Palace Skateboards made a splash in the cycling world when the brand collaborated with Rapha to create a unique kit for EF Pro Cycling's 2020 Giro d'Italia squad. Part of that was custom-painted Cannondale road bikes, and now Palace and Cannondale have worked up a new novelty bike design.
The upcoming Mad Boy will bring riders back to a time when neon graphics were cool and the idea of 1x drivetrains was futuristic. The limited-edition bike is a rebrand of Cannondale's Bad Boy, a hardtail designed to be a city or commuter bike. The custom bike will be offered alongside an accessory range that includes Gore-Tex jackets and pants, a hat, and a water bottle.
The current Cannondale Bad Boy range features three models, starting at $1,200 and topping out at $2,250. With the exception of a belt-drive model, two of the Bad Boy models use a 2x drivetrain, and the pictures that we've seen of the Mad Boy use a 2x system as well.
A novel feature on the Bad Boy is the Lefty LightPipe rigid fork. Cannondale's signature left-side-only fork is equipped with an integrated LED light so riders can move through city traffic safely. The Mad Boy will use a Lefty fork, but we're not sure if it will be the LightPipe version.
The Mad Boy certainly won't be able to keep up with the best hardtail mountain bikes, but that's not really the point here. A constant topic in the bike industry is how to broaden its reach. A collaboration with Palace may attract people to cycling who haven't discovered it yet. And it could work the other way, teaching cyclists about skate and streetwear culture.
The Palace Cannondale Mad Boy will launch Friday, September 3rd at 11:00 a.m EDT and will be available both online and in stores. There aren't any pricing details yet, but it could top $2,000 considering the price of the Bad Boy range. Supplies are likely limited so interested customers have to act fast.
