Road Cycling - Caad7

There have been a few posts recently about aluminum frames, but I want to know if anyone out there has actually ridden one of the new Cannondale CAAD7 frames very much. I'm still frame shopping, and that frame isn't insanely expensive. Impressions? Thoughts? Anyone?

i got to test out a brand new 2003 R3000 CAAD7 cannondale a few weeks back...it was a REALLY nice bike...full dura-ace, mavis ksyriums, etc...it was EXTREMELY LIGHT!!! haha

i actually got to ride it twice. i went to the shop one day and was able to do a 20 minute spin on it. (only had flip flops and cargo shorts, lol) but it accelerated VERY nicely and climbed great (there is a short 20% + climb nearby). at that point i was like "wow, i've gotta have this bike!" the saddle REALLY sucked (fizik poggio) and my ass was almost a little sore after the short ride, but i blame the saddle...

sooo, a few weeks later i was at the shop and noticed a 2001 Trek 5700 (110 carbon frame) and figured "damn, i hate trek, but might as well take it out since its my size"...i loved it...honestly it climbed more effortlessly than the C'Dale, and was more comfy. i really couldn't believe what was happening and was in total disbelief...sooo, i asked for another test ride on the CAAD7 (which was lighter) to hopefully wash away my thoughts of the Trek being a better bike. sadly so, it didn't happen...although i was so close to being set on getting a new CAAD7 i might opt for the plastic bike, hehe.

but all in all i thought the dale was a great ride...i felt it did sprint better than the Trek, but i prefer more climbing and the carbon just did it for me...good luck with choosing one, and make sure you get a test ride in on the CAAD7, i'm sure you'll like it :)

Thanks, coppi. I had a Trek for a year and didn't like the geometry or the ride of carbon. It definately has its avantages, but I think my only choice for carbon would be a Colnago C-40.

Glad to hear that the 'Dale rides nicely, though. That's the main thing I'm looking at.

More opinions?

Have not had the luxury of riding one yet. But, I test rode a CAAD5 when I was in the market for a new bike and really liked it. There was a lot of r&d put into that bike to get it to ride smoothly, yet still be stiff enough for sprinting!

L8R

Get the CAAD7 instead of the Trek anytime. A good friend of mine owns a LBS. He personally owns a CAAD6 and CAAD7. His opinion is that you get the best bang for the buck with Cannondale. He has customers that have had Treks (5000 series) that have come unglued in the bottom bracket area. He has to disassemble the Treks and then he sends them back to Trek to get them fixed. Within 2 days he gets a frame back. It is not the customers original frame but someone elses that Trek has already fixed the same problem for. You have no idea how many miles are on the frame or if it has been crashed. He has since stopped dealing in Treks, but still has old customers returning them for repair, over and over and over again.

I own a CAAD5, CAAD6 and a CAAD7 bike. I love them.