Submitted by
alliseri
a Weekend Warrior
from Nashville, tn Date Reviewed: June 20, 2009
Favorite Trail:
Back Bone, Southern Cali
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$1800.00
Purchased At:
REI
Strengths:
Equiped nicely with Fox 120 fork, and RPL back shock; feels great on the trail, doesn't loose energy on up hill, Smooth for 2 to 3 ft drops
Weaknesses:
Minor components could be upgraded - I had REI upgrade to SRAM X9 back derailleur and coated cables. First time w/ disc brakes - front brake was "deep" squeeze for responding - got intial re-adjustment and response was back - after couple of weeks though it was back to deep squeeze, not sure if will be living w/ that? Pedals suck. I like adjustable pedals. I even pulled my hamstring, so after that they came off
Bike Setup:
Initial setup has the handlebars high, initiall rides I was really worried that the bike size was not right. The good thing aobut REI though is that they will take it back. But the height is very easy to change and 100% better. Another change is the width of the handle bars. Cannodale makes them really wide. I finally hit my hand on a tree and now they are shorter. They are 3 1/2" longer then my last bike
Bottom Line:
Sweet ride, feels great on trails, doesn't take out my energy. I'll be keeping this one for a while. I be using it in a off road Tri in about 4 wks! On top of that, Cannodale marketing did a good job with the paint blue/white. Pretty sweet looking ride
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Thei Weelen
a Cross Country Rider
from Sittard-Netherlands Date Reviewed: February 19, 2009
Favorite Trail:
AWACS BASE Germany
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$1400.00
Purchased At:
NATO Store
Strengths:
Its a very well steering bike. Its fork (rock Shox) en rear (Fox) are doing a good job. Geometry is almost perfect.
Weaknesses:
Shifting front is not as good as it could be.
Similar Products Used:
Specialized en Giant
Bike Setup:
Store. (XT, rock shox, Fox and Avid)
Bottom Line:
A very nice bike which will give you value for your money. But hey: It's american, the best!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Aaron
a Weekend Warrior
from Albuquerque, NM Date Reviewed: September 28, 2008
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$1100.00
Purchased At:
NE Bike Shop
Strengths:
Seems to be a great bike so far, rides smooth uphill/downhill.
Weaknesses:
A few problems shifting gears, but not horrible.
Bike Setup:
Stock
Bottom Line:
Great bike for the money, good full suspension start up bike. I am having a blast with it.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Major813
a Cross Country Rider
from tampa, florida Date Reviewed: July 28, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Alafia
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$1100.00
Purchased At:
University Bicycle C
Strengths:
Low Price and you will want to sell it right away
Weaknesses:
Poor Product all around. I bought Cannondale because of the name. Boy, was the joke on me. The worst XC bike you can buy for the money and i'm pissed !
Similar Products Used:
Specialized FSRXC
Bike Setup:
Stock.
Bottom Line:
Ok here is the deal. I got this bike as a backup and it is the worst ever !!!!!! There must be some problem with the Gears and the Geometry of the bike. This bike is very slow and when you pedal it you feel like you are dragging a cinder block behind you. I would always notice that I was lagging behind the other guys with this bike and I realized its the Bike ! Too much pedal bob, chain suck, and poor components. Cannondale must be hurting to make a piece of garbage like this. If you are looking for something around the 1k range stay away invest a little more and Buy a Specialized FSRXC or a Giant Trance.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Jason
a Weekend Warrior
from Walled Lake, MI, USA Date Reviewed: September 21, 2007
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
Everything that isn't in the Weaknesses category
Weaknesses:
Front Dr., Brakes, Tires
Bike Setup:
Stock w/ Crank Bros smarty pedal, ergon grips, and a WTB saddle.
Bottom Line:
This is to follow up my review from a few months ago. I have put more than a few hours, and miles onto this bike, and this is a more in depth review. The geometry is spot on. You may want to cut down the stock bars a little, as they are quite wide. The reccomended psi in the F/R shocks is pretty accurate. Where this bike could improve is tires, brakes, and maybe FD placement. Lets get into the hard parts. The FD is super hard to adjust due to the placement of the swingarm. I have been unable to make it use all 3 front chainrings, but that is more of an annoyance. As for the brakes, I have found them to be a little tricky to tune in. They squeak when you move the bike, and to make them not squeak, you have to adjust the pads out, which reduces effectiveness, so you have to pick your poison. The tires are my last complaint. They are good as long as you keep the bike upright. The weak tread pattern tends to get loose when cornering, and dances at high speeds, which can get a little scary. For an all mountain bike, the 26 x 2.0 tires may be a little skinny. I am just going to upgrade those. Overall, I still would suggest this bike for someone looking to get into a good FS trail rig. Its made in the USA, and is as good, or better than the competition! A couple of upgrades, and this is a rockin' machine!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Dan the Man
a Weekend Warrior
from Park City, Utah, U.S.A. Date Reviewed: August 12, 2007
Favorite Trail:
The Flume Trail
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$1100.00
Purchased At:
White Pine Touring
Strengths:
Strong and durable! It goes uphill with no problem, and the shifting seems to work fine for now. No adjustments yet. The front forks are awesome and can handle alot of pounding on the trail.
Weaknesses:
None to whine at so far.
Similar Products Used:
The Cannondale Prophet, and some Specialized bike that was very nice.
Bike Setup:
Stock.
Bottom Line:
Great bike! I recommend it to anyone.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Ed
a Cross Country Rider
from Switzerland Date Reviewed: July 30, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Strengths:
Good frame/geometry, decent fork/shock
Weaknesses:
Cheap Shimano Alivio/Deore/SRAM X-7/SRAM SX-5/TruVativ components mix to keep cost down. Disk brakes mechanic, only 160 mm rotors etc.
Bike Setup:
stock
Bottom Line:
This was the demo bike at the LBS.
If I'd buy a stock Rush model I would invest a few bucks more and get the Rush 5, which I think is the best in terms of price/value.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Jason Whiteson
a Weekend Warrior
from Walled Lake, MI, USA Date Reviewed: July 19, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Lakeshore / Island LAke
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$1300.00
Purchased At:
The Ride Boutiqe
Strengths:
Solid frame, nice fork up front, love the SRAM portion of the drivetrain, excellent looking bike
Weaknesses:
The Truvativ crank is noisy enough to be irriating, front derailluer (Shim. Deore) doesn't quite do its job without a great deal of adjustment. The standard saddle is only good for pain lovers, that thing is narrow, and thin!
Similar Products Used:
I have ridden a SRAM equipped Fisher Marlin for the past few years, and I demo'd a Giant Anthem, Giant Trance, Specialized XC pro, Kona Kikapu, Santa Cruz Superlight, and Heckler, and a few other bikes....
Bike Setup:
Crank Bros. Smarty Pedals, Lizard Skins lock on grips, WTB speed V saddle, otherwise stock.
Bottom Line:
Overall, this is a great XC trail bike! The frame is rock solid, as is the Rock Shox Recon that they spec'd on the front. It was good seeing a higher end fork on this one, whereas others in this price range had Marz. MX /MZ's, RS Toras, and Darts, and Manitou Slates, and Axels. The air shocks on both ends do their jobs pretty well, and its abuse just to have me on the thing, much less going though the woods, as I am a clydesdale size rider.... This bike does seem like it will take a few more rides to get broken in, and working as its capable of. It handles my weight, and in-efficent (but improving) riding style nicely, and really smooths out the trail! This bike is more comfortable than the Santa Cruz Superlite by quite a bit, and $400.00 less, they even look similar. I would recommend this bike to anyone who likes to pretty much keep 2 wheels on the dirt. Also if you are interested in a similar bike from Cannondale, make sure you go see Chad, and Kim at the Ride Boutique in Brighton, Michigan, awesome people, awesome shop, doesn't get any better!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Adam
a Downhiller
from Maine Date Reviewed: May 31, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$300.00
Purchased At:
trade plus cash
Strengths:
light, fast, fun, pedals fast, does fine on dh, and great on uphills, and cheap, if you find the right seller. ;-)
Weaknesses:
hmm, a chainguide would be nice, and my brakes are kinda lame, but, those dont matter to much, who needs brakes?
Similar Products Used:
gary fisher marlin, i also own a santa cruz vp-free.
Bike Setup:
almost stock.
Bottom Line:
SUPER FUN BIKE, wow, take this out on the trails, rocky, smooth, uphill, downhill, whatever, ITS FREAKIN FUN. i love this bike, almost as much at my vp-free! for trail riding the amount of travel and quality of the travel are perfect for everything. This bike just makes me giggle like a school girl when i ride it, and i dont plan on stopping any time soon. :) Go buy one.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Leo Cavalli
a Weekend Warrior
from Venezuela Date Reviewed: December 16, 2006
Favorite Trail:
La Siria - Guatire
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$1500.00
Strengths:
Great equipment for the money you pay. Manitou Recon feels great! almost lock feeling when pedaling seated. Very stable frame, very nice and simple lookng frame.
Weaknesses:
Up to now, none. Just a bit noisy truvativ crank set.
Similar Products Used:
Super V800.
Bike Setup:
Standard, as bought.
Bottom Line:
Great bke, not expensive set up. Same frame as more expensive bikes on the same line. If you´re on a low budget, go for the rush 6 and upgrade bit by bit. Get a better crank set, and you are done. GREAT BIKE!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Dzanda
a Weekend Warrior
from Hampton Roads, Virginia Date Reviewed: November 22, 2006
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Conte's
Strengths:
Terrific value; superb suspension provides excellent steering and comfort; decent running gear (for the price); stable geometry; seems plenty tough for its intended purpose.
Weaknesses:
Could have better running gear; the BB-7 discs don't stop quite as strongly as I thought they would... maybe they aren't broken-in yet.
Similar Products Used:
Various Cannondale fully suspended bikes, including the Prophet
Bike Setup:
Stock
Bottom Line:
I got this bike as an exchange for a defective Super-V... and I like this bike much more (I guess it was time to switch!). I have no real gripes at this point.
As a guy who doesn't ride technical stuff... I'm extremely happy with the Rush, and definitely recommend it to folks who are more into endurance riding. I doubt it would hold up for big-rock riders... but then it wasn't designed for that.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
bikeap
a Racer
from Davis, ca Date Reviewed: October 9, 2006
Favorite Trail:
China Camp
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Purchased At:
Davis Wheelworks
Strengths:
Long wheelbase, low bb give the bike stablity for a big rider (6'7" 225lbs) Shocks were supple, shifting good for the price. Frame felt rock solid on even crazy-steep sections
Weaknesses:
budget components, some noise from rear shock, low head tube for a big frame.
Similar Products Used:
Santa Cruz Heckler, Specialized RockHopper FS
Bike Setup:
stock with a thompson lay-back post
Bottom Line:
The bike's a poor man's Heckler. You can't get a better bike for the money. You'll eventually break stuff and upgrade the lower end derailleurs, but that's mountain biking... But you'd have to throw the frame off a big cliff to do any damage.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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