The Prophet continues to impress

At the start of the season we introduced you to the Cannondale Prophet 600. After a brief ride we said we were blown away by how good of an all-mountain bike it was, and for just $1,600US, it was an amazing value.

What makes the Prophet stand out is its versatility. With five inches of travel at either end as well as easily adjustable geometry thanks to a XC and Freeride shock position, the Prophet has worked out perfectly as an all-purpose bike. Take it to a place with drops, rock gardens and seriously aggressive terrain and the Cannondale eats up everything you can give it. But put it in the XC position, throw on your lycra and clipless pedals you’re ready to do some serious racing.When we first looked at the Prophet we figured it would make a great platform on which to build – especially in the case of the 600 model. While it came with a pretty impressive selection of components, it was definitely more focused on the freeride side of things. Since we knew we would be using it as an occasional cross country race bike, we wanted to transform it into a lightweight package that would be right at home racing cross country, 4x or just going out for a trail ride. Now a few months and many kilometres later, the bike has been through a winter snow/ice race, an indoor mountaincross race, two 24-hour races, an 8-hour race and multiple standard 30km-ish cross country races – not to mention piles of trail riding. Versatility is what the Prophet was made for and it does not disappoint.


So, here’s a look at the changes we’ve made in the months since getting the bike and our thoughts on the components we selected.

Wheelset – Mavic Crossmax SL

This was the most significant and priciest change made to the Prophet – and it wasn’t even so much of a change since this is a race-only wheelset. It’s clear the Crossmax SL wheels are simply the best cross country race wheels on the planet. Thankfully the signature Mavic line comes in a Lefty-hub option, meaning they would work on the Cannondale without any issues.

Combined with a set of lightweight Michelin tires, the new wheelset was significantly lighter and rolled much faster than the stock setup.


Crankset – FSA V-Drive MegaExo

Say what you will about Shimano, but more often than not it’s their insight and ideas that end up shaping the way we ride our bikes.
When the big-buck XTR cranks came out in 2003 with their external cup bottom brackets, many figured they would never be widely used. But two years later every major company that makes mountain bike cranks has come up with their own external bearing bottom bracket system. For FSA, that system is MegaExo, and the V-Drive is the company’s crankset for freeride use. We replaced the big ring with a Danger Boy bash guard for freeride riding and the FSA cranks have worked great. Construction quality is excellent on the BB, cranks and rings and the system is relatively lightweight.


Drivetrain – Shimano XTR

Shimano XTR products are like Nike running shoes. You’ll pay more than you should for them just because of the name stamped on the side, but they’re also some of the best products in their class and are still the choice of many professionals. For this bike we’re using an XTR rear derailleur, chain and dual-control levers. The levers are definitely intended for cross country use and considering their cost, you don’t want to have them on there when your bike crashes to the ground.


Manitou Swinger SPV Rear Shock

The Prophet came stock with a Manitou Radium air shock, which has the same overall structure as the Swinger, but with fewer features and a lower cost. But in order to eliminate the harsh bob effect and add more adjustability, we swapped out the Radium for the Swinger SPV three-way. It offers adjustable air pressure, rebound and SPV platform pressure, but without the weight of the Swinger 4-way which has adjustable SPV volume. The new shock performs significantly better than the Radium and is definitely worth the cost of upgrading – no matter what your riding style.


So what does the future hold for Cannondale’s Prophet line? It’s hard to say at this point, but at Interbike the company pulled the wraps off the more cross country oriented Rush. It has four inches of travel at either end and addresses some of the weight issues with the Prophet. Even the Prophet itself has gone on a weight-loss program and will definitely have some improvements for ’06.

By Dan Dakin