Cannondale earned the Crack'n'fail moniker with their frames of about 10 years ago. They basically started making frames that were too light, and their engineering process wasn't as refined as it is today. The result was frames breaking on people under normal riding circumstances. The good news, with their aluminum at least, is that they no longer live up to that reputation. Additionally, they aren't overpriced above the mid range anymore, either, IMHO. True, they are expensive, but their frames are impressive. Lots of techie stuff going on there.
Just want to make sure that someone doesn't get scared away from Cannondale because of an old wives tale. As for the Scalpel, I'm not sure it's the bike for me, but it's a good cross country only bike. If I dish out that kind of cash, though, I want a bike with a little more travel.