Throwing back to the early days of Cannondale Factory Racing, Cannondale has painted up a couple of retro themed XC race bikes. The limited edition 2019 Cannondale F-Si Throwback mixes the look of 90s CAAD XC race heritage in their latest carbon hardtail race bike – the new hi-mod F-Si, equipped with the all-new single crown carbon Lefty Ocho fork.
Cannondale F-Si Throwback, limited edition retro modern XC framesets
Cannondale already has some fervent fans who collect and pore over those oversized aluminum CAAD frames with the HeadShok forks that defined the early days of mountain bike racing. So it seems fitting that they would celebrate the early success of their pro mountain bike team that later evolved into the modern iteration, Cannondale Factory Racing. It doesn’t hurt that I still saw Tinker Juarez under the Cannondale tent, now more than 20 years later, prepping to race on the latest F-Si hardtail soon after it debuted earlier this year.
Cannondale tells us that during the eight-year run of its early MTB team from 1994-2002, they “racked up an unequaled list of victories including 11 World Championships, 17 World Cup titles, 16 National Championships, 33 NORBA wins, two Olympic medals (Silver and Bronze), and two Pan-Am Games Gold medals” on what were technologically advanced XC bikes of the time.
Tinker says, “it’s been a fun 25 years. It’s rad to see Cannondale remember the good old days with these frames. They bring back a ton of good memories… I’m lucky to still be part of the Cannondale family. It was a dream then to get the support to do something I loved doing, and it’s a dream now to still be doing it.”
Cannondale F-Si Throwback, limited edition modern XC race bike
The new bikes are said to have been produced in a “very limited quantity”, so if nostalgia pulls hard on your heart-strings, you should probably reach out to your local dealer quickly.
The Throwback F-Si is only available as a frameset, matching the latest carbon F-Si Hi-Mod frame to a color matched carbon Lefty Ocho fork. The frameset is available in Viper Red harkening back to early race team from 1994-97 that competed at the first MTB Olympics, and in the Team Blue Gloss that graced the CAAD3, 4 & 5 bikes raced from 1998-2002.
The retro-themed, modern carbon 29er hardtails share all of the same tech we saw introduced this past spring, including low, low & slack OutFront geometry, hi-mod BallisTec carbon construction, a PF30 BB, Boost-spaced Speed Release 12mm thru-axle, and Ai rear wheel/drivetrain offset. Behind the HeadShok, the fork is the top of the line 100mm travel Lefty Ocho Carbon 29er with remote lockout, and standard 1.5″ tapered steerer. The Throwback frames are available in four frame sizes (S-XL). Sorry no Throwback of the 27.5″ extra-small.
