In a telephone conversation with Scott Montgomery, Cannondale?s number two leader, we learned that Team Volvo/Cannondale was going to retain its core team members for the coming season. On the DH side, Anne-Caroline and Cedric Gracia will stay on and fight the World Cup battle. On the XC end of the spectrum, the powerhouse team roster lists: Cadel Evans, Kashi Luchs, Christophe Souser and Tinker Juarez. Tinker will be concentrating on the national series instead of the World Cup, and will be making personal appearances at Cannondale events throughout the season. The female XC roster was not announced.
In related news, Cannondale?s race shop has developed short-travel, dual-suspension machines for the XC team. There are no plans for a hardtail whatsoever. The dual-suspension prototypes weigh less than 23 pounds and have a suspension lockout on both ends. Cannondale believes that the new platform is light enough to be competitive with any hardtail and it offers the option of using either end, both, or no suspension at the touch of a button. Electric lockout is planned for the fork, and testing is underway to evaluate an electric or manual lockout for its diminutive Fox shock.
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