Cannondale Bikes/Hybrids?

Having read and read about bikes since my earlier post I am pretty sure I
want a hybrid/city bike to knock about on and have looked at Cannondale at
one end of the scale (all your fault Simon Brooke - I have read your posts
and I am enchanted by them ;-) ) and Dawes at the other as they seem to be
bikes with a good solid reputation. The Discovery stuff looks good value,
if a little unexciting - has anyone got experience of them?

Alternatively I just love the look of the Cannondale bikes but can't fathom
from their site which of them are 'hybrids' as opposed to MTB's. The Bad
Boy looks great but I am not sure it'll match the versatility of something
lke the Dawes stuff or whether it is in fact a Mountain Bike. For instance
can they take a rack? If this model is not Cannondale's equivalent of a
'hybrid' which of their models are and how do they compare?

Thanks

Hi,
i was recently in same dilemma. Bought a marin larkspur hybrid city bike,
but using for touring as well. Best bike i have ever owned.
and i used to have an f w Evans tourer.
I recommend having a look at marin.

--
Paul




"Renegade" wrote in message
...
Having read and read about bikes since my earlier post I am pretty sure I
want a hybrid/city bike to knock about on and have looked at Cannondale at
one end of the scale (all your fault Simon Brooke - I have read your posts
and I am enchanted by them ;-) ) and Dawes at the other as they seem to be
bikes with a good solid reputation. The Discovery stuff looks good value,
if a little unexciting - has anyone got experience of them?

Alternatively I just love the look of the Cannondale bikes but can't
fathom
from their site which of them are 'hybrids' as opposed to MTB's. The Bad
Boy looks great but I am not sure it'll match the versatility of something
lke the Dawes stuff or whether it is in fact a Mountain Bike. For
instance
can they take a rack? If this model is not Cannondale's equivalent of a
'hybrid' which of their models are and how do they compare?

Thanks

in message ,
') wrote:

Having read and read about bikes since my earlier post I am pretty
sure I want a hybrid/city bike to knock about on and have looked at
Cannondale at one end of the scale (all your fault Simon Brooke - I
have read your posts and I am enchanted by them ;-) ) and Dawes at the
other as they seem to be
bikes with a good solid reputation. The Discovery stuff looks good
value, if a little unexciting - has anyone got experience of them?

Alternatively I just love the look of the Cannondale bikes but can't
fathom
from their site which of them are 'hybrids' as opposed to MTB's. The
Bad Boy looks great but I am not sure it'll match the versatility of
something
lke the Dawes stuff or whether it is in fact a Mountain Bike. For
instance
can they take a rack? If this model is not Cannondale's equivalent of
a 'hybrid' which of their models are and how do they compare?

The problem with Cannondales Hybrids is they make so many. The 'Road
Warrior' range, which are essentially flat-barred racers:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/RW.html
The 'Adventure' range, which are more relaxed and leisure oriented:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/AD.html
The 'Street' range, which are practical utility bikes (in the Mercedes
estate car sense of 'utility', of course):
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/ST.html
And of course the 'Bad Boy' range which are I think mainly poseur
oriented, although ideal for high adrenalin antics in urban traffic:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/BB.html

The frames are beautiful - but you pay a lot of money for them, and in
my opinion they only start to be worth it when there's some outrageous
Cannondale technology attached. And, of course, at the top of all these
ranges there is. Street-optimised suspension is one of those areas
where Cannondale has seen a niche for their high-price high-technology
approach. The Street Rohloff, Street Nexus, Street Vintage, Adventure
1000 all share the HeadShok Fatty Ultra All-Conditions fork; the Road
Warrior 1000 HeadShok has the HeadShok Slice Ultra All-Conditions fork.
These are both suspension-unit-in-the steerer systems, totally unique
to Cannondale, beautifully engineered, very effective.

My pick out of all these (if I had the money)? The Street Rohloff. A
combination of the best road frame in the world, the best road
suspension in the world, the best transmission system in the world, and
even the best saddle in the world. But that adds up to £2,300, which is
an enormous amount to pay for an upright bicycle. The Road Warrior 1000
is half the price and probably represents better value for money. For
little more than quarter the price of the Street Rohloff you can pick
up a Road Warrior 600, and at that point I start questioning the value
for money again. True, you get the gorgeous frame, but you get
less-than-wonderful components on it. There are a lot of makers who can
sell you a bike at that price with a perfectly good frame and better
kit.

I have to say that I agonized for literally months before buying my
Jekyll. I'd wanted a Cannondale for years. Eventually I screwed up the
resolve to spend more than four times as much as I've ever spent on a
bike before... and it's been totally worth it. If I regret one thing
it's that I didn't spend more can get the version with the air-sprung
carbon Lefty - mine has the base model steel-sprung Lefty, and while
it's a very good fork I know the air-sprung one is better.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

See one nuclear war, you've seen them all.

snip


The problem with Cannondales Hybrids is they make so many. The 'Road
Warrior' range, which are essentially flat-barred racers:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/RW.html
The 'Adventure' range, which are more relaxed and leisure oriented:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/AD.html
The 'Street' range, which are practical utility bikes (in the Mercedes
estate car sense of 'utility', of course):
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/ST.html
And of course the 'Bad Boy' range which are I think mainly poseur
oriented, although ideal for high adrenalin antics in urban traffic:
URL:http://www.cannondale.com/bikes/04/ce/flavor/BB.html

The frames are beautiful - but you pay a lot of money for them, and in
my opinion they only start to be worth it when there's some outrageous
Cannondale technology attached. And, of course, at the top of all these
ranges there is. Street-optimised suspension is one of those areas
where Cannondale has seen a niche for their high-price high-technology
approach. The Street Rohloff, Street Nexus, Street Vintage, Adventure
1000 all share the HeadShok Fatty Ultra All-Conditions fork; the Road
Warrior 1000 HeadShok has the HeadShok Slice Ultra All-Conditions fork.
These are both suspension-unit-in-the steerer systems, totally unique
to Cannondale, beautifully engineered, very effective.

My pick out of all these (if I had the money)? The Street Rohloff. A
combination of the best road frame in the world, the best road
suspension in the world, the best transmission system in the world, and
even the best saddle in the world. But that adds up to £2,300, which is
an enormous amount to pay for an upright bicycle. The Road Warrior 1000
is half the price and probably represents better value for money. For
little more than quarter the price of the Street Rohloff you can pick
up a Road Warrior 600, and at that point I start questioning the value
for money again. True, you get the gorgeous frame, but you get
less-than-wonderful components on it. There are a lot of makers who can
sell you a bike at that price with a perfectly good frame and better
kit.

I have to say that I agonized for literally months before buying my
Jekyll. I'd wanted a Cannondale for years. Eventually I screwed up the
resolve to spend more than four times as much as I've ever spent on a
bike before... and it's been totally worth it. If I regret one thing
it's that I didn't spend more can get the version with the air-sprung
carbon Lefty - mine has the base model steel-sprung Lefty, and while
it's a very good fork I know the air-sprung one is better.


You swine. How on earth am I ever gonna be satisfied with a Dawes now?

;-)

R

"Renegade" wrote in message ...
Having read and read about bikes since my earlier post I am pretty sure I
want a hybrid/city bike to knock about on and have looked at Cannondale at
one end of the scale (all your fault Simon Brooke - I have read your posts
and I am enchanted by them ;-) ) and Dawes at the other as they seem to be
bikes with a good solid reputation. The Discovery stuff looks good value,
if a little unexciting - has anyone got experience of them?

Alternatively I just love the look of the Cannondale bikes but can't fathom
from their site which of them are 'hybrids' as opposed to MTB's. The Bad
Boy looks great but I am not sure it'll match the versatility of something
lke the Dawes stuff or whether it is in fact a Mountain Bike. For instance
can they take a rack? If this model is not Cannondale's equivalent of a
'hybrid' which of their models are and how do they compare?

I have a Bad Boy (2000 model: CAAD3, no suspension) and for what I
want to do with it it is superb. Essentially what you have is a
mountain bike frame with a wideranging transmission suitable(ish) for
everything from muddy off road (if you have appropriate tires) to fast
on the road. From my point of view, and fitted with semislicks, it
enabled me to buy one machine that could cope with my commute
(including roads in a poor enough condition to render a racer more
interesting than I can cope with) and allow me to potter on bridleways
in the dry in the summer for a change. The matt black paintwork also
makes the bike nicely anonymous in the Cambridge bike racks. Purists
might say that the bike is all compromise and no substance, but it
suits me down to the ground.

I don't know about the Jekyl version, but mine certainly takes a rack
and handles well even with a heavy load.

Clear skies
Sarennah