Wow, so much has happened over the past 30 days that it feels like an entire year has passed. We finished up with the last of the Ride to Conquer Cancer events (Alberta and Montreal) and enjoyed supporting the many riders out there doing their part to raise funds for Cancer Research. Amazing events that this year alone raised over $40 million dollars!! The funds from each ride stay in the same province as the event was held meaning that there is a local impact from each ride. Great stuff.



Following the RTCC, we jumped right into our 2012 Product Launch. It seems so weird to be showing, talking and testing a whole series of beautiful new 2012 bikes with dealers and media when it is only July, but such is the time frame for new stuff. I was like a kid in a candy store, and couldn't wipe the grin off my face when I was able to test ride our new Sight (a 5" replacement for our Fluid series bikes), and the Truax (a beautiful fun 7" Freeride bike), and the new Revolver, 29'er race bike. I was even able to do a hot lap or two on the all new Aurum DH rig, although I didn't really do that bike justice. Just about the time I was hauling on the brakes to slow it down was when it was really starting to shine. Man-o-man, I fell in love with the new carbon Valence performance road bikes, that WILL be added to my arsenal for 2012, that's for sure. And the list never ends. With over 150 models, the bike division and graphics team has been crazy busy, and it shows. These bikes are awesome.

Look for additional articles in this e-news posting on some of the press we have received to date, OR put on your calendar to check out the all new website launch with all the new 2012 bikes September on.

Till then, well… happy riding. Sunny skies and tailwinds to you all.

Steak Sauce

Norco at the 2011 Kokanee Crankworx Festival




Whistler is one of the best places on earth! Home of the Winter Olympic games just last year, Whistler is also home to some of the world's best skiing, boarding, mountain biking, sightseeing, and virtually any other outdoor sport possible. Whistler is a Mecca for the outdoor enthusiast. Being this pinnacle of activity, it is only fitting that the Kokanee Crankworx Mountain Bike Festival take place in Whistler.



Throughout the 10 day festival there are countless events held in numerous categories. From DH to Dual, Slopestyle to Enduro and even a Cheese Rolling race, each day is never long enough to catch all the action. Plus if you are up in Whistler, it would be a shame not to get a few runs in on the mountain.



The biggest event of the Festival is always the Slopestyle competition. This year the competition was dubbed the Redbull Joyride. This was matched up with the Teva Best Trick Showdown to offer attendees a gravity defying spectacle. Norco Factory Team Rider Sam Dueck was out for both events showing what he has been working on since his 4th place finish in 2010.

This Year, Sam wasn't able to bring home the hardware but still showed the crowd a great show with tricks such as a Super-Flip, Flip-Whip, and Sam even attempted a 360-Whip in competition. Settling for 12th place Sam had a great competition and has his sights set for the upcoming competitions remaining this season.



There is more to Crankworx than just racing. While the Dirt Norco Race Team was out on the DH course, Norco Factory Team riders such as Jay Hoots, Ryan Leech, Nick Geddes, Darcy Turenne and Angie Hohenwarter were out doing their things as well. From Autograph signings, to rides with fans and poster signings these guys were out and about for the whole week.



While Ryan Leech was doing daily trials demonstrations in Whistler Village, the 2 o'clock show on Slopestyle Saturday was a little different and a cut above the rest. Youtube riding sensation Danny Macaskill stopped by to say hi then Ryan and Danny put on a show together. This was the first time Danny and Ryan had ever met. What a Show!



The show with Danny and Ryan showed these two riders amazing yet extremely different styles of riding. Ryan has the ability to burst from a standstill while Danny can carry his momentum through seemingly impossible stunts. The two put on an amazing show! A fan has posted a youtube video that is definitely worth checking out.





What Is New With Norco in 2012




We are now 2/3rds of the way through 2011 but it is time to start thinking in a 2012 frame of mind. The 2011 bikes are still riding strong and available now but in the coming months we will be seeing some 2012 models showing up in your local retailer. For 2012 there are several new models in Road and Mountain that are great improvements over what has been available in the past. From Road to Cross, XC to DH, Norco is offering 12 new platforms for 2012. Here are a few highlights from that list.



The Valence is new to the Norco Lineup this year. A performance-endurance road bike, the Valence offers many of the technologies in our CRR lineup but has a few differences offering a smoother, more comfortable ride. The Valence is the perfect bike for your next Grandfondo or an event such as the Ride To Conquer Cancer.

The Valence uses a high modulus carbon frame and full carbon fork. Differing from the CRR, the Valence also features lengthened stays, a taller head-tube and Norco's Applied Road Compliance (A.R.C.) Seat-stays. These stays are designed with a thin, flat and curved profile to allow for maximum vibration dampening from the road-chunder below. The A.R.C. stays work with the tapered head-tube and BB30 to offer an extremely stiff and reactive frame that is still very comfortable to ride.

The Valence is available in four price points for 2012. Additionally there are Aluminum versions in both a Men's and Women's geometry.



Another addition to the 2012 lineup is the Threshold. This is an all new Carbon Cyclocross bike. The Valence is race inspired yet pays attention to the details of a non-racers needs. Stiffness is achieved through the utilization of a tapered head-tube, oversize fork and BB30. The frame also uses internal top-tube routing, removable down-tube cable guides, replaceable dropouts (horizontal or vertical) and features fender mounts on the frame and fork. Whether you are looking for a performance race bike or a high end 4-season commuter, the Threshold offers the lot through 3 price points.



On the Mountain Bike side of things, we have a new 29er in the mix. At 100mm of travel and trail inspired geometry, the Revolver is a great do-all XC 29er. Much like it's bigger brother the Shinobi, the Revolver offers a tapered head-tube, Syntace X-12 Axle System, A.R.T. Suspension, hollo-form link-arm, post-mount brakes and a Norco Reach-Around Seat-Stay design. Together this results in a light, stiff and raceable trail bike designed to be ridden hard. The Revolver is available in 3 different price points for 2012.





Launched this spring at Sea Otter with the Threshold, the Norco Sight is also new for 2012. At 140mm of travel the Sight will replace the Fluid in the Norco lineup. Key technologies that have been built into the Sight include a tapered head-tube, Syntace X-12 Axle System, A.R.T. Suspension, hollo-form link arm, post mount brakes and a chain-stay mounted front derailleur. These features along with tweaked geometry make this bike fast in the corners, smooth on the climbs and an excellent choice for nearly any trail option. The Sight is available in 4 Men's versions and 2 Women's models for 2012.





The biggest change for 2012 is the all new Downhill Rig. It is called the Aurum and is the replacement for the Team DH of years' past. Working with Ben Reid and Dan Stanbridge of the Dirt Norco Race Team, this is a complete redesign for 2012 with a whole new race-design philosophy.



On the surface, the Aurum is all about attention to detail. Smooth lines, slotted hardware, integrated fork bumpers, integrated seat-collar and countless other features make the Aurum the cleanest, most functional DH bike Norco has ever made.

After looking at the details comes the real meat of the story. The Aurum features a unique sizing system called Gravity Tune. Gravity Tune is a system where the effective chain-stay length is variable based on the size of the frame and the corresponding rider. Through modifying the BB position we have been able to keep the front-centre, rear-centre ratio consistent through all sizes of the bike. This consistency greatly improves the weight distribution of the rider between both wheels allowing for consistent suspension tuning between all frame sizes. Gravity Tune is brand new for 2012 and is unique to the Norco Aurum.



Norco in 2012 is taking a huge leap forward. With new models in Road and mountain the 2012 line up is more diverse than ever and offers more unique design benefits than ever before. The only way though to truly understand how great these bikes are is to take one out for a pedal. When you do we are confident that you will love your new Norco bike.

Source: Norco News
www.norco.com