12/28/21 Canyon.com
12/28/21 Canyon.com

Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide

Enduro bikes can handle just about anything, so which one is right for you?

Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide Learn more about choosing the right enduro bike for you.

Want a bike that can handle full gravity downhill but still power up the climbs? You probably want an enduro mountain bike. But with so many options available, which is the best Canyon enduro bike to buy?

Whether you’re getting into mtb enduro racing, or just want to be sufficiently biked for the big stuff with enough pedal power to get you to the top so you can throw yourself down again, our Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide explains all so you can pick the right bike for your budget.

Contents

Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide The Strive is the bike of choice for our Canyon enduro team.

What is an enduro bike?

An enduro bike is a full-suspension mountain bikes designed to tackle the toughest technical downhill trails at speed, but also climb efficiently. They have a similar but not identical geometry to downhill bikes, with a slack head tube angle and longer front and rear suspension to bring confidence on steep and technical terrain.

Depending on rider size or personal preference, an enduro bike can be 27.5”, 29er or mullet enduro bike setup, a dropper seat post and shallow seat tube angle for maximum stability and manoeuvrability when descending.

What bike to buy

With so many different mountain bike categories, it’s easy to be confused. The key thing to think about is the type of riding you do most of the time, and match the geometry and spec to suit that best.

Subtle differences in the geometry such as slacker head angles, bigger suspension and a steeper seat tube angles will completely change the riding position, comfort and overall experience over different distances, terrains and ascent.

What is the difference between a trail and enduro bike?

Enduro bikes are longer, lower and slacker, with tougher components than trail bikes. Whilst enduro bikes can climb, the geometry favours downhill, with up to 180mm front travel, and 150-175mm rear.

The slacker head angle of the enduro bike, along with the extra travel and longer wheelbase, oozes confidence and speed on steep technical descents – but steadier on the climbs.

A trail bike is a great all-rounder, still able to tackle tough terrain with upto 150mm of travel in the front fork, and 140mm in the rear, but the shallower head angle will make the steeper stuff feel more gnarly. The pay off is a more nimble and responsive bike on the climbs and better comfort over distance for big days in the saddle.

Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide Crush your local enduro trails with the Spectral. Available in multiple wheel sizes.

Should I buy an enduro or trail bike?

If 80% of your mountain bike rides are long days in the saddle with a mix of XC, big climbs, technical singletrack and the odd trip to the bike park, a trail bike is a better all-rounder. Learn more about mountain biking’s jack-of-all-trades in our Trail Bike Buyer’s Guide.

If you’re regularly hitting the tougher downhill trails at the bike parks and are getting into enduro racing, you might feel under-biked with a trail bike, so an enduro bike with its slacker angles and more attacking geometry is probably the best fit.

What’s the difference between enduro and downhill mtb?

Downhill bikes are designed purely to descend, on rough, technical terrain with jumps, drops and severe features. They’re heavier, more durable, with much slacker angles and upto 200mm travel, so pedal efficiency isn’t a consideration.

Enduro bikes are the middle ground between a full downhill rig and a big travel trail bike. They’re versatile enough to tackle the toughest of downhill trails, but still pedal back up, and feel comfortable enough on a big mountain adventure.

Should I buy a downhill or enduro bike?

This really comes down to whether you want to pedal up the trails as well as fly down them. In racing, downhill runs usually last a few minutes, whereas an enduro race will have stages spread across the whole day, so you can see how the geometry of each bike is fit for purpose.

If you’re purely in it for the downs, love an uplift and the thought of climbing sends shivers down your spine, go for a downhill bike.

If you want a bike to throw downhill as fast as you can but can pedal back up to do it all again, and be comfy enough for a longer weekend shred, pick an enduro for the best in gravity and endurance.

What is the difference between enduro and XC?

Enduro and XC bikes are built for completely different riding styles and terrain. Enduro racing only times riders during stages which are predominantly downhill. Large climbs feature between stages and while these have a time limit, they are not counted towards your overall time. XC races time riders for the whole lap: up, down and along.

Enduro Mountain Bike Buyer’s Guide The Torque is the perfect bike for technical bike park trails.

Which enduro bike to buy?

We have a range of enduro mountain bikes equipped with Canyon signature engineering to take on the toughest of downhill, enduro, freeride and more.

Our fastest and most versatile long travel enduro bike. It’s a true enduro race machine equipped with award-winning, on-the-fly geometry adjustments and suspension kinematics. As the reigning EWS champion, it climbs like an XC bike and descends like a beast!

Downhill, enduro, freeride – the Torque’s 180mm travel and poppy suspension can take on anything. Send bigger gaps and sketchier drops with this lively, playful, and robust machine. Available with 27.5 inch, 29" and mullet wheel sizes.

Playful, poppy, and a master of traction and control – the Spectral is our most versatile trail bike and the ultimate mountain-taming tool. Available in 29, 27.5 inch or mullet wheelsizes.

Mountain

Enduro mountain bikes

Shop our wide range of innovative enduro bikes that allow you to shred the trails with confidence.

Shop the bikes
Content is loading
By subscribing to our newsletter, you are agreeing to our Data Protection Statement .

Did this article help?

Thank you for your feedback

Related Stories

11/30/21
If you’re looking for the best place to shred on your mountain bike then look no further. We’ve done a round-up of the best UK bike parks for you and your MTB.
9/4/24
We’re going to teach you how to change a mountain bike tyre in this clear, comprehensive guide. And don’t worry, there’s also a great Canyon CLLCTV video with Aaron Pelttari that shows you how to do each step. Let’s get it!
8/21/24
Sure, you can ride a bike. But can you ride like a Canyon pro rider?
7/25/24
Learn to bunny hop like a boss with Canyon CLLCTV rider, Anton Thelander.
Content is loading
Loading animation image