Cannondale's New "Super" Slice

Over Ironman Arizona, I had an opportunity to check out some of the pro's bikes. Being part of the industry it's always exciting to see what bike manufacturers are coming up with to "keep up with the Jones's". I was excited to see Michi Weiss show up to transition on his new Cannondale "Super" Slice so naturally, once he was finished biking, I snapped a couple of pictures.

The first think I noticed is the similarities it shares with most other "Superbikes"... Integrated stem, a clean front end with hidden cables, and integrated brake calipers. It seems as if whether the aero benefits warrant hidden cables/brakes is only secondary to the perception that a "Superbike" needs to have those features, or else it can't be on the same level as all the others.

Once I moved down to the downtube/bottom bracket area, I noticed, and expected, none other than the BB30 shell Cannondale pioneered and has been using for years. However if you look closely, the downtube doesn't seem to be molded around the BB shell. Given that there hasn't been much info released on the aerodynamics of the bike, it's tough to say whether or not there's a purpose for it. Also, given that this bike isn't a production bike yet, it could be an early prototype.

Looking at the integrated brake calipers, I noticed that the brakes themselves (or brake shoes at least) seem to be the same one would find on traditional calipers. While it's not unheard of to come up with a unique non-standard design (see the Cervelo P4 rear brake), it's probably the easiest way to keep brakes adjustable for good wheel compatibility.

The seatpost is another feature that stands out as it's noticeably skinnier than most TT/Triathlon bike, especially those considered "Superbikes". While I don't know for sure, it appears that the seatpost can be used as Michi had it, or as a setback post by just flipping it around.

The seatpost also looks to be well within the 3:1 UCI regulations. Cannondale has consistenly been a big sponsor of pro peloton teams, currently Liquigas/Doimo, so it would make sense that their bikes are designed to meet UCI regulations.

Finally, Michi just like a lot of other pro's, is using an SRM power meter with the PCVII head-unit. He was also running an FSA cockpit, what looked to the Speedfil A2 with a custom Fuel Belt bottle, and a Zipp Firecrest 808/Disc combo (originally I had posted it was a non-Firecrest but have since been corrected).

Superhuman

It isn’t often that I judge a book by its cover, however it does happen from time to time and in the latest instance – as in most cases, I’m reminded as to why it’s important not to.

Being around professional athletes is always fun, whether you’re into sports or not. They tend to be in the top .001 percent of their “sport” and as much as you’d like to think they’re normal people just like you and I, they’re not. Normal people can’t jump 40 inches and dunk a basketball while rotating 360 degrees. Normal people don’t hit a 95 mph fastball, and they certainly don’t run a marathon in just over two hours or finish an Ironman distance triathlon under 8 hours.

So how does judging a book by its cover have anything to do with this? Over the last few weeks I had a chance to meet and talk with a few professional athletes as I made the trip to Ironman Arizona. Sure they look different, most of them talk different as they’re from all over the world. However, take 2 minutes to start a conversation with them and you’ll quickly learn they’re humble. I don’t mean humble relative to perhaps other pro athletes from major sports in the US… I mean humble! Perhaps even more so than a lot of age-group triathlete out there. While I don’t have an explanation for it, it’s certainly refreshing, - maybe we’re constantly fed information via the media that most aren’t this way. Who knows, I don’t.