Cannondale busted for not fitting a spoke protector disc
From Bicyling mag’s website: This Just In: The Roundup: Cannondale Issues ‘Six’ Recall.
“The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that Cannondale is voluntarily recalling several of its “Six” elite road bike models because they do not meet federal safety standards …. Spoke protector discs, which are required on bicycles to prevent the chain from interfering or suddenly stopping the wheel, are missing from these bicycles, the CPSC reports. This poses a fall hazard to the rider. No accidents or injuries have been reported. The Commission recommends consumers immediately stop riding these bicycles and contact a Cannondale dealer for free repair.”
So every single rider I know who has owned a bike for more than a week has removed the spoke protector disc, which is a useless piece of plastic that performs no function on a modern bike.
In fact, I don’t think I’ve seen a high-end bike, road or MTB in a shop in the last couple of years that does have that disc. But apparently leaving it off the spec altogether is not permitted.
I love the two statements that follow in the quote above: “this poses a fall hazard … no accidents or injuries have been reported”. Hmm.