Despite having not ridden in the Borders for a few years, expect the Top Chief to be charging hard this weekend. Pete took a closer look at his Canyon Torque.
We’re more familiar with Joe hoofing about on his Spectral, but with some alpine EWS events inbound, the Torque will be his race bike, so getting used to the bigger pony is key.
Joe’s confident he’s had his settings dialled long before this race, so no major changes other than a slightly different compound Minion for the weekend. Expect a wry smile if the rain keeps falling overnight.
Joe rides a stock medium Canyon Torque with a 150mm dropper to get the standover and keep the legs spinning. A 50mm stem keeps things steady out the front without being twitchy, mated to a fairly sensible 750mm bar. Both Canyon’s own units.
Joe is certainly at the sharp end this weekend and has had plenty of time over the years wiggling through the trees in the Tweed Valley. I’d imagine his downhill bike of old isn’t too dissimilar, geometry-wise, to the Torque Joe will be racing this weekend.
Joe runs a 180mm travel Rockshox Lyrik RC2 with a pair of tokens to keep things firm and linear, just the way he likes it. Joe runs 165mm cranks with a 34 tooth SRAM Eagle chainring.
A progressive shock and a progressive rear end means Joe isn’t running any volume tokens in the rear shock to try and keep things moving. A Super Deluxe DebonAir unit handling the squidgy bit in the middle.
Minion DHF and DHRs handling the grip this weekend. Joe would swap for MaxxGrip over MaxxTerra, both tubeless, spinning on Mavic DeeMax wheels. There’s 21psi out front and 25 psi in the rear.
“A dream come true” according to Joe. Who doesn’t want their name laser-etched into their brake levers? A bitey rear brake and a front that pulls to the bar is just how the Top Chief likes it. “I shouldn’t be trusted with a front brake…”
Last but not least, Joe’s hand-made frame bag. Joe can fit everything he needs in this bag, so no pack required. Keeps the weight low and central too.
