Originally Posted by robow

I can vouch for those early Cannondale aluminum frames and their "torsional rigidity"
With down tubes the diameter of small coffee cans, and after 50 miles of bumpy chip and seal, my teeth were ground down to nothing. The early Cannondale touring bikes were a pleasant improvement in stability when fully loaded vs. some of the noodle like steel bikes at the time. Unfortunately the ride of the bike when unladen was quite jarring as I still bear the scars.