I did a comparison on the Cannondale Rush and the Cannondale Scalpel a while back which you can read here. I enjoy being able to dig into the different builds and uses for all of these bikes so if you have any that you would like to know about please feel free to let me know. It was brought to my attention that intended use of the Cannondale Rush and Cannondale Prophet models may be a little confusing to some; they are both listed as "All-Mountain" on the Cannondale website. These bikes have a ton of similarities between them but it is their differences that may be slightly overlooked or in some cases underlooked. I will do my best to lay out these bikes and discuss the pros and cons of each which will in turn show what their intended use truly is. I will be comparing the 2000 level models to simplify things a bit due to Cannondale building each model with the same spec such as the Prophet 2000, Rush 2000, and Scalpel 2000.

The Cannondale Prophet is equipped with 140mm (5.5") of travel front and rear. The rear suspension is a single pivot design using Cannondale's hot-box swing arm. Lightweight and stiff is the name of the game here folks. Bombing some down hill singletrack, grabbing some big air, rock gardens, loading docks, whatever you can throw at it the Prophet can take it. The Prophet 2000 is also equiped with Manitou Swinger 3-Way Air rear shock. Air shocks on the rear are a pretty good choice when the manufacturer wants to allow the user easy adjustability to tuning the shock for their body weight, riding style, and terrain. Handling the suspension duties on the front of the Prophet 2000 is a Lefty Max Carbon SPV Evolve w/ Titanium Coil. What does all of that mean?

Let's break it down. Lefty Max is the 140mm travel family using a titanium coil spring to stay light weight. SPV technology allows for handling of the small bumps as well as the big hits while still not bobing during pedaling. The travel management allows the Max Carbon SPV to be adjusted from 100mm to 140mm on the fly. This is the kind of feature that may help out during a climb to reduce the amount of fork bob that the rider may experience. There is no lock out feature with this fork although it does have external rebound control which is a nice thing to have at your fingertips. The Lefty Max Carbon weighs in at 1.75 kg (3.85 lbs) which is pretty light weight for a 140mm fork.

Frame design. The Prophet possesses the ability to change headtube angles which in turn also changes the seattube angles for different riding styles and terrain. The two positions are controlled by placement of the rear shock into the swingarm in either of two holes. The first hole is for the cross-country (XC) setup which gives the Prophet a 69° headtube angle and a 75° seattube angle. The XC angles allow for better response during quick steering situations as well as a better angles for climbing. The second hole is for the freeride (FR) setup which slackens the headangle to 67.5° and the seattube to 73.5°. The FR angles allow the Prophet more stability at the higher speeds and rough terrains that are experienced while going downhill. One may argue that this ability to switch angles will may give the Prophet a "best of both worlds" appeal to it. It is this regard in which this bike gains it's name, Prophet. The added strength created with the toptube/downtube/headtube area also help to give the Prophet more strength during downhill runs and wheelie drops.

The Cannondale Rush comes equipped with 110mm (4.33") of travel front and rear and also uses the same hot-box swingarm technology as the Prophet. As with the Prophet, this keeps the rear-end of the Rush lightweight while maintaining stiffness for raging the singletrack, fast downhills, and even catching some air when the time comes. The construction of the Rush also has the "throw anything at it" philosophy. The Rush 2000 is equipped with a Fox Float RP3 rear shock which allows for external rebound adjustment and ProPedal adjustment. The ProPedal allows for three different levels of pedaling efficiency with the switch turned to the corresponding position. Position 1 (-) is the "full squish" mode for bombing downhill sections and letting the bike tkae most of the abuse whereas position 3 (+) is the stiffest for flat, smooth trail or climbing. The different positions help the rider keep the rear wheel planted on the ground through different types of trail conditions. The front suspension is handled by the Lefty Speed Carbon DLR2 with external rebound control and a lockout. This frok weighs in at 1.54 kg (3.38 lbs).

The Lefty Speed series is geared toward the XC riders and is equipped on the F-series hardtails, Scalpels, and the Rush series. The Lefty Speed Carbon DLR2 on the Rush 2000 has 110mm (4.33") of travel to balance out the rear end. This Lefty is also an air fork which means that an air spring is accessed through the bottom of the fork leg and adjustments can easily be made here to tune the fork for a specific weight rider and the terrain that they are riding on. The rebound knob allows the rider to adjust the rate at which the fork springs back from compression. Adjustments to rebound are also made based on rider weight and trail conditions. Getting the air pressure and rebound adjusted to the riders liking can help to make the bicycle handle better and aslo make the ride more enjoyable. The Lefty Speed Carbon DLR2 is also equipped with a lock out on the top of the fork leg which comes in quite handy on the flat sections of trail and keeps the front end from bobbing while climbing. This becomes a tool of efficiency during long climbs or sprint finishes.

Rush frame design. The Rush is built with a 69° headtube angle and a 73.5° settube angle. This is very close to true XC geometry with a slightly (1°) slacker headtube angle than a Scalpel or F-series hardtail. These angles allow for quick and easy steering while still having a more relaxed feel overall.

The Prophet and the Rush are both listed as All-Mountain bikes by Cannondale. They take a lot of abuse while being able to ride almost anywhere you want them too and even race in different categories if need be. The Prophet does have the versatility of changing headtube/seattube angles which makes for a great trail bike for pretty much any trail. The Rush is designed with a slightly more XC fell while still giving the rider the plushness that 4"+ travel bikes have and keeping efficient with a lock out equipped Lefty and ProPedal rear shock.

The Prophet has an intended purpose of an all-day all-mountain trail bike that likes to be ridden hard and through a lot of different terrains but seems that it would be happiest with some fast downhills and bigger drops.

The Rush is built as an all-day all-mountain bike as well but has also incorporated a lot of XC technology into it to appeal towards the endurance racing crowd that will spend 12/24 hours or even multiple days in the saddle under competitive conditions.

Could you race the Prophet as an endurance bike? Of course you could. Heck I have even seen them raced as XC bikes. The only downfall is the excess suspension that will rarely get used may become a hindurance throuhout the duration of a race. The 140mm of travel can be seen as too much plush and will rob the rider of power and energy over the long run. Climbing up steep hills with 140mm of travel may not be the most efficient method of going up. I view the Prophet as more of a Free Ride bike than an endurance bike. However, if allyou own is a Prophet, race it in an endurance race. You may be surprised.

The Rush lives for the endurance scene. Efficient suspension with the ProPedal and lock out equipped Lefty allow it to be treated as a XC bike while still having the plushness that is 110mm of travel. When a rider becomes fatigued over the long haul the extra suspension can help them get through some rougher sections of trail. Can the Rush be raced as a XC bike? Sure. Heck, I'm going to give a try this summer. It may have a bit more travel than most riders would care for but it can be done. Can it be used as a true All-Mountain bike as well? Yes it can. The only times that you may want more are those nasty downhill rock gardens that pop up when you are already flying down a trail. Each of these bikes has a different "perfect" application that is also governed by the rider's style and even their location in the world. Hopefully one of them works out well for your purpose.

I do not expect this to answer all of your questions. If you have more please feel free to drop me a line.

-Peace.

This entry was posted on 3.03.2006 at 12:24 PM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.