New Cannondale Topstone Carbon gets revised geometry, re-tuned suspension and a Lefty Oliver fork

By Stan Portus

Published: Tuesday, 05 April 2022 at 12:00 am

Cannondale has announced the latest version of its Topstone Carbon gravel bike, with updated geometry and new suspension.

According to Nina Baum, Cannondale’s product manager, the new Topstone “begs its rider for new challenges”.

While the Topstone has long championed suspension on gravel bikes, this new version plays into a growing trend towards gravel bikes designed for technical singletrack, as well as long-distance racing.

For instance, the recently launched Ridley Kanzo Adventure and Orbea Terra are both intended to be suitable for a wide spectrum of riding, just like the new Topstone.

Cannondale says there will be three versions of the Topstone Carbon, with prices starting at £2,700 / $2,800 and rising to £7,750 / $7,800.

The range-topping Topstone 1 and Topstone 2 will be available with Cannondale’s Lefty Oliver suspension fork.

Four out of the nine models in the new range will have Cannondale’s SmartSense technology, which features integrated lights and debuted on the latest Cannondale Synapse.

BikeRadar videographer Robyn Furtado has been testing the new Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty and, later in this article, you can read her first ride impressions.

Kingpin suspension and revised geometry

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The Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty comes with SRAM Rival eTap AXS.
Cannondale

Cannondale says the Topstone Carbon has been designed to “go anywhere and ride everything”.

Behind this claim lie two key features: the bike’s updated Kingpin rear suspension and its revised geometry.

Cannondale’s Kingpin suspension is a leaf-sprung system with a thru-axle pivot in the seat tube. This allows the back of the Topstone to absorb bumps and vibrations as you ride along, without the complexity of a rear shock or spring.

Previous Topstone bikes, both aluminium and carbon, have featured this technology, but Kingpin has been updated for the latest Topstone, with Cannondale claiming the new version is 100g lighter and more durable.

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Cannondale says it has updated the Topstone’s Kingpin rear suspension.
Cannondale

Cannondale has also applied its Proportional Response philosophy to the Topstone, so the suspension on every size, from XS to XL, is tuned differently.

As a result of this, Cannondale says the Kingpin suspension can provide better traction, performance and comfort for all riders.

The Topstone’s geometry has also been revised to make the bike more capable, with tweaks to the standover and bottom-bracket height.

Compared to the previous Topstone Carbon, the standover height has dropped from 79.8cm to 79.1cm and the bottom-bracket height has dropped from 29cm to 27.6cm, for a size medium.

Although these look like small changes on paper, Cannondale says they should result in a more confident ride. Presumably, this is because you will have slightly more room to shift your weight around and the lower bottom bracket will lead to improved stability.

Meanwhile, the front fork is said to have an extra-long fork offset at 55mm. Cannondale says this, paired with the 71.2-degree head tube angle, keeps steering lively but confident on rougher terrain.

Cannondale’s Lefty Oliver returns

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Two of the new Topstone Carbon bikes come with the Lefty Oliver suspension fork.
Cannondale

The Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty and Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty, which sit at the top of the new range, feature Cannondale’s Lefty Oliver suspension fork.

This fork was developed off the back of Cannondale’s single-sided mountain bike fork, the Lefty Ocho. Tailored to gravel riding, the Lefty Oliver has 30mm of travel compared to the Lefty Ocho’s 110mm to 120mm, and weighs less, too.

The previous Topstone Carbon Lefty 1 came with 650b wheels in order to accommodate larger tyres and unlock its off-road potential.

However, the new Topstone Carbon bikes with the Lefty Oliver fork come with 700c wheels as standard. Cannondale states this makes the bikes more suitable for long-distance riding.

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The Cannondale Topstone Carbon is also available with a rigid fork.
Cannondale

The bike can fit 45mm gravel tyres, which is only 2mm narrower than the tyres fitted on the previous generation of the Topstone, and not as wide as the clearance on some of the latest gravel bikes, which extend up to 50mm and beyond.

Despite being specced with 700c wheels as standard, the new Topstone can still be fitted with smaller 650b wheels with 2.1in tyres, opening up the possibility of fitting wide gravel tyres or mountain bike tyres to the bike.

Gravel suspension was one of BikeRadar’s top 5 gravel trends for 2022. But if it isn’t your thing, there are versions of the Topstone Carbon 1 and 2 without the Lefty fork, and all Topstone Carbon 3 and 4 models come with a conventional, rigid fork.

Designed for ease

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Cannondale has made several changes to the Topstone, which should make living with it more enjoyable.
Cannondale

Cannondale has made a number of changes to the Topstone Carbon’s design, which it says are intended to “make things as easy as possible” for the rider.

Previously, the Topstone came with Cannondale’s Asymmetric Integration (Ai) offset. This system shifts the drivetrain and rear hub 6mm to the right in order to shorten chainstays, increase rear-wheel stiffness and provide more tyre clearance.

In order for a wheel to fit into the frame using this system, it must be dished 6mm to the non-driveside for the rim to be in line with the seat tube.

As a result, fitting a new or different set of wheels to the bike isn’t simply a case of installing them. They would need to be re-dished to the Ai standard.

For the new Topstone, Cannondale has dropped this feature, saying the bike has a “traditional wheel dish”, which should make switching the wheels out for a new gravel wheelset an easier affair.

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The Topstone is said to be suitable for long-distance events such as The Transcontinental Race.
Cannondale

In order to maintain clearance for wide tyres and mud-shedding capability in the absence of the Ai offset, Cannondale has introduced a new dropped-chainstay design on the Topstone.

Cannondale has also switched from a press-fit bottom bracket to a threaded BSA bottom bracket – a change we also saw for the new Synapse, even if the recent SuperSix EVO CX stuck with Cannondale’s PF30-83 Ai press-fit bottom bracket.

The bike is built to accept an internally routed 27.2mm dropper post and has mounts for accessories on the top tube and underside of the down tube, so customising the Topstone for either adventure riding or more off-road action shouldn’t be hard.

The versions of the bike without the Lefty Oliver also have mounts on the fork.

All bikes in the new Topstone Carbon range are fitted with Cannondale’s Smart Sensor on the front wheel. This provides speed, route and distance information to Cannondale’s free app while you ride and reminds you when it’s time to service your bike.

SmartSense

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A number of the new Topstone Carbon bikes come with Cannondale’s SmartSystem lights.
Cannondale

The Topstone Carbon 1 RLE, 2 L and 3 L all come fitted with Cannondale’s SmartSense system and lights.

The system features a battery pack attached to the down tube, which powers a front and rear light. The lights are StVZO compliant for use in European countries.

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If the Topstone Carbon doesn’t have a SmartSense system, it will have this StrapRack tool holder.
Cannondale

The ‘L’ in the name of the SmartSense-equipped bikes means they come with just the lights, but the ‘RLE’ in the Topstone Carbon 1 name means it has the lights, electronic shifting and SmartSense radar system.

The radar is a Cannondale-specific version of Garmin’s Varia technology, which alerts riders to vehicles approaching from behind.

Robyn Furtado’s first-ride impressions | Cannondale Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty

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On first impressions, the Topstone 2 Lefty is fun and capable.
Robyn Furtado / Our Media

I managed to get an initial ride on the Cannondale Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty a few days before the launch. These are my initial impressions of that bike, but expect a full review on BikeRadar soon.

On the flats, the Topstone accelerates with ease and feels responsive and fun. The lightweight frame, mixed with the revised Kingpin suspension, makes for a smooth and fast ride.

The rear suspension helped to calm the trail chatter of gravel paths and roads, lending a lovely smooth feeling when seated.

Gravel suspension won’t be for everyone, but the Lefty gives 30cm of travel, which helps to damp rougher sections and lend some additional confidence to take on more demanding trails and even little jumps.

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The rear suspension makes for a smooth and fast ride.
Robyn Furtado / Our Media

I quickly felt at home with the geometry. This could be helped by Cannondale’s size-specific tuning of the bike, but the lower bottom-bracket height, and the relatively short reach of 38cm for a size medium, gave the Topstone mountain bike-like stability and confidence.

This model is rigged up with the highly competent Shimano GRX800 groupset. It worked as well as we’ve come to expect, with reliable shifting under load, impressive braking and buckets of power even down steep and technical sections of trail.

There were two initial letdowns from the bike. The first is the WTB Raddler tyres. While they’re a good choice for fast riding on hardpack surfaces, I found them wanting when heading up anything technical and steep, spinning out easily and offering little traction.

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The tyres were left wanting on steep, technical ascents.
Max Wilman / Our Media

Of course, tyre selection depends on what you want to do with the bike, but if it was mine I would swap to something a little more capable for UK gravel riding, such as the Teravail Rutland.

I also didn’t warm to the Cannondale DownLow dropper post that’s specced on this particular model. The post itself worked well enough, sliding up and down smoothly, but it’s an overly complicated design in use.

To put the seat down or up, you use the outer left-hand shifter. You then use the inner left-hand shifter to ‘lock’ it in position. If you don’t lock it, the seat bobs back up and down underneath you. Over time, you might get used to it, but to me – and especially bumping down more technical trails – it felt complicated and distracting.

Spec choices aside, first impressions suggest the new Cannondale Topstone is a fun, capable gravel bike that should be able to turn its hand to a variety of riding, from gravel races and multi-day escapades to fun days in the woods.

Cannondale Topstone Carbon geometry

SizeXSSMLXL
Seat tube angle (degrees)70.770.971.171.271.4
Head tube angle (degrees)69.370.370.570.570.5
Chainstay (mm)420420420420420
Bottom bracket drop (mm)6964616159
Seat tube (mm)410458505553590
Top tube (mm)532543556571586
Head tube (mm)105123150177205
Wheelbase (mm)1,0121,0161,0301,0461,062
Stack (mm)539555579605629
Reach (mm)361367373379386

Cannondale Topstone Carbon spec, availability and pricing

The Cannondale Topstone Carbon range consists of nine models, with availability dependent on the territory.

Prices start at £2,700 / $2,800 for the Topstone Carbon 4 and rise to £7,750 / $7,800 for the Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty.

All models feature Shimano GRX, apart from the Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty and Topstone Carbon 1 L, which have SRAM Force eTap AXS.

The ‘L’ in the model names denotes Cannondale’s SmartSense lights.

All the bikes in the new range come with 700c wheels, apart from the Topstone Carbon 3, which comes with a choice of 700c or 650b wheels.

The Topstone 2 Lefty is fitted with a dropper post, and all other models have a rigid post in either carbon or aluminium.

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty

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The Topstone Carbon 1 Lefty is not currently available in the UK.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Lefty Oliver Carbon
  • Wheels: HollowGram carbon, 700c, 25mm internal width
  • Tyres: WTB Raddler TCS Light, 700×44mm
  • Gears: SRAM Force eTap AXS
  • Brakes: SRAM Force eTap AXS
  • Seatpost: SAVE carbon
  • Saddle: Fizik Terra Argo X3
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: StrapRack tool holder
  • Price: £NA / $7,800 / AU$9,299.95 / €8,999

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 1 RLE

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The Topstone Carbon 1 RLE has SmartSense lights and the Garmin Varia radar.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: HollowGram carbon, 700c, 25mm internal width
  • Tyres: WTB Riddler TCS Light, 700×45mm
  • Gears: SRAM Force eTap AXS
  • Brakes: SRAM Force eTap AXS
  • Seatpost: SAVE carbon SmartSense
  • Saddle: Fizik Terra Argo X3
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: SmartSense with lights, Garmin Varia radar, Edge Power Mount, trainer-compatible thru-axle
  • Price: £8,000 / $7,800 / AU$NA / €8,999

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 2 Lefty

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The Topstone 2 Lefty trades an electronic groupset for a mechanical groupset.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Lefty Oliver Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB KOM Light i23 TCS, 700c
  • Tyres: WTB Raddler TCS Light, 700×44mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 800
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 800
  • Seatpost: Cannondale DownLow dropper post
  • Saddle: Fizik Terra Argo X5
  • Extras: StrapRack toolholder
  • Price: £4,500 / $4,200 / AU$6,399.95 / €5,199

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 2 L

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The Topstone Carbon 2 L has a 2x GRX groupset and SmartSense lights.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB KOM Light i23 TCS, 700c
  • Tyres: WTB Riddler TCS Light, 700×45mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 800
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 800
  • Seatpost: SAVE carbon SmartSense
  • Saddle: Fizik Terra Argo X5
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: SmartSense with lights
  • Price: £4,500 / $4,200 / AU$NA / €5,199

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3 L

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The Topstone 3 L is also available with 650b wheels in the USA.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB ST i23 TCS, 700c
  • Tyres: WTB Riddler TCS Light, 700×45mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 800
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 600
  • Seatpost: Cannondale 3 SmartSense alloy
  • Saddle: Fizik Aliante Delta
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: SmartSense with lights
  • Price: £NA / $3,300 / AU$5,199.95 / €NA

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3 L 650b

  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB ST i25 TCS, 650b
  • Tyres: WTB Sendero TCS Light, 650b×47mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 810
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 600
  • Seatpost: Cannondale 3 SmartSense alloy
  • Saddle: Fizik Aliante Delta
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras:  SmartSense with lights
  • Price: £NA / $3,300 / AU$NA / €NA

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3

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The Topstone Carbon 3 is available in the UK and Europe.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB ST i23 TCS, 700c
  • Tyres: WTB Riddler TCS light, 700×45mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 800
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 600
  • Seatpost: Cannondale 3 alloy
  • Saddle: Fizik Aliante Delta
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: StrapRack tool holder
  • Price: £3,200 / $NA / AU$NA / €3,399

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 3 650b

  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB ST i25 TCS, 650b
  • Tyres: WTB Sendero TCS Light, 650b×47mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 810
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 600
  • Saddle: Fizik Aliante Delta
  • Seatpost: Cannondale 3 alloy
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: StrapRack tool holder
  • Price: £3,200 / $NA / AU$NA / €3,399

Cannondale Topstone Carbon 4

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The Topstone Carbon 4 is currently the most affordable in the new range.
Cannondale
  • Frame: Topstone Carbon
  • Fork: Topstone Carbon
  • Wheels: WTB ST i23 TCS, 700c
  • Tyres: WTB Riddler Comp, 700×45mm
  • Gears: Shimano GRX 400
  • Brakes: Shimano GRX 400
  • Seatpost: Cannondale 3 alloy
  • Saddle: Fizik Aliante Delta
  • Connectivity: Cannondale Wheel Sensor
  • Extras: StrapRack tool holder
  • Price: £2,800 / $2,800 / AU$3,899.95 / €2,949