Cannondale Bad Boy 1 (2016) : ChooseMyBicycle.com Expert Review

Cannondale have mastered the art of finishing Alloy frames so well that they could easily pass of as carbon to the untrained naked eye. The frame of the Bad Boy 1 2016 is a case in point. The Bad boy optimized 6061 smart formed stealth alloy frame comes with a tapered butted tube, which results in improved stiffness, while reducing the overall weight. The frame also employs double pass smooth weld technology to give it that slick finish and to improve the strength on the weak points of the frame.¾ The oversized tubing across the tubes leads to improved lateral rigidity. This means that majority of your power exerted while pedaling will be transferred towards forward movement, rather than sideways. Overall the weight of the bike is around average, and one can lug it around from building to building, during your city commutes.

The bicycle puts you in an aggressive, forward and upright posture, that gives you a great position to command the road, and gives you that extra efficiency while looking for more speed from the Bad Boy.

The Cannondale Bad Boy 1 comes with a Headshok fatty solo suspension that is integrated into the head tube. This unit does the job well on city roads, as it comes with a 50mm travel with isolated damper technology with lockout. This Headshok suspension unit soaked up bumps really well; we would say that it did so better than most MTBs and hybrids with greater travel. The lockout option is a simple, aesthetically designed knob that is placed on top of the head tube.

The design of the Bad Boy series from Cannondale, are inspired from stealth fighters. They are only manufactured in an all black avatar and are as sleek as they come. The design oozes style, performance, and is a clear fashion statement for the new age urban commuter. The entire bicycle comes painted in a deep matte black, barring the shiny silver disc brakes. The feature that leaves most people with their jaws wide open, is the lefty fork and integrated head shock. The lefty visually seems to defy most theories of physics, and gives it an illusion of being a bicycle from outer space. A first in the category is a System integrated (Si) Urban 3D forged, single piece OPI bar / stem with an integrated light, pushing the uber cool quotient right up.

Just when you thought that the bicycle has shown you all that it can offer, one more startling feature props up. The unique and high end 8 speed Shimano Alfine¾ S501 Hub gears are employed on the Bad Boy 1, and they certainly are one of the best gear systems out there. The shifting was butter smooth and made absolutely no sound and fuss while shifting .We have ridden a lot of high end road bicycles with high tech componentry, but none of that matched the smoothness and precision shifting of the Shimano Alfine hub gears. The advantage of these hub gears are that they are maintenance free, durable, protected from all types of weather and objects, improves aerodynamics and also keeps the bicycle compact. The hub gears use a double clutch mechanism to adjust to hard pedaling while climbing hills and slopes. The shifters on the bicycle are Shimano Alfine¾ ¾S503 Rapidfire (1 * 8 speed).

The brakes used on the Cannondale Bad Boy 1 are Magura MT2 Hydraulic discs with 160mm rotors in the front and rear. While most of you must not have heard of this brand, they are known for lightweight, effective and value for money brakes.¾ The brake levers are made from Carbotecture material. The overall stopping power was impressive and powerful to assist in unpredictable urban riding conditions.

The handling on the Bad Boy 1 was quite fun. It was very precise and sure-footed, which are two words you wouldn't use if you saw the lefty fork for the first time. It was stable on the corners and descent, and actually was reassuring during directional change. However, the Bad Boy 1 was not extremely quick to respond when I decide to swing it from side to side and make exaggerated shifts in direction.

The interesting pair of 700 * 28C Schwalbe Kojack race guard tires come as standard on the Bad Boy 1. These are super slick tread less tires that have excellent roll. The Kojak's come with a puncture protective belt as standard. We do not recommend using these tires on wet grass or riding in mud. On tarmac with and without rain, the tires faired well providing you with the confidence required. These tires are fitted on to Cannondale C2 Bad Boy, Double wall ALLOY rims (32H).

The ride on this hybrid is comfortable for a performance-focused bicycle. The Headshok suspension system soaks up quite a bit of the vibrations almost immediately, and transfers very little to the rider. The tail section of the bicycle is hard and stiff, translating into a better ride quality, as the bicycle is always ready for acceleration. Cannondale's Micro suspension S.A.V.E technology has been used to ensure that there is engineered flex in the frame to soak up road vibrations and reduce its transfer to the rider. The Sporty and sleek Cannondale Bad Boy Urban saddle aid in the rider's overall performance driven posture and position.¾