Straight out of the box the Range C9.2's glossy look with the bold green accents was the perfect color combination. I ordered a medium frame and was a little apprehensive about the medium my previous ride was a large Norco Range C7.2 . I chose the medium frame based on it being a 29er platform. As well the wheel base on the large 2016 c7.2 was actually shorter then the 2017 Medium C9.2. The only thing I changed on the cock pit was the Race Face stem, I switched the 40mm stem out for a 50mm it just felt better!
I received my new Norco Range C9.2 April 21st a week before my first enduro race of the season. So I had a week to get everything tweaked to my riding style and get used to the bigger wheels! The first ride on the C9.2 was on Pacific; a trail I built behind my place. The trail consists of lots of flowy corners and gap jumps on low grade terrain. I was excited to see how it handled at high speed drifty corners so i jumped right into it. I set up my suspension at (25% sag in front and 30% in the rear). The C9.2did not disappoint, it handled the corners like a corner smashing machine!! The Maxxis Minnion DHF tires were a great added bonus to this build.
Photos by Noel Bolso
Photos by Noel Bolso
It was time to see how the C9.2 was in the air! I was pretty happy to see that the C9.2 was very playful on the ground and in the air. I had no issues jumping this glossy steed! I cant wait to get it into the Whistler Bike park to hit up some high speed big hits!
Photos By Noel Bolso
Photos By Noel Bolso
The C9.2 gapping it out Pemby Style!
Photos by Noel Bolso
Photos by Noel Bolso
Where the C9.2 excels is in the fast, loose, steep chunder. I had some doubt with the shorter travel (150mm) in the rear and (160mm) in the front being not enough . After riding some Pemberton chunder on the C9.2 I was pretty amazed with the speed I could carry on it and how the bike monster trucked thru what ever I threw at it with no issues of bottoming out the front or rear suspension. I did add one token to the Lyric fork(3 tokens in total). The one issue I did have was the sizing of the stock rotors (180mm) The c9.2 should come stock with a 203mm rotor front and back.
Photo by Jeff Westlake
Photo by Jeff Westlake
Who ever thought a 29er would be so fun in the corners? Norco did!
The Norco Range C9.2 will put a smile on anyone's face! It put one on mine and I am a grumpy old trail builder!
Photo by Jeff Westlake
Photo by Jeff Westlake
I have been riding the Norco Range C9.2 now for almost 3 months and approximately13,600 meters (44,620 feet) of ascending and descending. Ive raced the Pemberton enduro and the Squamish Gryphon enduro on this bike. Ive changed out the brake pads once, bled brakes twice, replaced both tires because of punctures and replaced 180mm rotors with 203mm rotors. The Norco Range C9.2 has exceeded my expectations and smashed any doubts I had about riding a 29er. This bike is the bike for the Sea to Sky corridor. It smashes corners, rips the steeps, easy in the air and makes pedaling enjoyable, because you know we only pedal for the down hills!
Thanks Norco Bicycles for such a weapon of a bike. The more I ride my Range C9.2 the more I want to ride. For the total spec on the Norco Range C9.2 go to http://www.norco.com/bikes/mountain/enduro/range-carbon-9/range-c92/
