








Canyon Grizl
2021 photos: Stan Koolen
ˈɡrɪz(ə)lɪŋ/Grizlin‘ is just like riding, but with your priorities set right. Experience over performance. Stories over glories. Grizlin‘ means rolling out the door with an open mind, not knowing quite what‘s going to happen.
2021 photos: Stan Koolen
ˈɡrɪz(ə)lɪŋ/Grizlin‘ is just like riding, but with your priorities set right. Experience over performance. Stories over glories. Grizlin‘ means rolling out the door with an open mind, not knowing quite what‘s going to happen.
Much has been said of Gravel over the years, defining, interpreting, looking up to the stars and trying to put a finger on just what “it” is. But as Confucius says, the time for philosophising is over. Gravel is fully established and it is most certainly here to stay. Opening up new experiences for both roadies and mountainbikers, providing the perfect entry into life on two wheels for new-comers to the sport, its appeal and potential are so broad that its growth shows no signs of slowing.
In 2018 Canyon entered the Gravel market with the Grail. This is the bike that broke the internet thanks to its iconic Double Decker Cockpit, embodying a typically Canyon approach to a new world of riding. The Grail is a benchmark Gravel bike for how it combines com-pliance and efficiency. Using carbon’s material properties, they achieve great comfort without re-sorting to mechanical suspension at both the cockpit and rear end. This is also what makes the Grail one of the lightest Gravel bikes on the market to this day.
With the Grail now well established on the scene, Canyon asked themselves, what else do modern Gravel riders need? Is there a gravel bike to rule them all? Well, there isn’t one. Just like the range of riders who take to Gravel, the applications people use their bikes for and the terrain they take them on are so broad that there is no one bike to rule them all. Look at mountainbiking, it’s about the right horse for the right course.

The Grizl is Canyon’s interpretation of a do-anything, go-anywhere, all-you-might-ever-need Gravel bike. With everything covered for unforgettable rides, from big days out to week-long trips, the Grizl brings tough Swiss Army Knife functionality to their proven performance DNA. The result is a Gravel bike that’s fast across mixed terrain, at home on the rough stuff, and ready for real adventure.










The Grizl is available in two platform levels: the rough-and-ready Grizl CF SL, and the premium CF SLX with its superlight 950 g carbon frame (painted, size M, including small parts). All models feature the precise, composed Gravel Pro geometry Canyon originally developed for the Grail – and to create consistent riding dynamics for everyone, they offer seven frame sizes (2XS – 2XL) for one of the broadest ranges on the scene. Furthermore, to optimise fit and handling for smaller riders, 2XS and XS bikes use smaller 650B wheels, with bigger sizes rolling on 700C.
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For more demanding off-road terrain, Canyon fit wider tyres so you can get away with more when it’s trail time – all Grizl models come with 45 mm rubber as standard mounted on tubeless-ready rims, with clearance for 50 mm for those wanting to go even wider and wilder. The advantages of added tyre volume are more traction and cushioning when riding over rough terrain, so you can let off the brakes down loose descents. Extra volume also comes into its own for heavier riders, or for an-yone riding with packs that add weight to the overall system, providing a greater pressure window to find the balance between comfort, rolling resistance, and not bottoming out against the rim. Yes, there is a slight weight pen-alty and pay-off in rolling re-sistance on smoother surfaces compared to a 40 mm tyre found on the Grail, but what the Gri-zl loses in on-road efficiency it makes up for in off-road capability – this is a bike that wants to get off the beaten track.
In the name of maximum versatility and all-round capability, the Grizl is also packed with a range of progressive components and features unprecedented on a Canyon gravel bike. For more confidence down technical trails there’s internal routing for full dropper post compatibility. The Grizl is also both 1-by and 2-by compatible, with Shimano GRX and Campagnolo Ekar builds available on release.
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Canyon teamed up with Apidura, the best in the business, to create a set of packs tailored to the Grizl. The Apidura x Canyon Packs are as ready for adventure and as performance oriented as the Grizl. Drawing inspiration from Apidura’s Race and Backcountry Series, the packs are lightweight, waterproof and rugged enough to tackle anything from an hour-long spin before work to a 200-mile gravel race, it can be used for any ride not just those once-a-year week-long escapes. The range consists of:
• A 5 Liter Saddle Pack
• Two sizes of Frame Pack (2.4 Liter for frames 2XS-L, 4 Liter for frames XL-2XL)
• A 1 Liter Bolt-On Top Tube Pack
More mounting options is a good thing, but too many and bikes start to look like some voodoo doll nightmare with rivets for needles. With the Grizl Canyon set out to strike a balance with the right number of practical mounts people would actually use. For this, they focussed on the fork with three mounting points for cages and small packs, or extra water bottles. Each leg can carry up to three kilos, and in case you need reminding, it’s handily printed on the side. In the main frame triangle, Canyon added top tube mounts for a more stable interface for top tube bags, cutting out the need for straps, plus they added a third bottle cage mount beneath the down tube (not on SLX models) for tools, spares, or just for more hydration when you’re seven hours into that three-hour ride your buddy planned. Knowing from experience that bolts can go AWOL at the worst possible moments, they’ve subtly printed all the technical specs and recommended torque settings for when you reach the next hardware store. It’s the little things in life.
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The entry-level Grizl CF SL will be available from €1,999-€2,699, and the range-topping Grizl CF SLX will come in at a price point between €4,499-€4,599. All seven models in the Grizl family will be available from 11 May, exclusively at canyon.com
*A Grizl AL is in the pipeline, but like many things in 2021, we’ll have to wait a little longer.


















