Cannondale D-Tank and more

Check out the Cannondale design sketchbook for a new entry. These three urban bike concepts were a collaboration between the in-house Cannondale design team and D-Tank, a design studio based in Barcelona. The guys from D-Tank studied transportation design at the Elisava Design School with Torgny from Cannondale and in recent years they have done a lot of luxury yacht design. It is interesting to see influences of that work in these concepts. As the post says, the designs are not slated for production right now, but some of the elements might inspire future urban bikes from Cannondale.

I mentioned Alta bikes on the blog back in 2005. Thomas from Frost Produkt just informed me that they have begun shipping bikes to the U.S. He mentioned that the first edition color of Apple Green is back by popular demand. In addition, they have added St Peter Blue and Navy Grey. The favorites of Bone White, Traffic Yellow, and Jet Black will be available too. Also, they have created a small size frame. I am not sure yet where you can find these bikes in the States, but I will update the post when I know.

Update 5/30: To clarify on the Alta bikes U.S. distribution, here is a note from Thomas on how to order one if you are so inclined: We have imported a small quantity of bikes into the States, which are stored at a warehousing in Michigan. It takes about 1 week for delivery after payment. People can use the order link from altabikes.no to send us an email order. (we reply with a payment link via world pay, once that’s sorted, we dispatch the bike via UPS ground).

Florian sent me a link to the website of Daily Bread Cycles, the work of young German designer Goetz Haubold. There is not much on the site yet, but you can see some shots of the Daily Bread showroom opening in Berlin on Flickr. They were also mentioned recently in a New York Times blog post, which also happened reference Bike Snob NYC. Those of you who follow the BSNYC blog probably already read his reaction to the Times post.


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11 responses to “Cannondale D-Tank and more”

  1. Ron Avatar
    Ron

    James,

    For some reason, that ‘dale sketch looks so familiar to the new Orbea Orca frame design. Check one out.

  2. Fritz Avatar
    Fritz

    Besides their underwear ads, what so special about Alta bikes that people would pay to import them from Norway?

  3. James Avatar
    James

    Ron, I see what you are talking about with the seat post clamp area, but I think it is just a coincidental similarity.

    Fritz, just to be clear, I should have stated that the bikes will be warehoused and distributed here and not shipped individually from Norway.

    Yes, there are similar bikes on the market, but the Alta bikes do have a nice clean aesthetic. I think the colors and minimal graphic treatments are also part of the appeal. I can see why people here would want them. When I posted about the bikes the first time, I received quite a few emails from people in the States asking where they could buy them, so I know there is some interest. I guess you could ask the same question about a lot of other imported bikes. Why would anyone buy a Pinarello over a Trek for instance? I am sure there are readers of this blog who have strong feelings for or against each of those brands for whatever reason. Really, it all comes down to personal taste and brand perception. I have said before that I think more brand and product choices in the market benefit consumers.

    Besides almost all bikes in the US are imported from somewhere else anyway.

  4. JM Avatar
    JM

    I find this bike very underwhelming. Every design detail about this bike strikes me as change for the sake of change.

    I can’t believe it took highly-paid yacht designers to shape the tubing and split the head tube, and I suspect any of the regulars on this site could come up with a nicer (or at least more original) design all by themselves.

    If professional designers from prestigious design firms REALLY want to make a difference, they should find a way to make all the brake/shift cables less sloppy or how to make casual hybrids and comfort bikes look less frumpy and upright. I don’t think we need yet another urban bike design that looks good with no chain, cables, or derailleurs attached.

  5. jimmythefly Avatar
    jimmythefly

    jm, I’m with you for the most part. Plus, I can’t see how they justify the shaft drive, but then don’t use drum brakes.

    These are nice sketches and renderings, though.

    Seems like everyone’s got a bit of that “hard edge” styling. I think it started with the Ford GT90 concept car, then the Ka, etc. Recently the Lamborghini Reventon (itself based on the F-22 Raptor) and the Time RXR time-trial frameset take it even further than these concepts, I’m curious how far it will go. Only the 8C Competizione can save us!

  6. jorgensen Avatar
    jorgensen

    I am another who is less than impressed with creative effort shown. (the better stuff could be held back) I think it is difficult to come up with something genuinely new, and most likely the scope of the budget would not provide breakthrough solutions.

    Spending some money for new ideas does have merit, one observation of the bike industry is that the bulk of the patents come from the component makers, not the frame builders.

  7. /amukeke/ Avatar
    /amukeke/

    Well, there are some differences between this sketch and the Orbea. Notice that the Cannondale has a more curved down tube, and the Orbea has a more curved top tube.

    Bye

  8. Laura Avatar
    Laura

    Haven’t ridden it, but my neighborhood bike shop in Columbus has a green Alta. Looks like an idealization of the cobbled together fixies locked up out front. Slightly more substantial lines but a very light look.

  9. velo-phil Avatar
    velo-phil

    the dailybread mentioned in this post now has an online configuration tool that is pretty neat. especially the handlebar selection is cool.
    the dailybread configuration tool

  10. mens padded underwear Avatar
    mens padded underwear

    i love cannondale’s urban bike concepts, the design is amazing have you seen the “radical” its amazing.

    Cheers,
    Sammie

  11. […] with an integrated ipod charger. I have seen that idea in several other places recently (one of the Cannondale D-Tank concept bikes comes to mind). I still don’t think mixing ipods and cycling it is a good idea, but I bet it is […]

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