The same carbon-fibre frame used by the Liquigas-Cannondale professional team is now being made available for paying customers which opens up frame replacement opportunities where riders already have the wheels and components they need.
Up until this point, the least expensive route to ownership of Cannondale's flagship 695 gram frame has been by buying it equipped with SRAM Red components and Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheels for a little over £3,900.
However, it's long been the tradition that racers like to buy their frames separately or at least have the option. It's not just about saving money although that would certainly be the case if you already owned the majority of the parts and a crashed or otherwise unsatisfactory frame; mostly it's that hobby racers like to get things 'just so' with components that may not be available as a complete build from the factory. For example, Cannondale do not offer any Campagnolo production options.
Cannondale are keen to point out that the SuperSix Evo is not all just about the weight, either. "It also boasts the highest ever recorded stiffness to weight ratio of 142.3 Nm/Deg/Kg* as tested by Zedler Fahrradtechnik’s independent test facility in Germany," they say.
"The unique beauty of the Evo is its balance of light with strong, and stiff with smooth to produce a frame that rides like nothing else on the planet." claims their man. "Cannondale’s state-of-the-art carbon construction utilises BallisTec Carbon Technology keeping weight to an absolute minimum with no trade off in strength. In fact, lab testing proves that the EVO outperforms even the strongest metal frames on the market when it comes to both impact and fatigue life."
And as our Mat posted when he went to the launch ride in Italy last Spring Cannondale have gone to considerable trouble in paring down the SuperSix frame in its 'Evo' guise to minimise the tube profiles for wind resistance and not just from the front. "…smaller diameter tubes…dramatically reduce the frontal area and drag without the added weight and compromises of aero shaped tubes. With smaller diameter, round tube, profiles the Evo is effected substantially less by crosswinds or blustery conditions than designs with taller profiles."
The frame comes complete with a full carbon Evo SPEED SAVE fork made from the same BallisTec high-modulus material as the frame, a SRAM PF30 bottom bracket and 1-1/8” to 1-1/4” headset bearings. The price is £2,299.99.
Details: cannondale.com