Cube don't put their Teamline colours on any old bike. It's a good thing, then, that the brand-new Elite C:68X SL Teamline is far from any old bike. With a completely revised frame that's 15% lighter than the one it replaces, the design team has been putting in the hours to build a marathon-focussed cross-country hardtail worthy of wearing our team livery. Starting with our next-generation C:68X carbon technology and a blank sheet of paper, they carefully shaved weight where possible while ensuring strength and efficiency weren't sacrificed. So the tapered head tube, carefully profiled down tube and Boost 148 rear end ensure that every watt of your pedalling input is transferred to the rear wheel. In the meantime, slim seat stays and a 27.2mm seat post contribute to a ride that's comfortable for extended periods, aided and abetted by the Fox Float Factory suspension fork. Light, strong Newmen Advanced carbon wheels shod with grippy, fast-rolling Schwalbe tyres give you the control you need in combination with our tweaked Agile Ride Geometry, and a full complement of Shimano's superb XTR 1x12 components take care of stop-and-go duties with typically reliable alacrity. Ride fast, ride far and ride well. It's what the pro team riders do - and you can, too, with this bike. If there's one thing the engineers have learnt over the years, it's that you can always squeeze a bit more performance out of a frame. That's why they went back to the drawing board with the Elite. It was already stiff, light, comfortable and agile - but the new one is 15% lighter, designed with even greater comfort in mind, and features revised Agile Ride Geometry designed with marathon riding and endurance cross-country in mind. It's all possible thanks to the combination of Cube's high-end C:68X carbon and Advanced Twin Mold manufacturing technology, which gives their engineers the ability to add or remove precise quantities of carbon to create the perfect blend of characteristics. Slender seat stays help absorb trail vibration for greater comfort over long distances, while the tapered head tube and Boost axle at the rear help maintain precise steering and incredible pedalling efficiency. There's even provision to upgrade to an internally routed dropper post. Better than before? Definitely. The best out there? Well, we think so. But we'll let you be the judge... The Cube Elite C:68X SL Build Features Frame: C:68X Carbon Technology Groupset: Shimano XTR, 10-51T, 1X12 Fork: Fox 32 Float SC FIT4 Factory, 100mm  Brakeset: Shimano XTR BR-9100 Wheelset: Newmen Advanced SL x:A 25 Carbon Weight: 8.7kg C:68X Technology     When we set out to develop the C:68 technology, one of our biggest priorities was to reduce the amount of resin to what we consider the ideal level: 32%. We also enhanced the resin's texture by adding special nanoparticles to make it even tougher than ever. C:68X builds on this know-how and takes it to the next level by incorporating specific fibre choices and orientations. With this new technology, we can select and orient the carbon fibres to add stiffness or compliance to precise sections of the frame as needed. Fibres on each part of the frame are oriented according to load, which allows us to exploit the full potential of carbon fibre and deliver huge improvements in ride performance. Say goodbye to the homogeneous weave of the C:68 frame and hello to C:68X technology