5 cool things from Canyon, Bell, Merida and Lifeline
We test the new Spectral, plus a Grail:ON and more....
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There two very different Canyon bikes in on test this week, one mountain and one gravel, one with a motor and one without. Plus there is a 1k Merida Silex, a new but pricey Bell half face helmet and a tubless track pump. Dig in....
- Your complete guide to the 2021 Canyon gravel bike range
- Your complete guide to the 2021 Canyon mountain bike range
- Top tips to make the most of the off-road night riding season
Canyon Spectral 29 CF8
£4,379
Massively overhauled for 2021, the Canyon Spectral is an exciting trail bike that now comes in a 29er wheel size too. We are pretty keen to get aboard this new and more progressive bike, so we took a first look a the bike here.
Canyon Grail: ON CF 8
£5,299
The second Caynon in a week, this time the Grail:ON, a gravel e-bike. Our tester Matt Page has been testing a load of these e-gravellers and he's keen to see how the Bosch powered Grail compares. This CF 8 spec gets Shimano GRX RX810 with an XT 11-42T cassette, Schwalbe G-One Bite tyres, DT Swiss 1800 Spline wheels and a load of Canyon parts including that hover bar. We've sent this bike to Matt for some mid-Wales gravel riding and testing, check back soon for his thoughts.
Merida Silex
£1,000
The guys over at road.cc have the Silex 200 in on test. This is the brand’s comfortable and versatile gravel bike with MTB inspired geometry. The long top and head tubes, combined with a short stem, promise nimble but stable handling, while Maxxis Rambler 700x38c tyres should provide plenty of all-weather, all-surface grip.
The 6066 triple butted and hydroformed aluminium frame features internal cable routing and a BB86 bottom bracket. Stu Kerton has been heading off-road and his full report with be landing on their site soon…
Bell Super Air Sperical
£200
Brand new from Bell is the Super Air Spherical helmet. Based on a half shell version of the Super Air R, the lid uses the 'Spherical MIPS' tech, where two layers inside the helmet move over each other like a ball and socket joint. It's a cool concept and certainly looks like it should provide the associated safety benefits. At £200 it's not cheap though!
Lifeline Airblast
£70
The AirBlast is a tubeless tyre track pump with a stored pressurised air cannister in the separate chamber. Pump the cahmber up to 240psi then release the valve and seat the tyre. Compatible with both Presta and Schrader valves and with a top mounted pressure gauge it looks to be good value at £70. Liam is our expert pump tester, there aren't many track pumps he hasn't pumped, he'll bring us his thoughts soon.
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