Howdy gang, I have a Jamis Renegade Expert and I'm finding it's not quite up to the gravel roads I ride around West Yellowstone, MT. I have to ride so slowly on rocky descents that I'm thinking about doing some up and down time trials on my MTB vs the Renegade to see which is faster overall in that scenario. And the stutter bumps on the flatter roads just hammer me.
Fast forward to today - a friend owns a bike shop in the Palm Desert, California and I stopped by to say hello. I was talking about the limitations of the Renegade and he had a Cannondale Slate on display for sale. 650b tires and a lefty front fork with an inch or so of travel. Hmmmmm, got me to thinking. Anyone ridden one and care to comment on whether it might be the answer to my riding conditions?
I've been riding one for the past few days so I'll give you my initial thoughts. Running the tires tubeless at about 40 or less psi pretty much takes away the vibrations of any gravel road with the fork. I've had hand numbness issues with every cross bike I've owned, but even after a four hour ride today my hands were fine. Now on truly rocky descents it's probably similar to a 700c bike running 40c tires. It kind of depends how big the rocks are. I rode some technical singletrack and it probably wasn't much faster than my Crux was. However, there's a trail with small rocks covering it that felt way smoother on the slate. I'd say try the slate if you can, but it definitely gets my nod of approval.
I'm pleased with my Slate. Very versatile. Lot's of tweaks to mine:
1. NOX/Project321/Sapim CX-Ray wheels - The rear hub driver is a new in house P321 design and it very nice! Hubs are Orange Anodized. Rims decals will be gone soon. 1B. P321 supplied Orange anodized SiSl2 cranks. 100g lighter than SL cranks. 2. Scwalbe G-One Allrounder 650bX40 with Orange Seal Endurance formula 3. Ergon CF3 Seatpost - best $220 I ever spent. So cushy. 3B. Selle Italia Novus saddle. I love them but to each their own. 4. Old 10 spd XTR rear derailleur + Wolf Tooth Tanpan SH11. Yes it works & no chain slap. 5. SRAM PG-1170 11-36 cassette 6. Garmin Varia lights, Topeak CagePack - Hold my Samsung S7, keys, ID, tube, patch kit, tire plug kit, Park multi-tool with room to spare, King stainless cages and Soma clear water bottle, old Topeak frame pump, tiny rubber plug to cover the exposed dropper seatpost cable port
Since I got my Slate I notice I ride the drops much more. This is true for pavement but moreso for gravel. I have a Roubaix with very similiar fit. The difference seems solely because the front suspension makes for a much more comfy ride while in the drops. I don`t see myself going back to a rigid fork.
I haven't ridden one, nor can I afford one, but I will say the 650b/Road plus concept that Cannondale adopted (I say adopted cause 650b bikes have obviously been a thing before this) and it inspired me to convert my bike to 650b wheels.
One thing I like is that normal road compact gearing seems much more suited to this wheel size than to larger 700x40c gravel bikes. In my opinion the smaller diameter/larger volume tires seem to be a great mix for gravel riding.
I rode one all last season and it was an excellent bike, that little bit of travel makes a huge difference. The only thing I did not like was the handling was slow and I hate proprietary parts which this bike has much of.
It is slow to react compared to every other road bike I have ever ridden. (I used to work at a bike shop until last year and have had the privilege of riding many great bikes) When making adjustments it takes more effort, lean and rider input, when going around obstacles etc. According to Jan Heine, from Compass Cycling he thinks to has to do with pneumatic trail. This is a direct result of width of the tires and lower inflation of the wider tires. He recommends a shorter stem to improve this. I have heard other riders say the same thing about the handling. This may or not be a deal breaker for some. Overall ride quality is great. Just my humble opinion.
