Bike Review: Canyon Roadlite WMN CF 8.0

For those of you who are after a bike for keeping fit and doing longer endurance rides, but without necessarily using a road racing bike, this could be an option to consider.

Canyon Roadlite WMN CF 8.0

The Canyon Roadlite women-specific bike is designed with that in mind. It has the same geometry and specifications as other women's road racing bikes in the Canyon range, except that the bike has straight handlebars.

Canyon lent me this bike to try out earlier this year, so I had the chance to ride it in different situations and different places. I wrote a review of it for the now closed Total Women's Cycling website, which you may also wish to read.

I did a ride up north in the Yorkshire Wolds, and took it around country lanes just outside Beverley and a few of the hills in that area. The hills weren't quite Nunburnolme Hill proportions but in the areas of Millington Dale, then later, South Cave and Elloughton, where I went, the hills were still steep enough. My other rides were more leisurely rides in Surrey - namely Box Hill and the areas around Epsom. Since the frame is carbon fibre, it was very light and so it was very responsive when pedalling, and really took me up the hills with relative ease.

Women's geometry and cut-away saddle for comfort

The main thing for me, was the lack of dropped handlebars. I wouldn't normally ride a bike like that when doing a serious training ride, and it felt a little bit weird just having straight bars to hold, particularly on the descents. But really, it was something that I got used to quite quickly - especially given that it's no different a sensation from doing a descent with a mountain bike.

Like a lot of road bikes now, the Roadlite has disc brakes, so you have good control when doing a steep descent.
As with other bikes from Canyon, you have a choice of spec depending on your preference and your budget. The bike is available with an aluminium frame and Shimano 105 components, rather than Ultegra or Durace.

Overall, I would recommend this bike for those who want to take the next step up from leisure bike riding, but without necessarily getting into the sharp end of cycle racing. The women-specific geometry and the saddle make it a comfortable ride over long distances, of around 50 miles - which is the longest ride I did. If joining one of the beginner groups on the local club run or a British Cycling Breeze Ride, you wouldn't look out of place on this. Also, those who are big on mountain biking and want to ride on the road without using fat tyres may also find this bike a good option.

My review of the Canyon Roadlite WMN CF 8.0 on Total Women's Cycling webiste.


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One day one photo - 28: Velovixen at the Cycle Show

As well as browsing round the stands and meeting cycling folks at the Cycle Show at the Birmingham NEC I was also involved in a presentation at the Velovixen/HSBC British Cycling Breeze women's cycling hub.

Phil Bingham, Ishbel Holmes and I after presenting at the Cycle Show

The idea was to have a stand sponsored by two organisations heavily involved in the promotion of women's cycling, and to have presentations from different women throughout the Cycle Show, talking about their cycling and different adventures and experiences that they've had.

Anna Glowinski, the designer behind Annanichoola and Anna's Legs was the anchorwoman and she did a stirling job. She also gave a presentation about her life in cycling, and how she now has had to learn to live with fibromyalgia, a condition which has stopped her from cycling as much as she wants. Presentations were given by folks like Olympic track cyclist Joanna Rowsell, BMX World Champion Shanaze Reade, and Ishbel Holmes, who talked about her round the world cycling expeditions.

I had the privilege of being one of the presenters too, and spoke about my cycling and how I got into it. I think I was the warm-up act for the other folks to follow, so was the first presenter. I didn't have them packed to the rafters where I spoke, but I did get a fair bit of engagement from the folks who were there, and the Breeze champions who were there found my talk interesting.

It was good to be interviewed by Anna, as I've known her for many years so I didn't get that nervous about speaking in front of an audience. In fact it was quite relaxing, convivial experience!

I think a hub like this is a great idea as it gives women a chance to hear about others' experiences, get tips and make contacts. And having it in the middle of a large cycle show means you've got a captive audience.

In fact, the hub was also popular with men too. My 23-year-old nephew came to the Cycle Show too, and he found the presentations on the hub very interesting. 

Thanks to Phil Bingham of Velovixen for giving me the opportunity to speak on their stand.