New Canyon Ultimate in action on Dauphiné mountain stage
New Canyon Ultimate in action on Dauphiné mountain stage
As reported earlier this week, a new Canyon Ultimate is amongst a host of new bikes we are expecting to see at the upcoming Tour de France. While we know a new Ultimate is on the way thanks to a recent update to the UCI-approved frame list, the single head-on photo we have seen so far offered precious few details as to what we could expect.
Thankfully our friends over at MatosVelo.fr are on the ball at the Dauphiné once again, this time posting a close-up video of the new Ultimate on their Twitter and Instagram feed.
As speculated on the Nerd Alert podcast this week, it seems Canyon has retained the lightweight focus with the new Ultimate, and if anything has almost entirely disregarded aero tweaks on the new frame. Sure, upfront Canyon has opted for fully internal cable routing, known to provide a significant aero improvement, but otherwise, designers seem to have focused most heavily on weight-saving tweaks.
While Canyon has opted for a rectangular-shaped down tube, it’s the seat tube area that has perhaps seen the biggest updates. The new frame retains the high seat stays running around the seat tube and into the top tube, however, the designers have opted for a D-shaped seat tube and post on the new Canyon, replacing the round seat tube and intentionally flexible VCLS carbon seat post on the current Ultimate, presumably included to further improve ride comfort. The new seat tube also ditches the rear wheel cut-out for a straight seat tube from the bottom bracket to the seat post.
Furthermore, Canyon has flipped the seat post clamp from the rear of the seat tube between the seat stays to the front-facing side of the seat tube and under the top tube.
As previously speculated, the new frame seems to offer plenty of extra tyre clearance. More interestingly though, Canyon will seemingly spec its CP0018 aero and adjustable cockpit on the new Ultimate. First introduced on the new Aeroad back in 2020, the integrated cockpit offers adjustable bar width and features a quill-like stem offering 15 mm of cut-free height adjustment.
A new KTM
Meanwhile, the current Dauphiné King of the Mountains leader and breakaway extraordinaire, Pierre Rolland, has been racing on a new and unidentified KTM. No details on the new frame are available as of yet and neither has it appeared on the UCI list. One thing we can confirm is the new frame design is distinctly un-KTM, one could even say normal looking. Again, no details are available, but judging by these photos, the new bike looks fast and light, a theory backed up by Rolland’s performances so far this week.
With a deeper head tube, dropped seat stays and aero-profiled shapes throughout, the new KTM appears to be another all-rounder light aero option for the B&B Hotels team. Rolland is racing with Vision’s Metron integrated cockpit, suggesting the new frame utilises FSA’s ACR internal cable routing system.
Read More