The American answer – Cannondale reveals a new Habit & Habit LT
Cube and Canyon have already introduced new All Mountain models in 2023. Now Cannondale is countering with the new Habit and Habit LT. The Americans from Cannondale stay true to their style and clearly set themselves apart from the competition.
With the current Neuron and the Stereo One44 presented two brand new mountain bikes with 140 millimeters on the fork. Now the Americans from Cannondale are countering. The new Cannondale Habit is the American answer to the innovation offensive from Germany. And how else could it be – the American answer is somehow a bit more casual in terms of look and feel. While the German manufacturers put the efficiency and weight of the bikes in the foreground, the Americans make it clear in the video for the new habit that the style was important in the developers’ specifications. With the Habit LT, thanks to 150 millimeters of travel on the fork, they are also leaning towards downhill performance.
Mitch Ropelato in New York with the Habit LT
Cannondale Habit and Habit LT don’t just differ in terms of travel
When the predecessor of the new Habit was presented for the first time in 2018, there was still a 130 fork in the head tube. But the market was crying out for more. Fuelled by videos from the Cannondale Waves Crew, the product managers have not only changed the paintwork and equipment over the past 5 years, but also made conceptual changes. They gave the existing chassis a 140 fork. This made the old Habit one of the most popular bikes in Cannondale’s product range. We also did a number of tours with the predecessor and always had a good time on the trails. It’s clear that you don’t want to make extreme changes to a bike that customers love.

At 140 millimeters at the fork and 130 millimeters at the rear, the spring travel remains unchanged from its predecessor. The strategy for the wheels also remains untouched. The new habit also rolls on 27.5 wheels when in size XS. From size S it comes with 29ers. And the general rear triangle design also seems to have proven itself. The new habit stays true to its 4-joint rear triangle. Of course, a lot has changed in terms of geometry. The seat angle is significantly steeper, the head angle flatter, everything has just become a bit more modern. The real surprise only comes when you take a look at the models with the LT suffix. Because here Cannondale not only pumps up the spring travel at the front and rear by 10 millimeters. Now, the equipment is also much more downhill-heavy.



The Cannondale Habit LT fills the void left by the Jekyll
Enduro mountain bikes have developed into true downhill monsters in recent years. With the growing influence of the EDR (formerly Enduro World Series) on product development, the all-round idea in the enduro category is dwindling more and more. This can also be clearly seen on the current Cannondale Jekyll. The development of the current Jekyll started in 2019 on the tracks of the Downhill World Cup. The complex high-pivot rear end system and 170 mm forks with 38 mm thick stanchions make it absolutely clear: This bike was built to set best times on the downhill. The hunt for seconds in enduro stages leaves hardly any room for compromises to increase touring suitability. This is exactly where the current Jekyll with a high-pivot rear triangle opens up a gap compared to its predecessors. Until 2022, the dynasty of all Jekylls consisted of touring bikes. With its 150 millimeters of travel, the new Habit LT follows in big footsteps.

The Cannondale Habit is not an innovator
All mountain bikes have always had a hard time competing for innovation. This was also expressed very well recently with the re-launched Canyon Neuron. Why is that? When it comes to lightweight construction, cross country bikes like the Scalpel HT set the tone. Enduro bikes like the Jekyll define the limits of what is possible in the area of rear triangle kinematics and downhill performance. With All Mountains like the new Habit, the product managers have to find compromises between these two worlds. Of course, under these circumstances, absolutely new accents are not being set either in terms of frame weight or other areas. Cannondale is aware of this and even consciously exploits the aura of all mountain bikes. The Americans keep the concept of the new Habits consciously simple and free from current technical trends. The cables do not run through the headset, as is currently the case, but rather through the down tube in the classic way. The carbon models even have a continuous routing of the internally routed cables for particularly easy maintenance. The bolted BSA bottom bracket also pleases mechanics. Instead of a complex storage box in the down tube, there are screw-on options for a storage package under the top tube, as is the case with the Canyon Neuron. Cube has opted for the integrated storage compartment solution in the down tube for its new Stereo One models. With the derailleur hanger, the UDH standard is future-proof. This means, that Sram’s latest transmission rides also fit the bill. A flip chip for geometry adjustment was also omitted in order to keep the complexity of the Habit models as low as possible. If you want to build a mullet bike with a small 27.5 rear wheel from the factory 29er setup over the course of your life, you can do that. Cannondale offers a special linkage lever for the rear suspension, which keeps all options open to the customer.Current standards at Cannondale Habit
- Bottom bracket: BSA (bolted)
- Wheel size: 29 inches (only size XS with 27.5 inches)
- Rear wheel installation dimensions: 12×148 (NOT asymmetrical)
- Seatpost: 30.9mm
- Cable routing: through the down tube
- Bottle holder: Space for 1 bottle (and an additional storage pack)
- Special feature: Growing chainstays
- Derailleur hanger: UDH (Sram Egale Transmission compatible)


