Cannondale Super-V 800

I had a Cannondale Super-V 800 once.

(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)


As with so many of my bikes I have next to no photos of this one. This picture I took when I was trying to sell it.

I got it because some rotten fuckers who will hopefully burn in the blackest pits of hell broke into our garage at the house in Mayfair and stole, among other things, my Marin. Amanda really wanted to start mountain biking again and I was feeling old and out of shape and thought I needed suspension and stuff and this happened to be sitting at the Bike Doctor. It was super discounted, being a year or two old and having V-brakes when everything of this caliber had gone to discs…. Anyway the insurance money paid for about two thirds of it.

I rode it very little.

I think the second time out I broke my hand.

I was completely un-used to either suspension or V-brakes - my most recent bike being at least 10 years older. Amanda and I were riding at Sutherland “Beach” (for those of you not from Saskatoon – there is no beach…) where a lot of people like to run their dogs off leash – this was years before it became an “official” off-leash area.

Ahead of us there was a trail that intersected the trail we were riding on through the bush down by the river. We spied a pair of very big black dogs dash past – we figured where there are dogs there are people so we rang bells to warn them of our approach. The dogs didn’t like this and came charging at us barking and snarling. Amanda braked. I braked harder (remember when I said I was completely un-used to either suspension or V-brakes….?) and went arse over teakettle over the bars at high velocity and landed simultaneously on my right hand and face. The torrent of foul language and general verbal abuse that emanated from myself so startled the dogs they completely forgot about chewing on us and ran away to their masters with their tails between their legs. To abruptly end a story that’s getting too damn long – broke hand, crunched helmet, rode home.

I rode it to work a few times when my Bike-E was in ill repair.

I think it had LX components. Bunch of “CODA” stuff. I did buy a new shorter, higher stem at one point thinking it might be the thing I needed to get me out on the bike more...

I did ride it in a race once. My first ever mountain bike race. I came in second in my category… or dead last, depending on how you look at it… (Second place IS the first loser!).

It mostly sat and collected dust until a couple years ago I actually got interested in mountain biking again. By then I was just completely uninterested in suspension and gears and other expensive stuff that could break and craved something… simpler. This was before I was even aware that there were other people riding singlespeed mountain bikes. I was even considering looking for a BMX cruiser for trail riding I wanted something so simple...

Then, some months - maybe even a year- later, I saw a Cannondale 1FG at the Bike Doctor.

I sold the Super-V to some chump for $666 and bought the 1FG. (Actually I’m probably the chump there – and he got a pretty awesome deal….).