Cannondale has reimagined the 2021 Topstone as a full-suspension gravel bike with an all-new Lefty Oliver fork with 30mm of travel, and 650b wheels. And there’s an ebike version, too.
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The 2021 Topstone Carbon Lefty combines the Kingpin soft-tail design of the original Topstone Carbon, launched last year, with a completely revamped Lefty Oliver fork inspired by Cannondale’s Lefty Ocho mountain bike fork. You may remember the original Lefty Oliver from the radical Cannondale Slate gravel bike.
Two bikes make up the 2021 Topstone Carbon Lefty range at launch, with prices ranging from £3,399.99 for the Topstone Carbon Lefty 3 (also available in a women’s-specific build) with a mix of Shimano GRX 812/GRX 600 components, to £6,599.99 for the Topstone Carbon Lefty 1 mullet build with SRAM Force and Eagle parts. US prices are to be confirmed.
Cannondale has also launched the Topstone Carbon Neo at the same time. The electric gravel bike comes in two guises: one with the Lefty Oliver fork and 650b wheels, one with a conventional rigid fork and 700c wheels.
Two builds will be available for each, priced between £3,999.99 and £7,999.99.
The range-topping Cannondale Topstone Lefty 1 with SRAM AXS components and a carbon Lefty Oliver fork weighs in at 10kg for a size large.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The Topstone comes equipped with a full suite of mounts, including mudguards/fenders with an removable bridge for the rear seatstays.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
Cannondale’s lightweight, carbon-fibre Hollowgram 23 wheelset, with its broad 23mm internal width, comes as standard on the Lefty 1.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The Chameleon paint scheme on the flagship bike looks the business.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The Lefty Oliver comes with a manual lock-out for the fork, but if you hit a rut or bump the lock-out is built to ‘blow off’ to activate the suspension.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The Lefty Oliver fork has a quick release brake assembly for when you need to fully remove the wheel. The single-sided fork means normal tyre swaps and puncture repairs can be done with the wheel in place.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The new Lefty Oliver fork weighs in at 1,340g in its carbon guise and offers 30mm of travel.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
SRAM Force AXS levers combine with a SRAM mountain bike Eagle AXS group to provide a wide range of 1x gearing.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The massive 10-50t cassette dwarfs the 160mm rear brake rotor.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
Fabric’s titanium-railed Scoop saddle comes on the Lefty 1.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
SRAM’s Eagle XO1 AXS mech and cassette provide the Lefty 1’s wide-ranging, 12-speed 10-50t gearing.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
The rear features hidden mounts for a removable fender bridge on the seatstays.Warren Rossiter / Immediate media
