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Cannondale’s Slate nears production

Cannondale's Slate arrives in the UK so we went to have a closer look at the gravel/adventure road bike

Instead of the usual big glitzy launch event for a new bike, Cannondale has taken a different approach with its new Slate, preferring to tease us with short videos and tidbits of information released over the course of a few months. But a dealer show at the Williams F1 Conference Centre near Oxford yesterday, Cannondale presented a final pre-production painted sample of the new Slate, and it was my first chance to see the bike in the flesh.

First look: Cannondale Slate Ultegra + Video, photo gallery, spec and full range info

While the bike isn’t likely to be available until September or October, and this isn’t an actual production bike, Cannondale has confirmed there will be three models in the range. Each shares the same frame and Lefty Oliver fork, but use different groupsets. At the top, and the lightest model is the SRAM Force CX1 bike costing £2,995. Next is an Ultegra model at £2,799 and the most affordable is the 105 bike at £2,499.

One thing's for sure, it’s a head-turner. Despite being surrounded by high-end and very shiny SuperSix Evos and Synapses, the Slate was getting the most attention at the show. That’s really no surprise - the paint job and Lefty fork ensure it is a radical departure from the rest of the Cannondale 2016 range. But it’s also because the Slate has piqued a lot of interest from cyclists who are perhaps warming to the idea of a road bike with fat tyres and a suspension fork designed to allow them to stray away from the confines of the road network, and explore the countryside away from heavily congested streets.

Gravel racing in the US might have kickstarted this new category of road bike, that some are calling adventure, allroad, roadplus - Cannondale is going with gnarmac… I’m not sure that’ll stick personally. Whatever you want to call it, it’s clear that these types of bikes are rapidly evolving, but along different lines. The Slate is the boldest interpretation of a genre that has no clearly defined rules. The way Cannondale sees it, the Slate is intended to be a road bike first and foremost, with the handling and performance you’d expect and want from a road bike. But it can handle gravel, dirt, bridleways, towpaths, any sort of off-road trail you want to send it down really, without getting out of control. And all while aiming to inject a bit of fun and adventure back into road cycling.

It’s a bold ambition, and the Slate is a bold product. It has an aluminium frame, the distinctive 30mm suspension fork with one fork leg, and big 42mm tyres on 650b wheels. Let’s start with that wheel size. Cannondale certainly isn’t the first to use 650b wheels on a road bike, it’s a wheel size popular on randonneur bikes from the past, and we’ve seen a few framebuilders dabbling with the wheel size more recently (including Richard Hallett), but Cannondale is a big company so it has obviously turned a lot of heads with its adoption of the wheel size on its newest bike.

“The 650b x 42mm tyres give a cyclist a tremendous amount of confidence with that [larger] contact patch you have,” says Cannondale’s Global Director Sports Marketing man Jonathan Geran. “You run the tyre pressures a lot lower when it’s set up tubeless, between 40-50psi depending on rider weight and terrain, but never much more than 50psi. And you still have the rollout of a 700c x 22mm set up.”

- Buyer’s guide to gravel and adventure bikes plus 11 of the Best

Don’t think that huge tyre will make the bike slow on the road, though. “During prototype testing, engineers and designers riding prototypes during lunchtime rides, are riding along with us at 20, 21, 22mph in the group ride without any problems, and maintaining their speeds within the group on a road ride,” adds Jonathan. “But yet the capabilities he has to go off-road are expanded beyond what you can do on the road.”

The Slate pictured, the most affordable 105 model, is fitted with Panaracer Pacenti Pari-Moto 42mm tyres. Panaracer has partnered with Kirk Pacenti, who was really behind the 650b/27.5in wheel size many years ago, to develop its range of 650b tyres. Panaracer has jumped into the gravel bike market with its GravelKing tyre recently, which has been reviewed on road.cc previously, but the Pari-Moto is clearly a more road focused tyre. It has a claimed 300g weight so the weight penalty over 28mm tyre isn’t that huge.

The Slate looks like the type of bike that, with a change of tyres, could be used to conquer any sort of terrain, and that’s exactly what I suggested to Jonathan, but he told me Cannondale has actually designed the bike to be solely used with this tyre - though obviously there’s nothing stopping you changing them yourself.

“The initial concept is trying to have the most capable and confident road bike with one tyre, and there are a couple of design choices behind that,” reveals Jonathan. “Having said that, we have looked at different file treads and raspy pattern treads to try on this bike, and it’s certainly something that can change your focus on the bike.

“For now, the bike is set up 60/40 or 50/50 road/dirt, depending on your flavour. If you’re more 80% dirt, you might look at a file tread with some side knobs, to optimise your performance that that 80% goal.”

There are several benefits to the use of 650b wheels according to Cannondale. As well as the increased volume for smoothing bumpy terrain while maintain the same outside measurement as a 700x22 set up, the 650b wheels allowed Cannondale to maintain a geometry on the Slate that is very close to its road bikes.

“The use of a 650b wheel allows us to use a 405mm chainstay,” reveals Jonathan. “If you put a 700c wheel in there, you have to expand the chainstays out to 430 or longer, in order to get the clearance and tolerances you need. When you do that, you start to extend your wheelbase, and change the handling characteristic of the bike.”

Of the many (and we’ve seen a lot) gravel and adventure road bikes that we’ve seen so far, most have borrowed the longer wheelbases from endurance bikes, or the longer chainstays from cyclo-cross models. Cannondale however has sought to keep the chainstays as short as a road bike, but add more length into the front centre and slacken the head angle, to provide the sort of handling it wants for this bike.

“We wanted an elite road feel, in acceleration, climbing, cornering and handling, so we wanted the rear wheel tight and tucked in. The other thing though is it puts that rear wheel right under the rider's weight, so when you’re off-road, on more aggressive terrain, and you're seated in the saddle, you’re putting more weight on the contact patch, which helps provide more traction and less wheel slip from using a slick tyre on dirt,” adds Jonathan.

Plenty of compelling reasons for the wheel size then. The other standout feature of the new bike is of course the Lefty Oliver, a novel suspension fork design that Cannondale has been using on its mountain bikes for many years. This one has been specially designed with just 30mm of tuneable suspension travel wrapped up in carbon fibre to reduce weight. The suspension travel ought to be just enough to provide more off-road capability, certainly more control and vibration absorption than the big tyres can offer.

Cannondale hasn’t revealed a weight for the fork. The lightest mountain bike version is 1855g, though that has 140mm travel, so the Oliver should be significantly lighter. Still, the whole bike isn’t as heavy as you might imagine. I didn’t have my scales with me, but Cannondale reckon the top-end SRAM Force 1x11 build should weigh in at about 18lb (8.16kg) which is a pretty decent weight. Pressed on whether Cannondale might offer a rigid Slate in the future, it certainly didn’t rule out the possibility.

The Slate’s aluminium frame has been developed using the same True Flow Modelling computer system it used to develop the new CAAD12, which has allowed them to develop, using computer simulations, the best tube profiles and wall thicknesses for the different requirements of each part of the frame. There’s some extensive profiling of the chainstays, the seatstays are wide and flat, to enable some deflection, and the down tube is enormous to provide the required stiffness. There’s plenty of tyre clearance between the 42mm tyre and frame at the rear wheel, and obviously no limitation up front with the Lefty fork.

The frame has a Syntace 142x12mm bolt-thru rear axle and the Lefty has a bolt-thru axle as well. There are hidden mudguard eyelets on the frame, which leaves the back of the frame looking very clean without any mudguards fitted. There’s no way to fit a conventional road bike mudguard to the Lefty. Cannondale is rumoured to be working on something, but there are mountain bike mudguards that can fit, using the vacant space in the bottom of the steerer tube, so it’s not impossible to fit a full set of mudguards.

It’s a disc-only bike, naturally, and uses Shimano’s Flat Mount design. The frame is compatible with mechanical and electronic groupsets, with smart modular ports that are neatly positioned. The frame uses a 27.2mm seatpost, rather than the 25.4mm from the Synapse that might have been expected. That would allow a dropper post to be fitted if though there are only a few 27.2mm dropper posts on the market, most are commonly 30.9 or 31.6mm.

As I said at the top of this article, the bike pictured here is a pre-production sample. They weren’t letting anyone ride it (shame) and I asked if I could arrange a ride after the show, but sadly the bike is being sent straight back to the US. It’s not looking like the Slate will be available until September, maybe even October, at the earliest. This bike does provide an indication of the colour palette and graphical approach it is going for, which looks about right for the style of riding the bike is intended for.

This is the Shimano 105 mechanical bike with hydraulic disc brakes - all three bikes come with hydro disc brakes. There’s Cannondale’s own C3 finishing kit, a Fabric saddle and Cannondale’s latest Si crankset with FSA 52/36t chainrings. The rims are Cannondale’s own Slate branded tubeless-ready wheels as well.

Hopefully the next time we report on the Slate, it'll be a first ride impression, because I am itching to ride the thing.

www.cannondale.com

David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes

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22 comments

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Casey233 | 8 years ago
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Usual adverse comments about a new unusual and exciting laughBike....what is it about some Bike riders anything out of the ordinary seems to cause adverse comments ? I ride mainly Mountain Bikes and think it is a great innovation bring it on!! I have ordered a Cannondale Slate Ultegra and am looking forward to getting out there on Tarmac and track......

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joemmo | 8 years ago
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just remembered this:

http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/velozone/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/sm500...

Cannondale have a chequered past when it comes to wheel size experimentation. I think the justifcation for this was that the 24" rear wheel would be stronger... It didn't really take off.

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joules1975 replied to joemmo | 8 years ago
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joemmo wrote:

just remembered this:

http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/velozone/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/sm500...

Cannondale have a chequered past when it comes to wheel size experimentation. I think the justifcation for this was that the 24" rear wheel would be stronger... It didn't really take off.

They weren't the only ones to try a 24" rear, and others have tried 29 front and 26 rear (names, wait .... the 69er! ... snigger).

The thing both have in common is using a small wheel to overcome what was at the time a strength issue with a wheel, only for the strength issues to be resolved and people to realise that there is no point mixing wheel sizes as you cancel the benefits of both sizes.

Having been through the whole MTB wheel size thing over the last few years, and having tried them all (back to back), I can see the Slate really taking off and others following suit.

Now, just to throw something else in there, how long before someone uses the new BOOST axle width to create an adventure/touring bike with bigger than 700c/29er wheels for those wanting the ultimate in mile munching, momentum keeping gravel/adventure bike but who don't care too much about agility.

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joemmo | 8 years ago
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Maybe we have different definitions of chuckable... Risking pedantry, I'd define it as the ability to chuck a bike over, down and through rough stuff and for it to carry you through, not as outright agility.

Anyway. It's a bike. its probably good.

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joemmo | 8 years ago
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Maybe we have different definitions of chuckable... Risking pedantry, I'd define it as the ability to chuck a bike over, down and through rough stuff and for it to carry you through, not as outright agility.

Anyway. It's a bike. its probably good.

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joules1975 replied to joemmo | 8 years ago
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joemmo wrote:

Maybe we have different definitions of chuckable... Risking pedantry, I'd define it as the ability to chuck a bike over, down and through rough stuff and for it to carry you through, not as outright agility.

Anyway. It's a bike. its probably good.

I steer my MTB through/over rough stuff, but chuck it off rock-steps/drop-offs, over lips and round berms. Maybe it's a riding style thing, maybe just the wonders of language.

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hennahairgel | 8 years ago
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Those holes on the front of the seat stays which they state are for panniers are not; AFAIK they are for dutch locks. I've got a Scott with both those and pannier mounts pointing sideways on the seat stays. I did try to find some panniers that could use those holes but couldn't find anything.

It's a really odd inclusion on the frame, unless I'm mistaken and it's a new standard. But then is a pannier on this bike unusual?

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Alb | 8 years ago
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52/36T is some pretty meaty gearing for a bike like this, no?!

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joemmo | 8 years ago
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@joules1975

"In fact, I can see there being a further split in the categories - 650b gravel bikes for those wanting to chuck them around like an mtb but ride at road bike speeds on Tarmac"

but you can't chuck it around like a MTB because it has drop bars, relatively narrow tyres and road position and geometry - so the slate is still basically a cross bike with a short travel suspension fork.

The 'chuckability' of a MTB comes from the combination of the position, the wide flat bars, fat, soft, knobbly tyres, suspension, traction, the fact the front wheel is further out in front of you and you have room to push the bike around underneath you. Wheel size is a much smaller factor in fun than all those.

Don't get me wrong this looks like a fun bike: but I have a cx bike and while its great fun with some 37c knobblies on I also have a full sus MTB and they are totally different beasts in terms of off-road capability. You can't have everything in one bike.

Maybe the sus fork is the 'game changer' here, I'll be interested to read a review.

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barbarus replied to joemmo | 8 years ago
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joemmo wrote:

You can't have everything in one bike.

This is the crux of it in my opinion. No doubt this will be a fantastic and fun bike to ride, there's obviously lots of thought gone into the design, particularly with shrinking the wheels and growing the tyres to keep chainstays short.

But it is niche, it is expensive and it won't be as good a road bike as a "proper" road bike and it won't be as good a mountain bike as a "proper" mountain bike.

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joules1975 replied to barbarus | 8 years ago
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barbarus wrote:
joemmo wrote:

You can't have everything in one bike.

This is the crux of it in my opinion. No doubt this will be a fantastic and fun bike to ride, there's obviously lots of thought gone into the design, particularly with shrinking the wheels and growing the tyres to keep chainstays short.

But it is niche, it is expensive and it won't be as good a road bike as a "proper" road bike and it won't be as good a mountain bike as a "proper" mountain bike.

Disagree. This bike isn't trying to be everything. It's a road bike that lets you be a hooligan and take in some off-road shortcuts.

Maybe the view of the bike depends where you live and the riding that's available, but for me it looks ace, cause I love the idea of being able to ride to a trail centre at or near road bike speeds, riding some of the trails at or near MTB speeds (obviously the smoother greens and blues - the bike might take the odd red or black but doubt it would be much fun!) and then riding fast home again.

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joules1975 replied to joemmo | 8 years ago
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joemmo wrote:

@joules1975

"In fact, I can see there being a further split in the categories - 650b gravel bikes for those wanting to chuck them around like an mtb but ride at road bike speeds on Tarmac"

but you can't chuck it around like a MTB because it has drop bars, relatively narrow tyres and road position and geometry - so the slate is still basically a cross bike with a short travel suspension fork.

The 'chuckability' of a MTB comes from the combination of the position, the wide flat bars, fat, soft, knobbly tyres, suspension, traction, the fact the front wheel is further out in front of you and you have room to push the bike around underneath you. Wheel size is a much smaller factor in fun than all those.

Maybe my comment about 'like an MTB' was misleading. Clearly it's not going to be like and MTB, cause it's not an MTB, but I disagree with you other comments.

The wheel being further out in front on an MTB actually makes it less chuckable, it adds stability but slows the steering down - MTBs now come with short stems to get some of steering response back. Wide bars also slow the steering, but improve control in terms of making the bike less likely to get thrown of line by a rock or similar because you have more leverage ont he bars to keep it pointed straight.

Wheel size has a massive impact on handling response. I did a back to back test on 26, 27 and 29 bikes (all one brand, with very similar design and spec) and the 29er was noticeably less agile - hence why everyone goes on about upgrading to lighter wheels and tyres improving the handling of a bike.

What I meant by 'chuck it about like and MTB' is that this bike will let you be a bit of a hooligan without worrying anything like as much about pinch flats (especially if tubeless), dinging or buckling your rim and knowing that the steering response will be as quick as a normal road bike.

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Stef Marazzi | 8 years ago
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I doubt it will be a better road bike than any current cross bike. My £650 quid Ridley X-Bow can do 28-29 mph on the flat with normal 700x28 four seasons fitted. I imagine a 7 kilo cross bike must be incredible on the flat. Something like a Cannondale SuperX.

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joules1975 replied to Stef Marazzi | 8 years ago
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cyclesteffer wrote:

I doubt it will be a better road bike than any current cross bike. My £650 quid Ridley X-Bow can do 28-29 mph on the flat with normal 700x28 four seasons fitted. I imagine a 7 kilo cross bike must be incredible on the flat. Something like a Cannondale SuperX.

Better road bike than cx bike on 28 tyres or similar maybe not in terms of speed, but it will be more nimble and more comfortable.

I've just bought a cx bike (it's really a gravel bike but the manufacturer hasn't realised yet) but only cause the slate is way out my price range. If they bring one out in a couple of years at the £1000 mark, or a frame only option, I'll probably get one cause I think the fun factor difference between the slate and a normal cx bike is likely to be similar to the difference between a 29er mtb and a 27.5 or 26 mtb.

In fact, I can see there being a further split in the categories - 650b gravel bikes for those wanting to chuck them around like an mtb but ride at road bike speeds on Tarmac, and 700c (29er) with 1.5" tyres for those covering distance and/or carrying loads because maintaining momentum will be slightly easier on rough ground compared to the 650b.

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fast as fupp | 8 years ago
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what a ghastly looking contraption!

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alexb | 8 years ago
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I like the idea, but not the fact that it would drop you into a fixed path with no way to change or upgrade anything. Unique front hub means no dynamo hub, so you are stuck with battery lights, so no long distance adventuring for you then!
Same with the rear hub, try getting that fixed miles from home, or spare tyres or anything else.

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joules1975 replied to alexb | 8 years ago
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 4

alexb wrote:

I like the idea, but not the fact that it would drop you into a fixed path with no way to change or upgrade anything. Unique front hub means no dynamo hub, so you are stuck with battery lights, so no long distance adventuring for you then!
Same with the rear hub, try getting that fixed miles from home, or spare tyres or anything else.

You seem to confusing this for a touring bike. This is not an adventure bike in the sense of loading up disappearing into the wilds for a few days, this is about keeping up with your mates on the road and then diving off on a cheeky shortcut through the woods. It's about grin factor.

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bikewithnoname | 8 years ago
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Oh look, it’s a Randonneur bike with front suspension and less chrome. A niche within a niche.

Initialised, You can fit an SKS Shockbaord to a lefty, it attaches to a bung you put into the bottom end of the lefty steerer tube, I have one on my F29.

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Initialised | 8 years ago
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Very tempted, but I already have a decent hardtail and a disc braked road bike with room for 42mm tyres. It could presumably replace both.

Also... how does one fit mud guards to a Lefty to make it great for mixed terrain commuters?

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Kadinkski | 8 years ago
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The bike itself looks really interesting but that Slate logo looks like something I drew in school when i was a 13 year old boy into skateboarding and BMX.

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joemmo | 8 years ago
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On one hand this really appeals but its also quite niche. There's definitely a lot that you can ride with some fatter road tyres but the idea that you can ride 'any sort of off-road trail' is just not true other wise no-one would be riding a mountain bike.

Still, nice to see cool stuff like this anyway, just not convinced this is massively more off-road capable than a fat tyre shod cross bike

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David Arthur @d... replied to joemmo | 8 years ago
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joemmo wrote:

Still, nice to see cool stuff like this anyway, just not convinced this is massively more off-road capable than a fat tyre shod cross bike

But it might (most likely) be a better road bike than any slick tyred 'cross bike.

The Slate clearly isn't going to be a bike for everyone. Some people will really get it and find it suitable for their riding style/local terrain, but it might not work for some people at all

I know a lot of people who ride cyclocross bikes through the winter with slick tyres. They never taken them near a cyclocross race though, for them it's all about being able to run bigger tyres with more clearance. For these people, the Slate might just be the perfect bike

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