The next spring I bought a Kona Process 153 and took it to Moab. I used my job as a patroller to learn a new style of riding. I bought lots of armor, new baggy kit, and a Trek DH rental. ![]() So I decided to embrace modern mountain biking. I realized that things had come a long way in the 15 years or so that I hadn’t been paying attention. In 2017 I worked at Stevens Pass as a bike park patroller. I started sensing that maybe I was at risk of becoming that old guy in Lycra who hasn’t kept up with the times. I was on my trusty old 1998 Specialized Stumpjumper with a Zion CroMo fork. One had a Banshee 150mm trail bike, the other a Chromag 29” hardtail. Two or three years ago now, I was riding with two buddies in WA. Different strokes for different folks, I guessed. ![]() I didn’t understand why all these people were pushing their big bikes uphill. When I lived in Bellingham WA circa 2006-2013 I was the guy out at Galbraith on a Bianchi GUSS 26” rigid single speed, no dropper, and at least a 140mm stem. It was heavy, unreliable, and expensive to boot. Having been around long enough to remember and ride the first RockShox, the first Manitou, and all the subsequent suspension ideas that came and went, it should be no surprise that myself and a handful of other folks eventually gave up on suspension entirely. As somebody posted - Geometry charts are great, but you have to ride the bike. Sorry to write such a long post, but there's alot of comment about faults that aren't there. ![]() I also have an NS Snabb 27.5 FS which is am exceptional bike. So yes I like the Norco but still not sure on 29er wheels. I don't mean it shakes your body more, I mean more input is required. The S2 certainly has the edge going up and monsters downs, but it's harder to ride. So which is best my Eccentric 27.5 or this 29er. Rockshox don't post the weight but I reckon it's at least 2500gm. The weight comes from the big wheels and tyres, to me that's a 29er problem. The downside the S2 is a bit heavy, (1.5 kg more than my Eccentric) well I only ffing got worried about that when I weighed it!.I never noticed when out riding. Makes me wonder why I took so long to go long and slack. Nope the 64 angle is awesome, rides so well. I thought it would be too slack and long - wondering on the uphill, untidy on corners. Novatec make for other companies so I don't worry re the hubs.Ħ4 deg head angle. I've had Hope and DT and Specialised hubs fail and I look after my stuff. I also have an older NS Eccentric (steel) 27.5 and I notice that I have to use my body more on the S2. Going down its superb even on quite tight tracks. It's great uphill and not just on smooth tracks. My reservation when buying it was it would be a "one trick pony" as a bike review said. I was concerned after reading stuff online about BB being too high and wished I bought another bike. Well I have a purple S2, so I can answer a few comments. I do like the look of the Norco frame better, but if I bought a prebuilt Torrent I'd probably be putting Chromag stuff on it (minimally grips and seat). The LBS has great support for Norco, but I'm quite convinced Chromag would take care of me as well. I own a Norco but I'm not married to them as a brand. Anyhow, neither is a clear winner for me. Or $3,590 CAD plus dropper (I can deal with a $150-200 dropper, others can't so that brings it up to a very comparable price)Īlso that's assuming paying retail on either. So $3,999CAD for the Torrent (and deal with the NX cranks later) That being said I'm fine with the x-Fusion on the Norco (assuming it fits me). Look at the number of take-off droppers listed in the buysell. ![]() I think the no dropper thing is because people are pretty opinionated on droppers and it's best to get the right size. Buy a straight frame and build it custom or buy a kit as is. Norco isn't going to customize anything for you. So choose your frame colour AND accessory colors. Which brings up the fact you'll have your choice of colour for the stem, bars, grips, seat etc. I'm also sure for a small fee Chromag would swap stems and bars so you can have a 35mm clamp and 800mm bars. Would I notice the difference in a charger 2 vs 2.1 damper? Dunno, my pike rc2 seems fine. If the ultimate is a must have I'm sure they could make that happen (for a fee ). A quick email would tell you what exactly is in their current GX build. I would prefer a 200mm front rotor.Ĭhromag doesn't say which Lyrik, just Lyric which isn't very meaningful (by the top cap it looks like an RC2). I'm fine with Guide RS brakes, they aren't a clear step down from the Code R (otherwise SRAM wouldn't retail them at the same price).
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