From CyclingWeekly.com
What appears to be a new Specialized Crux was spotted at the Gralloch in Scotland this weekend, and ridden to victory in the women’s UCI category by Specialized Off Road athlete Geerike Shreurs.
The new bike represents a massive departure from the traditional double-diamond, round-tubed frame of the outgoing Crux, with a facade inspired by the road-going Tarmac platform. The most notable attribute comes in the form of an aerodynamic frame and the apparent larger tyre clearance – not that the outgoing model lacked provision for wider tyres: it could accommodate widths of 47mm, and many riders successfully ran 50mm tyres paired with 1x drivetrains.
While we can’t confirm the exact clearances, based on current trends in the category, we can safely assume maximum clearances of around 55-57mm, which should accommodate tyres of up to 2.2 inches wide. We’ve seen provision for wider tyres at the forefront of contemporary gravel frame design with bikes such as the new Factor Sarana and Open Wi.De 2.0,with the latter offering gargantuan clearances once reserved for cross-country mountain bikes.