Following up on my original review of the 2007 Cannondale Bad Boy Ultra, here's an update, 446 days later. So far; aces! It's a great bike, still. It was one of the more expensive bikes I've owned and so far from a durability standpoint it's been a worthy purchase.In the summer (starting about nowish) I usually commute to work between 3 and 5 times per week. This year will be a little different because I'm working from home 3 out of 5 days. So I'll be taking it a bit easier.
What Broke?
A couple of weeks ago I hauled it back to Dukes to get the Headshok suspension overhauled. At the very end of 2008's riding season the suspension went wonky and the lockout stopped working entirely.
When I went to pick it up from Dukes I had a chat with Mike about the Headshok: Apparently Cannondale recommends maintenance every 100 hours at a maximum for the suspension element, and I was... hmm.. over that. :) So that's fixed, cost about $79 in total and the suspension is like new.
Dukes is still awesome. The new location is at 452 Richmond Street West [just west of Spadina, north side]. If you're in Toronto, and you need a decent bike shop with good service, hit Dukes up. They're solid.
2008 was a really rainy year in Toronto, and I soaked this bike in pure filth. I'm pretty sure I avoided having to overhaul the bottom bracket by over-lubing it after I had to ride, pretty much, THROUGH the Don river, at one point. By the time I got home that day every pedal stroke was clicking and grinding.
Also if you can, avoid the Don Valley trail after a heavy rain storm. It's nasty, and the mud/hobo-poo doesn't come off easily.
What Did I Mod?
In 2008 I chopped about an inch off of either side of the handlebars, and threw the bullhorns off of my Schwinn Moab 2 on. It's ugly, and I'm likely going to get more subtle bullhorns for the Bad Boy (also so that I can replace the bullhorns on the Moab).
[caption id="attachment_4305" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Bullhorns"]
[/caption]I also replaced the Wellgo dual-function with Shimano SPDs. The Wellgo peds were by no means cheap, but I came to really loathe clipping out of them at lights, only to have them turn over to the other side, without the SPD clips. If you upgrade one thing on the Bad Boy, get SPD peds. They ran about $40 CDN.
Long Haul Verdict?
I do a lot of passing, when riding this bike on my commute. I'm not the strongest cyclist out there but this bike certainly doesn't hold me back. It's durable, pretty light, and feels very maneuverable. I really like my Schwinn Moab 2, but I love this bike.
Points of Interest:
[...] News: April 23, 2009 - Here's a Long Haul update of the 2007 Cannondale Bad Boy Ultra. Check it out to see how it held up! [...]
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