Cannondale Super Six 1

The cycling industry’s obsession with carbon fibre is quite overwhelming. Some companies will go out of their way to manufacture carbon parts, even if it is not the best material for the job. Why? Because carbon sells.

Cannondale Super Six 1Its appeal with the consumer has made it the number one marketing tool at the moment. Almost every bike brand has a carbon fibre bike somewhere in their line-up.

In reality, being carbon fibre in itself does not mean much in terms of performance. It may have tons of potential but using the material doesn’t result in an instant winner on the road. Some carbon bikes are heavier than their alloy counterparts and no matter how much marketing spiel you read, some are plain uncomfortable once the road surface deteriorates.

Cannondale did not rush to jump on the carbon bandwagon. They have dabbled in carbon over the years, beginning with a relatively unsuccessful full carbon mountain bike called the Raven back in the early nineties.

Recently they invested heavily in new carbon manufacturing facilities and have worked intensively to develop their new designs. The result has been a number of new full carbon road and mountain bike models and the SuperSix is one of them.

It doesn’t take long to see that the SuperSix is not just another carbon road bike. There are a number of striking design features that make this bike stand out. To begin with, the tube dimensions through most of the bike are extremely stout.

This is somewhat a Cannondale tradition; they were the company that popularised oversized aluminium frames back in the 80’s and they have stuck by the use of large tube diameters ever since. The front end of the SuperSix is similar to the front of their half alloy SystemSix.

Surprisingly, the massive 56 mm diameter down tube doesn’t look all that big. This is because the head tube and bottom bracket areas are both oversized to matching proportions.

The head tube is oversized to accept a 1½ inch fork steerer at the bottom and it provides plenty of surface area for the fat down tube to intersect without tapering its diameter. The upper part of the head tube tapers down to a standard 1⅛ inch size which then mates neatly with the not so big top tube. The top tube has a flat oval profile that aims to provide vertical compliance and lateral stiffness.

Innovative Design

The bottom bracket shell is colossal and houses Cannondales larger than life BB30 bearing system with their ‘System Integrated Hollowgram’ crank design. The large industrial bearings slip directly into the frame and allow the use of a massive 31.75 mm bottom bracket spindle (most oversized external bearing cranks use a 24 mm spindle).

Once again the huge proportions tie in neatly with the aesthetics of this bike. In terms of function, the large bearings and spindle should promote stiffness and durability while the oversized outer shell offers plenty of meat for connecting the aforementioned fat down tube and equally large chain stays.

All of these fat tubes do not lead to an overweight bike. The diameters may be large but the wall thicknesses are fine. As a result the carbon frame weighs a touch over 1 kg (around 1,050 g for a 56 cm frame). The new Hollowgram SL cranks weigh just 580 g including bearings and chainrings—to put that in perspective Dura-Ace cranks come in at 740 g.

The package also includes a full carbon fork (right down to the carbon tips) which weighs 320 g. Once combined with Dura-Ace gears and a Mavic Ksyrium ES wheelset, this added up to 6.9 kg (without pedals)—that’s around 7.2 kg with pedals. While this weight doesn’t set any new records, it is competitively light for such a solid package.
One area on the SuperSix stands out for its lack of beef.

The spindly curved seat stays look distinctly malnourished next to the huge frame tubes. Cannondale has clearly designed these stays to flex and soften the ride. They have steered clear of using a ‘wishbone’ design and the 12 mm diameter stays run their own course between the rear axle and the seat tube junction.

Cannondale has also shunned the current industry trend of using a large diameter integrated seat-mast on their top of the line carbon road frame. Instead the SuperSix uses an easily adjustable and relatively traditional 31.6 mm post. Once again this promotes a little flex.

It is not uncommon for design ideas and theories to go out the window once you are out on the road. Some poor engineer may have worked long and hard to develop a special carbon lay-up, but the real-life performance gain may be so minute that you just won’t notice it.

With the SuperSix, I have to say that Cannondale have really got it right—at least for my taste in road bikes. Given the massive tube dimensions through the spine of the bike, it was no surprise that the SuperSix offered impressive lateral rigidity and steering accuracy. It felt like there was no flex when climbing or sprinting—at least under my 64 kg frame.

Unfortunately, the overall stiffness of the Dura-Ace equipped SuperSix 1 test bike was let down by the handlebar and stem combination. At just 99 g the Control Tech Scored 99 stem may be light, but it introduced a noticeable amount of flex into the front end. The 200 g FSA K-Force also seemed to contribute to the flex a little.

I swapped to a 145 g alloy stem for part of the review and it gave me a much better appreciation of how solid the Cannondale is under power.

Whilst on the topic of poor component choice, I have to mention the brakes. The Cannondale branded Tektro carbon/alloy brakes performed poorly and were a real compromise when compared to a set of Dura-Ace callipers. I would try fitting new pads to begin with and sell them off if their performance didn’t improve.

Ride Comfort

I have ridden other carbon bikes that exhibit a similar unyielding feel when accelerating, and some are even lighter in the frame than the SystemSix. However, I generally haven’t enjoyed the ride on these ultra-rigid featherweight bikes, as most have been equally unyielding when you hit a bump.

I’ve usually been happy to return to my slightly flexy 3-year old alloy road bike for any 100 km plus rides. With the Cannondale it was a different story and I didn’t want to give this one back. The super skinny seat stays really do their job, in fact they are so compliant that you can actually see them move if you grab them and pull them together with your fingers!

This carbon frame doesn’t just damp road buzz and vibration, it really takes the edge off bumps and potholes. For something so stiff in a lateral plain, it provides a very comfortable ride.

The overall design of the SuperSix is reminiscent of the Cervelo R3—another bike that gets rave reviews for its ride quality. While there is undoubtedly a market towards ultra stiff bikes, it is good to see that Cannnondale has not just blindly followed the ‘stiff is better’ adage to the end. I personally can’t see the point in ultra-stiff seat masts and wishbone seat stay designs.

Controlled flex can be your friend, if it is found in the right places. Cannondale has used some innovative ideas to maximise lateral stiffness between the head tube, bottom bracket and the rear wheel. They have succeeded without sacrificing comfort—something you will appreciate at the end of a long day on the bike.

At $8,200 for the Dura-Ace equipped SuperSix it carries a premium price tag. It is comparable in cost to a Cervelo R3 with similar running gear and it deserves to be in the same league. This is not just another cookie cutter carbon bike. A great deal of thought has gone into its design and it is one of the nicest road bikes that I have ridden.

Specifications

Frame High modulus unidirectional carbon fibre
Fork Full carbon with 1½ inch lower crown race
Head Set SuperSix carbon
Stem Control Tech Scored 99
Handlebars FSA K-Force 31.8
Shift Levers Shimano Dura-Ace 10-speed STI
F Derailleur Shimano Dura-Ace
R Derailleur Shimano Dura-Ace 10-speed
Cassette Shimano Dura-Ace 12-23
Chain Shimano Ultegra
Crank Cannondale Hollowgram SL
Bottom Bracket Cannondale BB30 Systems Integrated
Pedals N/A
Brakes Cannondale C1 Carbon
Wheels Mavic Ksyrium ES
Tyres Maxxis Xenith Hors Cat
Saddle Fizik Arione
Seatpost Control Tech carbon
Weight 6.9kg without pedals

Price $8,200
Distributor Cannondale Australia (02) 9979 5851
www.cannondale.com

Summing Up

Quality 80%
It is good to see a bike where some real thought has gone into the design.

Performance 90%
Few bikes blend unyielding stiffness with great ride comfort as the SuperSix does. The test bike was only let down by a few inappropriate or sub-standard components—namely the brakes and handlebar stem.

Value for Money 65%
This one is hard to gauge. I really rated this bike highly and would love to own one, but $8,200 is too tall an order for my plastic card. Is it worth it? Well that’s for you to decide…

Overall 90%
With a few component swaps the SuperSix can reach its full potential. Cannondale has made an impressively fast racing machine that also provides all-day comfort.

Photos: John Hardwick