The Cannondale Jekyll all-purpose trail bike has been quite successful on the European enduro circuit, thanks in large part to up-and-coming enduro racer Jerome Clementz. The 28-year-old Frenchman has made a name for himself by winning two Megavalanches, the 2011 Trans-Provance, and the 2012 Mountain of Hell Enduro.
Clementz’ race rig is about as far from the stock as it could be. Prototype parts and clever race-specific modifications abound.
The Jekyll is a single-pivot, full-suspension bike built around a Fox DYAD RT2 rear shock. Designed specifically for Cannondale, this bulky pull shock has separate high- and low-volume air chambers. The high-volume chamber is used in the full, 150mm travel setting. In the low-volume mode the rear suspension stiffens, allowing for approximately 90mm of rear suspension travel. This also has the effect of raising the rear of the bike, steepening the angles and making Jekyll a more capable climber. A handlebar-mounted lever allows the rider to switch between these two positions.
Besides the Jekyll Carbon 1 frame and rear suspension, there are few off-the-shelf components.
Custom Touches
Up front, the bike sports a BlackBox prototype of the RockShox Lyric RC2. Clementz declined to comment on what made this fork special, other than to say that the stanchions feature the friction-fighting DLC surface treatment. Danny Hart and other RockShox-sponsored athletes have been using suspension forks with this slippery coating for several seasons. According to RockShox, the DLC treatment is very good at reducing friction, but it comes up short in terms of longevity. The company is reportedly working on a similar, longer lasting stanchion treatment for production forks.
Clementz uses a pro-only DLC stanchion coating to reduce friction
The drivetrain is an almost production-ready XX1 group. Clementz played a pivotal role in field testing SRAM’s new drivetrain. And while he still opts to run a chainguide for many events, he’s been impressed with XX1’s ability to be run without additional chain retention devices under most riding conditions.
SRAM’s new drivetrain comes at a time of increasingly crowded handlebars—remotes for dropper seatposts and handlebar-mounted levers for suspension adjustment are increasingly common. For many riders, a 1x drivetrain could clean up the clutter. But if Clementz is running a single chainring setup then what’s with the front XO Grip Shifter?
It turns out the twist shifter is used to operate the Jekyll’s rear suspension—an innovative solution for getting rid of yet another lever. “I prefer this setup because I don’t have the take my thumb to operate a remote,” said Clementz. “I find I use the travel adjust much more this way.” Combined this clever use of Grip Shift with a Reverb remote mounted to the underside of the XO Trail brake and Clementz has a very clean system that seldom requires him to loosen his grip on the handlebar.
Clementz runs Mavic Crossmax ST wheels and on the day we caught up with him, was running 2.3in WTB Bronson tires—set up tubeless with NoTube’s sealant—on the front and rear. He prefers to run heavier tires for rough courses but opts to use the Bronson’s for trail riding.
2.3in WTB Bronson tires for everyday trail riding
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