Cannondale’s new Topstone Carbon is ideal in your summer season plans — even when they modify

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For our first trip on the brand new Cannondale Topstone in Aspen, Colorado our hosts have a brief and straightforward shakeout trip deliberate.

We pedal out of city on the East of Aspen path, a mud multi-use path that parallels Freeway 82 — often known as Independence Cross. After just a few miles the path ends, and riders can proceed their climb as much as the highest of the cross at 12,000 ft. This isn’t our goal for the day, so we flip round and head again to city.

Learn additionally: Redesigned Cannondale Topstone will get up to date suspension, refined geometry

Nonetheless, Aspen is the primary place I ever lived in Colorado, and I’m overcome with nostalgia, stoke, and an insatiable reserve of vitality each time I’m right here, so I can’t assist myself. I subvert the shakeout trip:

“Let’s trip to the Bells!”

Seems it’s not that arduous to persuade a bunch of biking journalists and bike trade of us to pivot from a six-mile shakeout trip to a 20-mile roundtrip climb as much as a turquoise lake perched under two iconic Colorado fourteeners.

And though we’re on Topstone Carbon gravel bikes — full suspension, some with Lefty Oliver forks and a few inflexible — a change of plans doesn’t faze the bikes or the riders. Like summer season itself, the chances on this bike are infinite.

Topstone Carbon 2.0

The brand new Topstone, really launched in April, is the newest in an fascinating evolution of suspension gravel bikes from Cannondale.

In 2016, the Connecticut-based model launched the Slate, a motorbike that lead engineer Darius Shekari referred to as “forward of its time.”

“I used to be actually enthusiastic about that bike,” he mentioned. “It hit the market and folks didn’t actually perceive it, nevertheless it spoke to the market as nicely as a result of it was first drop bar suspension bike. Now, seven or eight years later, suspension is making its means into gravel scene.”

In 2019, Cannondale launched the primary Topstone, which slotted in above the Slate as a extra refined gravel bike: it was out there in carbon, featured a brand new built-in rear suspension design referred to as the Kingpin, may accommodate wider tires, and likewise changed the outdated twin crown Lefty fork with a single crown model.

The most recent iteration of the Topstone is much more refreshed. Kingpin suspension is again however weighs 100g much less. The system is constructed round a thru-axle pivot within the seat tube that enables the whole posterior of the body to flex for each consolation and traction, with out a penalty on the highway.

Bikes specc’ed with the Lefty Oliver, Cannondale’s gravel suspension fork, match both 700 x 45mm tires or 650b x 2.1″.

And, to make the bikes much more customizable to the rider, the brand new Topstone has a conventional wheel dish and threaded BSA backside bracket, making it easy to swap for a unique wheelset or cranks.

Journey seekers will discover loads of mounts on the Topstone for luggage and bottles (together with on the fork of the non-Lefty bikes), in addition to a StrapRack device service on the downtube.

For riders involved with visibility on the highway, the SmartSense system of a handlebar and rear mild, in addition to radar, makes use of a single battery, tucked beneath the StrapRack.

Cannondale gives 9 totally different inventory Topstone variations; seven are set for 700c wheels, whereas two are configured for 650b wheels.

I examined the Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty with mechanical Shimano GRX 800 shifting and a dropper submit. My bike didn’t have the SmartSense system.

Street prepared

At this level within the evolution of the gravel bike class, we don’t must sacrifice pedaling effectivity on the highway for optimum enjoyable on the grime and trails. Bikes are simply that good.

So, whereas Cannondale has a lighter/sooner/racier gravel choice within the SuperSix EVO, I nonetheless discovered the Topstone to slice via highway miles effectively, even with the Lefty Oliver fork including a further kilogram of weight. After which after all, the descents have been that rather more enjoyable.

Midway up our climb up Maroon Creek Street to go to the Maroon Bells, I lock out the fork, though I haven’t actually observed it, both. It’s tremendous steady below me. Earlier, Shekari had instructed us that the dearth of suspension bob is as a result of excessive compression damping.

“The circuit opens instantly on hits,” he mentioned.

Equally, the built-in Kingpin suspension is sufficiently subtle that you just don’t discover any sag or squish when on the highway, nevertheless it instantly will get to work if you happen to hit a bump or uneven floor.

The Topstone’s Kingpin suspension works round a thru-axle pivot within the seat tube that enables the whole again of the body to flex. Moreover, the chainstays are fairly broad and flat, additionally contributing to the vertical flex.

All of us make it as much as the Bells in good time, stunned with how vigorous the bikes really feel on a paved climb. Even with the locked-out Lefty, I don’t really feel like I’m bouncing round on pseudo-suspension. The pedaling platform is clean and environment friendly, and better of all, out-of-the-saddle climbing doesn’t have the rear finish of the bike feeling swimmy or like I’ve a flat tire.

After ooh’ing and ahh’ing the triangle-shaped peaks, all of us rip the eight-mile descent again to city. A buff-colored fox making an attempt to determine whether or not or to not cross the highway has me slam on the brakes at one level making me notice simply how briskly I’m going.

Shred heavy

The day after we trip the highway as much as the Bells, we take the Topstones on a correct gravel and singletrack tour close to Woody Creek (of Hunter S. Thompson fame) the place we are able to actually check all of its options.

That is my fourth lengthy trip on the Topstone, and I can attest to how effortlessly it transitions between the pavement and the grime. Even on 44c Vittoria Mezcal tires, I’m using at a gentle clip.

Someway this bike doesn’t really feel sluggish going uphill regardless of its mountain bikey options — the tires, the fork, the rear suspension.

We climb as much as the tiny city of Lenado on a freshly graded iron-red grime highway. My check bike has mechanical shifting — Shimano GRX 800 — which really seems like a novelty in an age of fixed charging. It really works flawlessly.

We high out after just a few miles of mellow climbing and have snacks by the river. Then, it’s up and over Tinpot, a path I’ve solely ever ridden on a mountain bike. The Topstones take to the singletrack like fish to water. Tinpot is a 2.4 mile climb of about 1,200 ft. There are just a few strikes up and over little rock gardens, it’s a gentle climb and slim at instances, so I give it an underbiking issue of about 7/10.

Nonetheless, there’s enjoyable underbiking and there’s grit-your-teeth the entire time underbiking. This qualifies as the previous.

The descent off the highest of Tinpot is a tough doubletrack highway, and right here I lastly get to let the Lefty unfastened. The entrance and rear suspension absorb the infant head bumps and permit me to let off the brakes rather less than if I have been on a inflexible inflexible bike.

I’m nowhere close to as unfastened as Alex Howes who rapidly turns into a tiny pink blip on the horizon as he descends, however I’m positively not gripped.

Though my bike has a dropper, I strive it however don’t prefer it. It simply doesn’t really feel prefer it provides something to the expertise. Suspension on gravel bikes = sure. Droppers = meh.

After dropping again into Aspen, we take the Rio Grande bike path again to the Woody Creek Tavern to finish the loop and have a late lunch. Now we have successfully linked paved bike path, grime bike path, paved highway, grime highway, AND singletrack on this trip, and the Topstone felt at house on each floor.

In a means, the sort of using epitomizes the most effective elements about summer season — infinite alternative. The roads are open, the paths are open, the gravel is there, too. In the event you’re fortunate sufficient, you’ll be able to hyperlink all of them up for an all-terrain journey. The Topstone will comply.

Topstone Carbon pricing

Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty: $7,800 (SRAM Power AXS XPLR, Hollowgram 22 wheels)
Topstone Carbon 1 RLE*: $7,800

Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty: $4,200 (Shimano GRX 800, dropper submit choice)
Topstone Carbon 2L**: $4,200 (Shimano GRX 800)

Topstone Carbon 3L: $3,300
Topstone Carbon 3L: $3,300 (650b)
Topstone Carbon 3: $3,300
Topstone Carbon 3: $3,300 (650b)

Topstone Carbon 4: $2,800 (Shimano GRX 400)

*RLE designates SmartSense system geared up with each radar and lights
**L designates that the mannequin has SmartSense lights ONLY however no radar, which might be added later

The Topstone Carbon is accessible in XS-XL.

Full specs, particulars, colour choices, and extra can be found on the Cannondale web site.