I moved back to northern Illinois from Colorado a couple of years ago and in the process sold all my bikes except a Surly Pacer thinking that my riding days were mostly behind me. Foolish!
I bought a Canyon Grizl and I’m extremely happy with it, and now I’m looking for a go-fast bike for the road for next season. I’m looking at both the Endurace and the Ultimate - anyone have experience on both? In my head I keep thinking the Endurace is the way to go because I like to ride long distances, but I have some very competitive cycling friends and want to be as fast as possible. Is there that much practical difference between the bikes as far as speed?
I have an Ultimate SLX EVO. Rode it 160 miles in one shot this summer, plus lots of normal ‘century’ rides. Zero issues. It’s my go-to whip for everything.
I would decide based on fit. The Ultimate is going to have a lower stack and longer reach. I would compare your size in each model and figure how many spacers you’ll need below the stem and how long of a stem. For example, if you need a giant spacer stack and a short stem to get into an Ultimate, then it’s probably not the right frame. I think you can be equally fast on either.
Oh, I’m on that page completely! I’ve had my doors blown off by guys on much worse bikes than I was riding at the time more than once. The guys I’m talking about now are all on race bikes, and we’re all in our 50s, so I’m looking for every advantage, or at least not to be at a disadvantage if I don’t need to be.
Buy as much aero as you can. The Ultimate or Endurance appear to be similar aero-wise. Deep wheels, aero helmet, and race fit jersey, shave legs, etc, is the way to go.
The difference in performance between the bikes by themselves is probably negligible.
The difference in the position you can achieve on the bike, and thereby enhance or penalize your aerodynamics, is potentially significant. The Endurace will put you in a higher / taller position vs. the Ultimate.
But if you can achieve a relatively aero position on both bikes, then buy the one that has the best color. Yes, I am serious.
I bought the endurance, I wish I got the ultimate for the “cool” factor but I love the bike and would have loved the ultimate. If I got the ultimate I would have blamed all my aches and pains on not getting the endurance. If you have enough bike fitting knowledge about yourself follow the advice in the comments above. Or just buy the one you want
I mean yes… between similar bikes. But there is a difference in that you need the right tool for the job. I race XC… and riding a Santa Cruz V10 vs. a Blur in a race is a pretty big difference.
Yes Nino could probably still beat me but when we are talking about similar ability the bike matters.
One additional thought….even if you can achieve the same position on both bikes, it likely will not be easy or inexpensive.
The integrated systems from Canyon are proprietary and if you need something other than the stock size, you are probvly out of luck. They just don’t stock extra inventory…or if they do, they sell out quickly and are $$$
So evaluate which one fits you best out of the box and make your decision on that.
I really think it comes down to fit. Ultimate is more aggressive and as long as you’re comfortable on that, go with that. However, I also wonder, why not Aeroad. From what I understand, the Aerroad and Ultimate have the same geometry and the Aerroad is considered one of, if not the most comfortable aero-focused bike out there. (I have the Ultimate)
I have the ultimate and would go endurace next time just for a better fit. It’s a really agile and responsive bike though.
As a plus there’s the new integrated bar of the endurace.
Thanks for all the input. It looks like the out-of-the-box geometry of the Endurace is slightly less aggressive than my Grizl and the Ultimate slightly more, which tells me I should start with the Endurace. Now I just have to wait for them to get my size back in stock.
And yes, I like the color of the Endurace better as well.
I love my Endurace, almost everything about it other than some toe overlap, mostly with gravel tires/climbs. If you worry about fit and the proprietary handlebars you may want to consider going with the most expensive version with the “normal” stem/handlebars to give you more fit choice and ease of serviceability. Yes, less aero and less blingly but perhaps more practical. And you could always add an aero handlebar.
