The new 2017 Norco Range Carbon

Norco have redesigned their Range frame around both 650b and 29″ wheels to give enduro riders improved suspension to maximize pedalling output and tackle more trails.

Norco have drawn inspiration from the Killer B redesigning the Range’s frame and introducing a 29er option. The geometry is longer, lower and slacker. The Range incorporates Norcos’s A.R.T. suspension system to improve the bikes performance over the bumpy stuff. The headtube design and rear derailleur hanger are borrowed from Norco’s Aurum.

“We looked at the way enduro bikes are being used,” explained Owen Pemberton, a senior design engineer at Norco. “Yes, they’re pedaled to the top, but essentially in an enduro event they go through four or five downhill races over a weekend. This is a bike that’s going to be ridden hard, and we wanted to make it as reliable and dependable as possible. So we took everything we learned from the Aurum, which is the strongest bike we’d ever made, and employed it on the new Range Carbon.”

Norco have focused at making the 29er Range Carbon fit, feel and handle like their Killer B. In order to do this the designed the bike around the same rear centre lengths, lengthened the front centre, gave the bike a steeper head tube angle, a shorter stem and less travel in the back and front. Less travel on the suspension is meant to offset the larger wheels. When fit is considered with the stem length with stack and reach the fit between the platforms is designed to be nearly identical. Norco call these measurements Reach Plus and Stack Plus.

All the sizes the bike is available in are designed to give riders the same geometry, fit and handling. If you prefer quick 650b wheels or want the rollover and momentum of 29er wheels, the Range is designed for riders who want a versatile choice.