Three and a half years in development, the SystemSix from Cannondale is a little late to the aero party - in a good way. Like most things Cannondale, the SystemSix is a considered beast. Rather than simply release an aero raod bike to fill a gap in their product line 2 or 3 years ago, Cannondale have spent time and considerable resources in order to bring the absolute best aero bike to market. The SystemSix is so called because it unites 6 key elements of bike design in an integrated aero-philosophy: Frame, Wheels, Fork, Seatpost, Handlebar and Stem. Each is optimised to bring aerodynamic advantage beneficial to the complete bike system. The result is a frameset that is the fastest aero platform available today.
Not just 'by the numbers', but in real world, day-to-day, club-ride terms. Not just in a straight line; not measured purely at Pro performance levels; but in a host of environments and conditions that the average club cyclist performs at and can therefore benefit from.
Its unique fully integrated design delivers more speed, in more situations, than any other bike on the market today. For race day fast. And everyday fast. It's the world's fastest bike.
This race-bred speed machine is absolutely the lowest-drag, most efficient, all-around fastest UCI-legal road bike on the market today. Not only the fastest in the windtunnel. Not only the fastest for a select few riders in a select few scenarios, but the fastest for anyone interested in going faster, just about everywhere you’d want to go faster. It's free speed and it is the culmination of a multi-year, systemwide approach to efficiency and real world performance. Proving just what can be accomplished when the entire machine - not just the frame and fork - is optimized for fast. Delivering real speed, for real riders.
The Cannondale SystemSix produces the least aerodynamic drag of any road bike on the market. Because of all the resistive forces your power has to overcome to make speed, aerodynamic drag is the biggest hurdle. It is more important in most situations than all the other resistive forces (weight, rolling resistance, bearing friction, etc.) combined. Even in those few scenarios where it’s not THE most important thing, it’s still a very important aspect. So cutting drag translates into more speed, with less effort, in all the places you’d expect and a lot of places you wouldn’t.....
Faster Down: Descending a 5% grade at 60 km/h (37 mph), a rider on a modern lightweight race bike, like a SuperSix EVO, would need to expend over 300 watts to match a rider pedaling at a 200 watt recovery pace on a SystemSix. Meaning SystemSix riders can truly recover while making others suffer.
Faster Up: The SystemSix’s aerodynamic advantage makes it faster than a lightweight climbing bike, such as Cannondale's own gold standard SuperSix EVO, on any climb up to a 6% gradient or more, depending on rider’s power to weight. To put that in perspective, most revered HC climbs in the Tour de France only average 7-8%.
Faster on the Flats: Compared to a modern, lightweight race bike like the SuperSix EVO, at 48 km/h (30 mph), the SystemSix saves you over 50 watts — huge savings considering an average Cat 1 racer’s Functional Threshold Power is around 350 watts. And even when you’re drafting, you’re still getting up to 60% of that benefit. That’s more than enough to notice.
Faster in the sprint: In a 200m sprint at 60 km/h (37 mph), all other things being equal, the Cannondale SystemSix will beat a modern lightweight race bike to the line by four full bike lengths. In 200m - that's huge!
The more relevant numbers for most of us though, are not in Pro level Sprints or HC mountain stages of a Grand Tour - though there will often be times when we push ourselves - it is the more frequent 30 km/h (18 mph) ride pace where most of us ride and it is here that the SystemSix delivers day-to-day. At these realistic speeds, the SystemSix requires about 10% less power to maintain speed than a lightweight race bike like SuperSix EVO, leaving you with more in the tank when it’s time to throw down. Ride longer, easier and ride faster too.
So, how is it that Cannondale are able to deliver these benefits?
Cannondale have employed an holistic approach to speed that represents the pinnacle of what a race bike designed from the ground up can really deliver. The entire SystemSix project began with a quest to design the fastest wheel possible for modern tyre volumes. It grew from there, developing the frame, fork, seatpost, bars, stem and wheels together as a complete speed system. Taking full advantage of disc-only optimization. Tailoring frame tube profiles to control airflow at every point. Developing a bar & stem combo that delivers the fast without forgoing the fit. Yielding the most positive wind tunnel data they've ever seen; all within UCI limits.
The SystemSix frame and fork are the rock upon which speed is built. Every tube shape has been painstakingly engineered to be as immune to drag as possible using CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) and wind-tunnel testing. Purposeful asymmetry for instant response to disc brake and pedaling loads. Impeccable handling - a signature of the brand - and classic road race feel thanks to geometry derived from the Pros favourite - SuperSix EVO.
Every section of the frame and fork features tailored airfoil profiles, with differing degrees of truncation designed to maintain flow attachment across important yaw angles to minimize drag. One of the most noticable areas in this design is the unique chine shape at the base of the headtube. This profile redirects air flow coming up the back of the fork leg, channeling it downstream to prevent the fork’s airflow from mixing with the wake of the head tube and interrupting clean air over the fork crown. The fork itself is freed from the constraints of rim brakes and the fork crown area is radically different from traditional road bikes - sleekly integrated with the frame for minimal drag. The fork also features a larger opening for bigger tyres and cleaner airflow while asymmetric legs are better equipped to handle the unique stresses of disc brake loads.
As most of us know by now, one of the key areas in the quest for speed is the wheels. Cannondale have licensed rim technology from one of the masters of speed : HED.
Conceived as the first component of the SystemSix design, Cannondale's new KNØT64 wheels are an engineering feat all in themselves. Designed to eliminate the drag penalty normally associated with running bigger tyres, and incorporating some cutting edge tech patented by HED wheels, the KNØT64s manage to pack all the comfort, rolling resistance and grip benefits of larger volume tyres into one of the absolute, bar-none, fastest wheelsets on the planet. The disc-only design is significantly wider than other road wheels, indeed, externally they measure 31mm, and that extra width not only makes smaller tyres bigger (a 23c tyre measures a full 26mm on the KNØT64 wheel) but it also helps air flowing over the larger tyre reattach cleanly to the rim. This maximises flow attachment and minimises drag. As a bonus, while they’re optimised for 26mm (23c) tyres, the KNØT64 design exhibits minimal changes in drag with even larger tires, giving riders the option to go bigger for comfort, without slowing down. Pure speed, without compromise.
An area that has undergone dramatic changes in respect of aerodynamics in recent years is the cockpit and the SystemSix is no exception. Keeping things fast up front is the KNØT SystemBar which provides the low drag and sleek look of a one-piece bar and stem, with the customisable adjustability of a two-piece system. The carbon bar features a full 8° of pitch adjust, so you can dial in your perfect position, while the rounded truncated airfoil shape of the flat section not only maintains consistent airflow throughout the pitch range, it’s also way comfier on your hands than other bars with sharp trailing edges.
The partnered System Stem routes brake and Di2 lines cleanly into the headtube via a channel underneath a mechanic-friendly cover. This ease of set-up and adjustment is consideration that many other brands ignore in their search for absolute speed which can turn fast into frustrating if you need to make changes on event day. A case in point with the SystemSix is the shape-matched gated spacers that allow you to easily adjust the stem’s stack height, without having to disconnect cables. Fast and easy.
An often overlooked element of aerodynamics is the seatpost. The airflow in this region is significantly faster than the clean air at the front of the bike, due to the flow accelerating between the rider’s legs, so the truncated airfoil shape of the SystemSix seat post is a big part of the world’s fastest speed result.
Like most modern road bikes - and particularly aero road bikes - it is the little things that matter too. Cannondale's take on integration not only makes the SystemSix tidy and fast in aerodynamic terms but in aesthetics and operation (on the road) as well.
The SystemSix uses Cannondale's SwitchPlate - an interchangeable plate atop the downtube that houses the Di2 junction box, allowing easy access for charging or adjustment. A separate plate accomodates mechanical routing and there’s a blanking plate for those using eTap. Fully hidden brake and Di2 lines offer a super clean, cable-free aesthetic and the internal routing goes through an opening in front of the headtube and outside of the headset bearings, making it uncommonly easy to set up. Like most aero bikes worth their salt, the downtube and seat tube shapes minimise the aero effect of bottles, and multi-option mounts let you choose maximum aerodynamics or maximum hydration.
For faster and easier wheel changes, the frame and fork use the Speed Release thruaxle standard for simpler and faster wheel removal and fit - all the stiffness of a thruaxle with faster and simpler wheel release so you spend less time at the side of the road or faffing at your workstand. It's compatible with any standard thru-axle wheelset too.
Ultimately, speed comes from the rider and the best way to get fast, is to train smart. To this end, on most of the SystemSix models, Cannondale have pre-installed a Power2Max power meter. SystemSix owners simply activate a subscription with Power2Max and start collecting data to enhance their training and get faster, faster!
All told, the SystemSix is the most advanced, system integrated bike Cannondale has ever designed. It is also the fastest and most efficient UCI legal road bike on the planet. A lofty goal achieved via a ground-up philosophy where the frame, fork, seatpost, bar, stem and wheels have been designed to work together holistically to optimise every element of speed. So every rider can be faster, virtually everywhere. Go faster, easier, on Cannondale's SystemSix. - the world’s fastest road bike.
Available in 2 carbon specs : Hi-Modulus and this Dura Ace equipped Carbon model. Marginally heavier for the same stiffness, the Dura Ace (and Ultegra) model deliver all the aero benefits at a more affordable price point, and what's 3% weight among friends.