new release | Canyon spectral 125

PRESS RELEASE

INTRODUCING THE ROWDY ONE

The Spectral 125 is a shredder’s short-travel whip. It’s a playful, “poppy” kind of trail bike – perfect for jibbing off every little trail feature in sight. With 125mm of rear squish mated to a decidedly aggressive and low-slung chassis, the Spectral 125 is a little short on travel and a lot rowdy. Put those together and you get … a little rowdy. See what we did there?

ALWAYS READY TO SHRED

We’ll start with the obvious – a bike’s capability isn’t measured in millimeters alone. Frame geometry, suspension quality, chassis strength and stiffness – they all combine to determine whether a bike truly shines on technical terrain or whether it proves an absolute turd on the trail.

Well, the Spectral 125 doesn’t just shine. It rips. Using its longer-travel Spectral siblings as the foundation, we set about building a bike that takes the Spectral’s all-rounder radness and adds even more playfulness courtesy of more progressive suspension, a bit more anti-squat, and some weight savings.

The end result is a bike that begs you to search out every lip, schralp every corner and throttle every trail for a bit more shred and style.

PROPERLY AGGRESSIVE

At this point the whole “long, low, and slack” thing is a bit cliché, but sometimes it also hits the nail right on the head. To wit, the Spectral 125 is unapologetically slack and aggressive for a short-travel 29er trail bike. While a bike’s ride quality is never defined by just one or two angles or measurements, there are a few telling highlights when it comes to the Spectral 125.

The 64-degree head angle and 486 mm reach (size Large) speak to the “more downhill control” bit of the equation while the 76-degree seat tube angle aids riders on climbs by putting them in a more efficient pedalling position. We kept the chainstays fairly short (437 mm) without going overboard here since the goal was to create a nimble yet well-balanced bike.

While we aimed to create a progressive trail bike, we also knew that some riders don’t want the longest bike possible. Thanks to the Spectral 125’s low standover height and compatibility with longer travel dropper posts, many riders in the middle of the sizing bell curve can likely fit more than one size of frame. Looking to maximize playfulness? Go with the smaller (and shorter) frame option. Want more stability at higher speeds? Choose the larger (and longer) frame size.

If you feel that geeking out on a geo chart is now in order, be our guest and geek away.

TRIPLE PHASE SUSPENSION
Triple Phase Suspension originally debuted on our Sender downhill bike. In short, Triple Phase is a suspension characteristic rather than a single suspension design. Triple Phase Suspension is smooth in the early stages of rear suspension travel, so that the bike is supple on small hits and trail chatter, yet it has ample mid-stroke support, which lets you ride high in the travel, pump the bike for speed and get proper lift-off on jumps. Finally, Triple Phase gives you that necessary end-of-stroke progression that keeps the bike from blowing through its travel on big hits and jumps.

PLENTY OF “POP”

We wanted to build a short-travel bike that begged to be rallied – dialing in the suspension curve was key to making that a reality. While the Spectral 125 shares the same fundamental Triple Phase suspension design as its longer-travel Spectral siblings, we steepened the gradient of the 125’s lever- age curve. That quicker ramp-up in the rear suspension gives the Spectral 125 a bit more “pop”. We were careful, however, to refrain from going overboard here. If the suspension ramps up too quickly on a short-travel bike, things quickly stop feeling awesome and start feeling harsh. We’re happy with the balance we’ve achieved on the Spectral 125 – smooth suspension that resists bottoming out and helps you achieve lift off at a moment’s notice.

While we aimed to create a progressive trail bike, we also knew that some riders don’t want the longest bike possible. Thanks to the Spectral 125’s low standover height and compatibility with longer travel dropper posts, many riders in the middle of the sizing bell curve can likely fit more than one size of frame. Looking to maximize playfulness? Go with the smaller (and shorter) frame option. Want more stability at higher speeds? Choose the larger (and longer) frame size.

IT’S QUICK ON THE GAS

While our overriding obsession was to build a little shredder of a trail bike, we knew the Spectral 125 couldn’t be a one trick “downhill only” pony. So while we won’t tell you to put on a skinsuit and en- ter your local cross-country race aboard this bike, we can definitely say that the Spectral 125 sails up climbs. Like the longer-travel Spectral, the anti-squat is relatively high in the early stage of the Spectral 125’s rear travel and at the sag point. The end result is crisp, efficient pedalling without annoying levels of pedal kickback.

STELLAR IN CARBON

Tipping the scales at an impressive 2,500 grams (5.51 pounds), the Spectral 125 CF’s full carbon-fibre frame is impressively light. More impressive still, we built the Spectral 125 to withstand the same Category 4 strength and impact testing as our EWS-winning Strive model. Spectral 125 is short on travel and big on strength, giving riders the peace of mind to cut loose and push the bike to its limits.

Each carbon Spectral 125 frame is also loaded with smart features that boost durability. Double-sealed frame bearings, for instance, fend off contaminants and keep the Spectral 125 cycling smoothly through its suspension travel. Replaceable thread inserts at every pivot point reduce the risk that riders will unintentionally bung up the frame when getting overzealous with torquing down bolts. Likewise, fully guided, internal cable routing takes the hassle out of snaking rear brake line or derailleur cable housing through the frame. Finally, the Spectral CF’s Flip Chip geometry adjuster lets riders tweak their headtube and seatube angles by a half degree and raise or lower their bottom bracket by 8 millimeters.

METAL MADE BRILLIANT

Carbon fibre may get all the glory, but aluminum frames can deliver a hell of a lot of performance at a great price. That’s definitely the case with the Spectral 125 AL models. We didn’t set out to just hit some random price point here. We focused on creating alloy versions of the Spectral 125 that rode as close to their carbon twins as possible … and which just happened to boast a wallet-friendly price tag.

At 3,000 grams (6.61 pounds), the Spectral 125 AL’s frame still rolls in at an impressive fighting weight. It also meets the same demanding Category 4 strength and impact testing standards as our fully fledged enduro race whips.

While the Spectral 125 AL frames don’t feature flip-chip geometry adjusters, the aluminum Spectral 125 is absolutely dialed–combining the most progressive elements of the carbon bike’s geo into one stellar bundle. You get the slack head angle and low bottom bracket captured in the Spectral 125 CF’s “LO” setting paired to the steeper seat tube angle provided by the “HI” flip chip setting. Simple yet awesome.

Each aluminum Spectral 125s also features clean and simple cable routing, with housing channeled within the front triangle through foam tubes. No rattling. No hassles. Routing is external on the rear end of the bike, with cable guides forged into the bottom bracket and chainstays.

Finally, while replaceable thread inserts aren’t on the table with the aluminum Spectral 125s, we still built in a bit of wrenching insurance. Look closely at the pivot bolt threads and you’ll find steel inserts – virtually indestructible, and replaceable (by a trained mechanic) should someone get particularly ham-fisted with their wrenching.

BUILT TO SHRED

While we obsessed over every millimeter of the Spectral 125 chassis we were just as demanding when it came to choosing every component bolted to those frames. That’s why you’ll find our own G5 components on many models. Named after our toughest (Category 5) testing protocol, all G5 components are tested and approved for the most brutal gravity disciplines. Rampage? Check. DH World Cups? Certainly. Designing these parts ourselves gives us total control over quality and helps us better integrate each component into the Spectral 125 platforms. Simply put, G5 components help us build the best bike possible.

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