Cannondale has launched a brand new version of its SuperSlice time trial bike today, a machine we spotted at the Mallorca Challenge last month.
Cannondale says the new bike is 'the distillation of everything we know about speed' and the brand has been hard at work behind the scenes as it has also launched a brand new version of the SuperSix Evo road bike today.
It seems time trial bike updates are coming thick and fast this year. We spotted a couple of other new TT bikes at the Mallorca Challenge team time trial, in the shape of new machines from BMC and Aurum. Tadej Pogačar was also spotted testing what appeared to be a prototype Colnago time trial bike in Spain earlier this month.
We headed to the bike's launch in Girona, where we were also able to test ride the new SuperSix on the road, before heading to the wind tunnel to perform our own CN Labs wind tunnel test on it.
Time trial bikes are specific machines. Cannondale says this bike has been developed closely with the EF Education pro riders, which is understandable given how important having access to a fast time trial bike is at the top level. The bike will no doubt also be used in triathlons as well as individual amateur time trial races. If you already race on a SuperSlice, we have a wattage saving number from Cannondale that may make you start dreaming of PB times if your current rig is already fully optimised.
Four sizes are available, and frameset prices for the Cannondale Lab71 SuperSlice are £6,995 / $6,999, we don't currently have pricing for complete bike builds, if they are available.
The brand says this is the fastest Cannondale ever made, and claims the new bike provides a 10-watt saving at 50kph compared to its predecessor, something that should excite pro riders looking for every watt they can find.
The new bike has received a major overhaul from Cannondale; the frame and fork are both brand new. The result of 'hundreds of hours' of CFD analysis and wind tunnel work, according to the brand.
The two images of the new and outgoing bike above provide a useful comparison, but the single biggest visual change is the much deeper front fork that's been designed for the new bike, though Cannondale stresses this is only part of the story.
This has resulted in a claimed frameset drag reduction of 14% overall, saving 10 watts for an extra 60 grams added to the frame. Weight has been added to the frame to make it more aerodynamic, but in turn has been saved at the base bar.
Headtube and bottom bracket stiffness have also been increased, whilst tyre clearance has been boosted to 32mm, the same as the new SuperSix.
There's also a fresh integrated Cannondale carbon base bar, designed specifically for the frame, which pairs with a mono riser and Vision time trial extensions exclusively.
The geometry is essentially the same, but the amount of seat angle and tri bar pad stack and reach ranges have been increased to provide more adjustability when it comes to setting up time trial positions.
A telling sign of the times is the fact that Cannondale specifies frame damage from oversize chainrings will not be covered under warranty. The frame is officially compatible with a max 64 tooth SRAM Red aero chainring, and the brand recommends 3.7mm of clearance between chainrings and any part of the frame.
If Ben Healy arrives at the Tour de France (and other big races) in the same kind of form he was in last year, he may be able to claim some victories again. Given the Tour's opening team time trial this year and Healy's recent extension with his EF Education team, it seems this new SuperSlice update comes at the perfect time.
Cannondale mentions the SuperSlice in its white paper for the SuperSix, and the brand explains normal TT courses with climbs favour ultimate aero efficiency over weight reductions due to the higher overall speeds.
Cannondale has focused on the entire front end of the SuperSlice and cites the importance of integrating the base bar and front end of the bike in the quest for all-out speed.
