80 grams over
the UCI's current minimum weight limit.
And, there's very good reason for that.
Our mechanics are very
nervous about a discrepancy
between their scales and
those that the UCI use
to check these bikes,
so tend to put a little bit more weight on
than just going up to 6.8.
But that's probably why he's got
slightly heavier deeper section wheels
on this climbing bike and
maybe even that saddle, too.
However, this bike can be
built up to be much lighter
and it will be built up to be much lighter
when our very own Si Richardson rides one
down in the Alps over
the next couple of weeks.
That is a video I'm very
much looking forward to!
Right!
Final few measurements for ya.
I've just been measuring his saddle height
is 79 centimeters from the
center of the bottom bracket here
to this part of the saddle.
And, the reach from the tip of the saddle
to the center of the
bars there at the front
is coming in at 57 centimeters.
Well, I think that is a
class-looking new frameset!
We'd love to hear your thoughts on it.
You can leave them in the
comments section just down below.
And, if you can't get enough
of your tech of the tool,
this is the place to be.
You can find more content just over there!
Very high, it's very high-pitched
and low-pitched isn't it?
(whizzing)
Zzz.
See why people like it!
