The 2018 Cannondale SuperSix Evo carbon remains largely unchanged from last season, delivering as it does, formidable performance at the price point. An evolution of the 2016 model the new Evo carbon draws on design elements of the Hi-Mod frameset. Ultimately the geometry remains the same between both ranges but the introduction of the Continuous Fibre Design carbon front fork brings the improved ride characteristics and aesthetic to the standard modulus 'carbon' models.
The SuperSix Evo Carbon 105 remains one of the finest entry points into the race bike market. Employing Cannondale's legendary geometry and incredible comfort, the well equipped Evo Carbon 105 is a lightweight, reliable road bike that will serve day to day and is ready for the weekend circuit race. Cannondale's exceptional Hollowgram Si BB30a Cranks transmit all of your power to the road through Mavic's durable Aksium wheels. Cannondale's lightweight C3 aluminium bar and 25.4mm C3 seat post with Selle Royal Seta S1 saddle round out a comfortable, reactive race bike of excellent value.
2016 saw the introduction of a completely redesigned SuperSix EVO Hi-Modulus frame and fork. Taking the feedback from the Cannondale Pro Team, the company re-engineered the front fork and rear end to better balance the already impressive handling of the SuperSix Evo. If you want the numbers and detail of the improvements you can read them on the product pages of any of the models in the Hi-Mod range but suffice it to say, an already remarkable package was improved upon by the wizards at Cannondale.
After a year in the market, the improvements made trickled down into the Standard Modulus or 'Carbon' Evo range which remained unchanged from it's predecessor last season. Using the same molds for frame and forks, there is now but one difference between Hi-modulus and 'Carbon' ranges and that is simply the modulus of the carbon used in their construction.
By utilising a higher percentage of intermediate modulus fibre in its construction (though still their BallisTec carbon), Cannondale are able to expand the Evo range to offer riders at lower budgets the rapier-like handling and impressive smoothness that is a signature of the hi-mod models. Consequently, the basis for these Evo Carbon bikes is a frame that is marginally heavier (around 200g for a rim brake frame) but which, at 980g, is still very much high performance and that out-strips it’s predecessor the SuperSix.
All the features that make the Evo Hi-Mod such a joy to ride; Speed Save anti-vibration, narrowed tube profiles, the mind-bending asymmetric BB30A stiffness and the incredible design approach, are all still in evidence they are simply cheaper and a touch heavier. It is worth pointing out that the majority of Super-bike frames out there are still around the same weight as the Evo Carbon which not only makes the Evo Carbon a great performer but, relatively speaking, an absolute bargain.
Fundamentally the Evo Carbon models are the same as the HM: they offer superb all-round performance with drag numbers only just shy of the most ‘Aero’ bikes on the market thanks to reduced frontal area, narrow fork blades and slim downtube; a comfort level usually reserved for more relaxed, less rigid frames and stiffness numbers to rival many bikes at twice the price.
The overall ride quality of SuperSix EVO is something that is immediately recognisable. From the first pedal stroke you notice just how responsive the bike is, it feels like it wants to go without you having to put too much effort in - but never in a way that makes you feel that you might be out of your depth. Poise is the word. At the same time it feels remarkably refined - a super-smooth ride feel that allows you to concentrate on the road or focus on your race tactics rather than worry about what your machine might be doing underneath you. It handles like a dream, the front end is sharp but controlled thanks in part to off-set dropouts while the rear of the bike tracks beautifully, sling-shotting you out of the corners and launching you up the inclines.
The redesigned fork is the most obvious change, and one driven by the Team riders. This has come about as a result of feedback from the team who, despite having always loved the stiffness of the EVO, required a little more compliance in the front end. By removing the aluminium crown race, Cannondale have been able to use a continuous fibre lay-up allowing fibres to run from the tip of the steerer to the drop-out. This method makes for a far stronger fork that is also lighter. The processes and resulting shape help yield a 21% increase in the compliance of the bike making the ride more comfortable. This front end improvement to comfort mirrors developments to the rear, where the Speed-SAVE micro-suspension compliance has again been improved. In addition, and like the Synapse and EVO HiMod ranges, the New EVO Carbons employ a 25.4mm seatpost for greater deflection to offer further improvements to ride feel whilst in the saddle. These compliance changes improve not only the comfort, but more importantly handling. By allowing the front wheel to track better over rougher surfaces, the bike remains markedly more planted and this is particularly evident whilst descending. You only have to watch Talansky's impressive descending on Stage 17 of the 2015 Tour de France to see the results!
Despite this improvement to the compliance, the SuperSix Evo Carbon remains incredibly stiff. The all new carbon lay-up at the fork, head-tube and Bottom Bracket has increased the already impressive stiffness, whilst key areas benefit from a continuous carbon fibre construction helping Cannondale to strike the important balance of stiffness to compliance for excellent response and handling, without punishing the rider. Something else to note is the use of the 73mm wide BB30a bottom bracket platform. Widely used across the Synapse range, the wider platform BB30a is now used on EVO ranges in conjunction with the new Delta 'flared' downtube for improved power transfer and to help maintain Cannondale's much-loved out of saddle response.
So what about Aerodynamics? Despite the EVO not being a dedicated Aero frame, significant drag reduction has been made when compared with the preceding model. Much like Pinarello, Cannondale have made the move to refine the aerodynamics of their road frame. The SuperSix EVO of seasons passed had already seen reduced frontal structures and a host of smaller refinements over the competitors road frame sets. Like the HiMod, the EVOCarbon frame tubes feature Truncated Aero Profiles (TAP). This simple change to frame shape is not new – Colnago and Giant have both used it on their bikes as well as many others. TAP is featured on the Down-tube, Seat-Tube, fork blades and on the upper seat stays. This aero profile helps to maintain stiffness whilst keeping the frame weight low (traditional tear-drop aero tube shapes add weight) and in total yields an impressive drag reduction equivalent to 6 Watts over the previous frame in the same test.