There’s one thing you must find out about me, when you do not already. Though I have been using bikes for shut to twenty years, my using has most likely been about 99% road.
Whereas some may discover weaving by means of the visitors at evening on the crowded streets of Bangkok insane, I did not discover it fairly as intimidating as I anticipated. Why? As a result of I have been using in congested city environments for actually my whole using profession.
Positive, Chicago visitors and Bangkok visitors are decidedly not the identical, however the sheer variety of individuals out and about in (and on) automobiles, all making an attempt to occupy the identical few ft of house on the identical time? That is one thing that is been baked into me from the start, since virtually as quickly as I discovered to stroll.
Nonetheless, that is not dust; neither is it dust using.
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I’ve performed valuable little path using in my time on two wheels. Possibly barely extra on a bicycle than on something with a motor, however not very a lot on a pedal bike, both. Although I have been getting slightly extra adventurous with the e-bike I have been using with barely knobbly tires. It is cool, but it surely’s not how (or the place) I grew up.
As such, I’ve had a minimal quantity of path coaching, although I did the primary degree MSF DirtBike Faculty course a number of years again (totally on grass, up at lovely Street America). Whereas I significantly admire individuals who can journey by means of sand and rocks and up mountains and lose grip of their again tires whereas concurrently not fully dropping their minds, I am not a kind of individuals.
And the factor is, regardless that I hope to enhance my abilities with additional coaching, I actually do not know if I ever can be a kind of individuals. I count on that I will enhance considerably, however as to how rapidly/a lot, that is one other matter completely.
However after spending a day using on all types of roads with the 2025 Can-Am Canyon XT—in lower than ultimate climate situations—I feel that I could be precisely who BRP’s newest trike is constructed for. And I additionally say that after having ridden each the Spyder RT and the Ryker Rally. Totally different strokes for various people and all that, however in my humble opinion, these two trikes might by no means do what we did with these Canyons.
And that is an excellent factor, as a result of when you’re questioning what the distinction is between the Canyon and its older siblings in Can-Am’s three-wheeler lineup, I’ll kind a complete lot of phrases to inform you all about it. Additionally, I’ll make you have a look at images. And possibly additionally watch movies, which can be coming quickly to RideApart’s YouTube and social media channels.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
A Fast and Soiled Can-Am Canyon Rundown
2025 marks the primary mannequin 12 months of the Can-Am Canyon. It is powered by the identical Rotax 1330 Ace 3-cylinder engine that you will discover within the Spyder and the Ryker, making the identical peak 115 horsepower and 96 lb-ft of torque. It has a 6-speed semi-automatic gearbox that you just function with a finger-thumb shifter on the left handlebar (similar to Yamaha’s Y-AMT management, solely Can-Am’s been doing it this fashion on its three-wheelers for a number of years).
Why semi-automatic? There isn’t any clutch; you simply shift up or down together with your left hand. Whilst you do need to upshift (hit the Plus signal on the paddle shifter), the Canyon will downshift for you when your pace drops. Should you desire, you’ll be able to manually downshift by hitting the Minus signal on the paddle shifter at your leisure; it is all as much as you.
The Canyon is unfortunately not three-wheel drive, although it will be wonderful if Can-Am did a 3WD model sooner or later. (Fairly please, guys?) Nonetheless, the very good and provoking Brembo brakes are linked, and you use them utilizing the brake pedal positioned in entrance of the fitting foot peg. There isn’t any clutch lever and no brake lever to concern your self with whenever you’re working any number of Canyon.
Talking of which, there are three variations of the Canyon. The bottom Canyon has no baggage and a typical suspension, although it does nonetheless have better floor clearance and suspension journey than any Spyder or Ryker. Sachs Huge Bore shocks grace the entrance, and there is a swingarm setup within the rear. Floor clearance is 6.3 inches; almost two greater than the Spyder RT.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
Transfer as much as the Canyon XT or Redrock and also you get a capacious prime field and two onerous aluminum facet circumstances. On the XT, it is all a pleasant uncooked aluminum look; on the Redrock, it is color-matched and appears fairly good on the matte inexperienced shade at the moment used for that trim degree in 2025. The XT will get the identical suspension as the bottom Canyon, whereas the Redrock provides a semi-active KYB suspension that I am instructed is barely plusher than the XT I spent the day using.
However I did not actually have any complaints in regards to the XT’s journey qualities, even bouncing over some fairly washboard-esque dust roads. Two different key adjustments on the Canyon as in comparison with the Spyder and Ryker lineups are the good, chunky anti-slip enduro foot pegs and the bar riser. Each of this stuff make it tremendous straightforward and comfortable to face up as you want when going over bumpy or sketchy terrain, and I can inform you it nearly felt like second nature ergonomically. I’m additionally fairly brief at 5’3″ with a 27-inch inseam, so please additionally take that under consideration.
Which brings me to my subsequent level about Can-Am’s positioning of the Canyon, and who it is for.
In response to the group, the Canyon will not be meant as a real off-road car. The truth is, when you attempt to go rock crawling or go into deep sand with it, the phrase “you’re going to get caught” did truly come out of an engineer’s mouth. As a substitute, Can-Am says that it is meant as an “all-road” car. That means: Grime roads, gravel roads, fireplace roads, and naturally locations the place the indicators warn you of “primitive roads” that you will be using at your personal threat, like a number of the ones we tackled throughout our testing day. Rain or shine, and loads of rain and dirt, in my case.
Paved Roads, Grime Roads, and Slippery Mud
Going over the route we might be touring forward of time, we had been instructed that we would be using a mixture of surfaces throughout our outing. Though everybody hoped the climate would clear up, there was additionally a definite likelihood of rain, together with potential thunderstorms within the forecast.
Since years of road using meant that I examine the forecast forward of time (and a number of occasions whereas packing for a visit), I would packed my rain gear within the hopes that it will keep off the situations which may name for it.
It did not. Not even slightly bit.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
However with correct rain gear, coupled with the very good five-level heated grips that come commonplace on all Can-Am Canyons, I stayed dry, heat, and comfortable all day. The group concurrently obtained completely filthy within the rain, dust, and dirt, however your perspective about having to scrub all that up in a while tends to be loads higher whenever you aren’t additionally soaked and shivering all day lengthy.
Our day began with a rollout from the resort, onto the roads of historic downtown Prescott, Arizona. Situated at round 5,300 ft, some in our occasion had been nonetheless adjusting to the altitude, and it is the type of place the place the paved roads can be hilly.
The drizzle was regular as we left, and had been falling for a while previous to our departure. That meant the roads had been already fairly damp, however the Can-Am Canyons completely did not care. Can-Am’s Car Stability System mixture of IMU-linked digital rider aids was completely wonderful with the wet street situations, as had been the Brembo brakes and XPS Journey tires.
Having beforehand ridden the Spyder and Ryker, it did not take lengthy in any respect for me to acclimate to the cockpit of the Canyon. It additionally did not take lengthy for me to note that the shifter felt far more responsive on the Canyon than it had on the Spyder I would beforehand ridden.
I requested about that feeling at lunch, and was instructed they hadn’t modified the shifter between the 2. So it is potential that it was simply the particular take a look at unit that I rode final 12 months, which had fairly a number of miles on it by the point it obtained to me. That means, it had clearly seen quite a lot of use by the point I obtained my arms on it.
The primary a part of our journey consisted of quite a lot of broad, sweeping freeway using as we proceeded to the path head into the Prescott Nationwide Forest. There was a stark, bleak type of prettiness by means of the grey skies and seemingly limitless drizzle, but it surely wasn’t actually something in comparison with what we had been about to expertise as soon as we obtained off the freeway.
And, I imply, is not that why you get off the freeway within the first place? To see stuff you would not see in any other case?
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One after the other, we left the freeway and turned off into the forest, with really spectacular bushes towering throughout us. There is a heady mixture of bushes within the space; primarily composed of Utah juniper and Ponderosa pine, with a mixture of different pines, oaks, mesquite, juniper, maple, and extra unfold amongst the 1,238,803 acres that comprise the Prescott Nationwide Forest.
I could not assist however take into consideration a number of the cacti within the space, that I would just discovered develop solely an inch yearly, and the way a number of the tallest bushes round us should evaluate as we went zooming previous them.
As an individual who hasn’t ridden a lot dust, transitions from pavement onto dust normally make me way more nervous on a bike than they most likely ought to. The logical a part of my mind is aware of this, in fact; however attempt telling that to the remainder of my mind (and good luck to you).
On the Canyon, although? It is wonderful. Completely no worries; completely surefooted. Later within the day, after we proceeded up some twisty mountain “primitive roads” on the way in which to Jerome, the again finish was slipping and sliding and obtained fairly squirrely—however in a enjoyable means. Not a terrifying means, although a few times it felt slightly furry in the way in which that solely attractive mountain roads and their explicit risk of impending mortality can do.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
I stood up quite a lot of the time, and the enduro pegs had been simply as anti-slip as they claimed. Granted, my boots have anti-slip soles as effectively, so I do suspect it was a cooperative effort between the 2 issues. However even by means of the mud and the muck and the rain, I had zero situations the place my ft slid at any level. Whether or not I used to be standing up or sitting down, at no level did the Canyon’s dealing with lead me to something approaching panic.
As a substitute, it was exhilarating in a means I do not assume that I’ve felt earlier than.
The entire means up, I saved considering to myself that I actually do not know if I would ever be using these roads if it wasn’t for the Canyon. I imply, even when I do enhance my dust abilities on two wheels (which I am sincerely hoping to do), how lengthy would it not realistically take earlier than I used to be adequate to deal with roads like these and never be terrified?
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
Just about everybody else in my group had way more off-road bike expertise than I do, and even a few of these extra skilled people had been remarking on how sketchy this case could be on two wheels. In a means, I used to be relieved to listen to them say this, as a result of it wasn’t simply me and my whole newbie mind staring wide-eyed by means of the fog.
However on three wheels, with applicable tires, and with digital rider aids that supply an applicable (learn: reassuring, however neither obtrusive nor intrusive) quantity of intervention? Actually, it was a deal with.
I felt like I lastly obtained it. Journey, I imply. In a means you completely cannot do by means of a display screen. You’ll be able to take the woman out of town, however you’ll be able to’t take town out of the woman, you already know? Or one thing like that.
Over the course of the day, my confidence solely grew. It faltered barely within the mud, I will be trustworthy; at one level, I muttered inside my helmet that I used to be feeling like a bumblebee with how a lot I used to be wiggling my again finish. Nevertheless it wasn’t ever worrying; simply asking me to attenuate my management inputs, preserve a free grip on the Canyon’s handlebars so it might observe the place it wanted to go, and put my religion within the car’s composition to energy by means of.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
At one level within the mud, I ought to point out that the Canyon’s Car Stability System (VSS) gave me a Fault error. The alert beeped at me and a warning confirmed up onscreen, but it surely saved working and did not appear to be appearing any in a different way as I proceeded up the mountain. Once we pulled over for a cease towards the highest, one of many Can-Am people swapped Canyons with me, as I used to be the one particular person in our group who had a VSS fault happen. He was capable of efficiently reset it, and neither I nor anybody else had any comparable points the remainder of the day.
By the point we obtained again down the mountain on the opposite facet and located our technique to pavement, I discovered it fairly second-nature to fling it by means of corners. In case you questioned, path braking works fairly effectively on the Canyon. I wasn’t certain how it will work with three wheels, however I discovered it to be fairly efficient right here.
Picture by: Can-Am/Align Media
On the way in which again, we rode by means of a very windy valley that virtually dried us all off after all of the rain we might been using by means of all day. Completely filthy, blessedly heat and dry, and totally exhilarated on the finish of all of it. I am unable to inform you what I anticipated the Canyon to be like, however I can inform you that it is simply my favourite Can-Am three-wheeler, arms down.
Should you’re after making an attempt a Canyon for your self, you will discover the bottom 2025 Can-Am Canyon, Canyon XT, and Canyon Redrock at your native approved Can-Am supplier. All three are inbuilt Quebec, and pricing (not together with equipment or different extras) begins at US $25,299. I ought to point out additionally that your complete Canyon vary also can take a passenger if you wish to share the enjoyable.
