Cannondale CAAD8 is Sora (9sp) worth the extra £100 over Claris (8sp)

[Cycleops]

I'd go with whichever has the best colour scheme, ideally black

Do many actually like the black? The finish tends to rub off and look tatty rather quickly.

 

[jeltz]

well they are both black That super6 is OK but the decimal point is in the wrong place and does it come in any colours other than snot?

 

[jeltz]

Well I've just looked at this again and really the CAAD8 is set up more for competitive riding and although my LBS can get them cheaper at the moment (because everyone wants the Synapse) the way the gearing is set up I wouldn't get up the hills around here until I've lost a stone or 2!!

The Synapse Sora however looks much more my kind of ride albeit £50 over budget. So the plan is now to patch up my current bike and see if it will take me through the next few months and see how my weight and fitness goes then reassess whether the CAAD8 or Synapse is still the right one and maybe get the money together to go Tiagra instead.

 

[jeltz]

Well I bit the bullet and ordered the Synapse Sora Triple. In the end it was having a triple and the range of those gears at both ends of the spectrum which swung it for me. Picking it up on my day off next Wednesday.

 

[Wafer]

Nice one Enjoying my Synapse so far!

 

[jeltz]

Picked it up earlier and its so much nicer to ride than my Vitus Alios. Don't get me wrong the Vitus is a nice enough bike but the Cannondale is so much more comfortable and the translation of power to motion is so much better I guess that is a better frame as it appears to have marginally more rolling resistance when free wheeling. The big difference was no pins and needles in my hands and no back pain after the ride which is amazing as I have a prolapsed disc and back pain is something I expect from a hunched position. Only did my standard 22 mile circuit today but I knocked 2 minutes off my best time and there were some light headwinds today.