FKT Reimagined

This is a little story about how the all-new Synapse got the ultimate test ride of all time. A bold claim for an endurance bike with World Tour DNA. But this was no ordinary ride. It was a torture test in the shape of Lachlan Morton’s FKT-smashing Around Australia challenge.

A non-stop 14,200 km loop that would push his physical and mental limits, day and night for a month or more. This wasn’t just endurance, this was insanity. So of course, Cannondale’s design and engineering team jumped at the challenge – eager to explore the capability of their new creation, and stoked to support Lachlan’s foray into the Far Beyond.

All The Gear, One Crazy Idea

Tom Hopper has been on-hand as Morton’s right-hand man for each of his alternative tour challenges since 2019. Pro-level mechanic one day. Logistics mastermind the next. All-round good mate the rest of the time.

And this latest challenge was no different. Hopper and Morton instantly agreed that the newly developed Synapse would be the ideal tool for the job. Straight from Cannondale’s in-house design lab, the new frame marries WorldTour-ready aero sculpted tubes with the kind of compliance and comfort that’s perfectly suited for the longest days (and weeks) in the saddle.

Of course, looking at the set up that Morton first swung his leg over on the start line in Port Macquarie would naturally raise a few eyebrows. A crazy small frame. A crazy long seatpost. A crazy aero position that looked anything but comfortable.

“A smaller frame means less drag... A longer seatpost means more flex... There’s method to all the madness, for sure...” Tom Hopper

Meanwhile, whether riding MTB, gravel or road, Morton’s signature quirk when it comes to bike set up sees him taking his saddle and sliding it as far forward as humanly possible atop his seatpost. Way too far for most of us mortals, but Goldilocks-level just right where he’s concerned. Letting him perch on the front of it to crank out the watts hour after hour while getting as aero as possible.

“With this being mostly a TT effort, a forward position made most sense... Lachy makes some choices that seem unorthodox when it comes to set up... But they’re all there for the same reason: Speed.” - Tom Hopper

All this goes to furthermore show that the rules of the endurance game are being rewritten and reimagined all the time. Whatever works rules. There’s no right or wrong.

Synapse has been designed to function as the best bike for this... From full-on road, to full-on all-road. 28mm race-pace slicks to 42mm big rubber, it’s all good.

Another Brilliant Performance

With asphalt-melting extreme heat and headwinds to deal with, Lachy and the team would quite often find themselves opting to ride in the relatively cooler, calmer hours of the night.

Averaging 450 KM a day meant that he was out there at all times. Not the most pleasant conditions, for sure. But arguably the perfect situation to put our newly updated SmartSense system through the wringer. With generation 2 of the light, radar and awareness system designed to make riding even more confidence-inspiring, a nocturnal Aussie outing was going to be a great test of its capabilities.

Much more efficient than its predecessor, SmartSense Gen. 2 runs from a single battery concealed conveniently in the StashPort downtube storage. In fact, the new system is now so well integrated into the new frame that observing journos and forum followers decided that we’d done away with SmartSense all together as in their eyes it didn’t appear to be present on Lachy’s record-attempting rig.

OMG FKT

30 days, 9 hours, 59 minutes. Lachy didn’t just break the record he set out to beat, he obliterated it. By more than an entire week. Making us all reconsider what’s possible for other records across the world.

The new Synapse that accompanied him on this latest adventure – passing its torture test with flying colors in the process - is designed to make you reimagine what’s possible when it comes to road bikes.

Although most of us won’t be heading out for the kinds of rides that Lachlan happily smashes out without thinking twice, it’s always reassuring to know that if we did want to take a swing at our own FKT or mega-endurance effort, Synapse could be the perfect tool for that job too.

It isn’t about doing just one thing brilliantly—it’s about redefining what road riding can be. That’s the spirit we aimed to capture in our campaign film, featuring Lachlan, his brother Angus, Tom—and naturally, the all-new Synapse.