So, for the second time in the Norco Blog’s history, it has packed up and found a new home. Rather than being hidden from sight and tucked away in the depths of the internet we have now merged the blog with the news. The New home of the blog is simply norco.com/news so head on over and check out the latest news, events, and more!

If you follow the Norco blog through rss, here is the new link for you to add to your reader. http://www.norco.com/news/rss.php

Today is day one of the 2010 BC Ride to Conquer Cancer. Starting in Surrey BC and venturing down to Seattle WA over the span of two days 2400 riders look to top last years incredible $6.4 Million Dollars raised. Norco has joined up for the 2nd year in a row to offer tech support to any and all riders along the journey. With 12 Key checkpoints over the two days Norco, along with La Bicycletta and Obsession Bikes has seen everything from derailleur adjustments to seized hubs, broken spokes to flat tires. With is many people riding bikes the worst is bound to happen. Our goal is to get each and every bike back on the road to finish the 300km trip south.

Here are a few photos from an awesome day of conquering cancer… litterally! While writing this post I have learned that the mid-event total is a whopping 9.3 Million Dollars!!!!! Even Doctor Evil would be impressed with that number. (with the pinky of course)

The Capilano University, Mountain Bike Operations course has gone through some changes and now Jay Hoots is the lead instructor! What!!!!!
True story, this last semester saw yours truly set down the assistant instructor role and step up into a position of responsibility!

Dan Scott from IMBA Canada and past student in the MBO program is my assistant instructor and with his help we have transformed the traditional course into a Dreaded jam packed Giv’R sorta gig that serves to give real experience and provide a huge range of skills…

The program now going into its 5th year continues to grow in so many cool ways. Great feedback from students and the open minded attitude of the school means that the program is getting better…

2010 is the first year a municipal partner has come on board to offer a large land area to be developed for future school trail building projects, Sechelt rocks!

The advanced trail building course runs for the month of April and it is ‘full on’ with multiple projects, massive amounts of information and of course project design and construction in the field. The students all rose to the occasion and designed and built “Brown Sugar” a multi level bike trail that is soo much fun. It was great to work with all the students and I appreciate the time spent in and out of class with such a wide variety of characters.

During the month I lived on the coast and in between marking exams and assignments I did manage to get some solid riding in both on moto and mountain bike.

That’s it for now huge stuff for May!!! Hope the weather continues to hold…

Ride ON!

Hoots

Now is your chance to submit your photos and stories to the ilovemybike section of norco.com. If you do, your submission could be published in the 2011 Norco Brochure. So submit your best shot or send us a great story about you and your bike and it could show up in the new Norco Brochure.

Please only submit photos that YOU have taken and stories that YOU have written.

Submit your photos here

Submit your stories here

The Road Season is well underway and Team H&R Block Race Team is making a name for itself on the circuit. Check out these updates on where/when the team is doing what they do best!

Team H&R Block Riders Abroad:

• Mark MacDonald – in Mexico with the National Team for Pam Am Track Championships, results to follow as his first race is in 2 days.
• Mike Sidic– Had a tough start in Europe as he went down hard and has fractured one of his collarbones.  Mike – from everyone on the Team we wish you a good recovery and a safe trip home.
• Justin Kerr – Competing at the New Zealand Para- Cycling National Championships. We are looking forward to hearing about how he has been doing.
• Ian Filinger – Some interesting facts about his upcoming Race Across America that I thought you would all enjoy.
  • June 9^th 12 noon is the start of the Solo Race Across America!
  • Stats for the last 30 days of training:  22 activities, 1,307 miles (2,091kms), 75 hrs 32min, 71,981 vertical ft, 17.3 mph average speed, 135 avg bpm heart rate and 83,004 calories.

Team H&R Block Race Results:

• The Alberta team road a great stage race with their killer results at Velocity, Edmonton, Alberta with several stage wins and the overall GC Championship – well done boys!

Upcoming Races:

• Enumclaw, Washington – May 22^nd-23^rd
• Bikes on Broadway, Saskatchewan – May 29^th-30^th
• BC Championships, British Columbia – May 28^th-30^th
• Mt. Hood, Oregon –June 1^st – 6^th
• Westside Classic, British Columbia – June 6^th

New Team Photos

• Check out the photo gallery at www.teamhrblock.ca or have a look through the Flickr Team H&R Block Flickr Group.

New Team Video

The Dirt Norco Team is getting getting ready for the 2010 Sea Otter Classic in Monterey California. In the mean time though they have been busy working on their second shorty video. Have a look at this video, it rocks!

“if you had a dog and wanted to dig a hole, what would you say to it”

Video Provided By the Dirt Norco Race Team.

Everyone know Norco is about bikes, but we also strive to be about cycling as a whole, community, friends, family and everything around bikes. Being so, it’s no surprise that we are sponsoring an event that promotes a love of mountain biking and outdoor life! Suburban RUSH is an adventure race which Norco has been proud to be sponsoring for several years  has sold out its sixth consecutive year! This 30 km off road adventure consist of about 8 km of running – hey it’s good to cross train – and 20-22 km of mountain biking.

On Saturday April 24th, racers from around BC converge in Port Moody, a suburb of Greater Vancouver and explore the scenic beginner and intermediate trails around the area.

Even though the organizers tell us they are at racer capacity, they welcome volunteers and spectators. Check them out at www.suburbanrush.com or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Good luck to all the 2010 Suburban RUSH racers! To see more about what the race is all about, have a look at the summary from last years event.

It’s crazy to think that I’ve raced DH World Cups for 11 years now and I’ve never ended up with a scar like the one I’ll have after riding my road bike for 13hrs.

Not sure If everyone really knows what went on with my arm so..
In November I went on a 13hr road ride to pick up my grandma from her house and drive her back here in her car before Christmas. Whilst I was on that ride my hand went numb, after roughly 4 weeks some sensation and strength started to come back but it was not completely the same as it had been in the past. As far as I was aware it wasn’t really that bad I could still ride moto and DH just fine but the doctor sent me for some nerve conduction tests for which there are only 3 neurologists in the country that can do these type of tests, obviously with that ratio I had to wait about 2 months to be seen.
Tuesday this week was when I finally got my test results back and they showed that only 50% of the electrical impulses in my left arm were actually getting through to my hand. By Wednesday at 8am I was admitted to one of the top hospitals in the country to have a nerve untapped and relocated in my arm. Mr D Ford is the man I’d like to thank for getting me in for the surgery so quickly and for doing such an amazing job on the extremely delicate procedure.

I just had my surgery on Wednesday and got out of hospital yesterday, everything went really well and my hand feels really good already. Just need to get this cut healed up and it will be back to riding my Norco World Team bike.
See everyone at Sea Otter for a race.

Cheers,
Fee

Fionn

Fionn Griffiths
Griffiths Racing
Norco World Team
www.griffithsracing.net

The best kept secret at Norco for the past year has been the 853 Team Re-Issue. This is a limited release of one of the most classic frames Norco has ever made. The 853 gets its inspiration from the mid 90s with an update for 2010. Classic styling plus a lengthened toptube, slackened head angle, disk tabs and an eccentric BB make this the best classic ride available.

The new 853 is Candy Red and offers a super comfortable ride that only high quality steel provides. Weighing in at 4.8lbs, the frame is also light, nimble and durable. Whether you are looking for a winter trail bike, an all season XC ride or a singlespeed powerhouse have a close look at the new 853, it could be your next bike.

]]> http://www.norco.com/blog/1112/the-norco-853-resurrected-from-the-past/feed/ 6 http://www.norco.com/blog/949/2010-norco-team-better-than-ever/ http://www.norco.com/blog/949/2010-norco-team-better-than-ever/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2010 16:32:15 +0000 admin http://www.norco.com/blog/?p=949

The Norco Team has some new faces these days along side some well known members. Spanning across disciplines from XC to Road, Slopestyle to DH and Track to Trials there is a Norco rider that can do just about everything.

The Newest addition for 2010 is the H&R Block Road Team. Since 2006 the team has been competing at the Elite National level and will look south in 2010 at expanding into the US. Check out more info on the team at http://www.norco.com/team or http://www.teamhrblock.ca/

The Rest of the Norco team is better than ever too, here is the roster:

	Ryan Leech is starting his 15th year wearing a Norco jersey. For 2010 he will continue to amaze spectators with his amazing trials show as well as inspire youth with the Trials of Life education program
Jay hoots is starting his 10th year in the Norco family. Through freeriding and Park Building Jay will travel the world and turn it inside-out along the way.
	Dylan Korba is Norco’s ‘if it has two wheels I will ride it’ team member. Dylan can be spotted riding street, freeride, slopestyle, trials or anything else that resembles a bike. Maybe next year he will launch his road career?
Mislav Mironovic a.k.a the Croatian Sensation lives on his bike. In Europe Mislav competes in slopestyle and dirtjump competitions, watch for him though in North America this summer around Crankworx time.
	Darcy ‘smiles’ Turenne. Between competing, filming and riding Darcy will make the rounds in 2010. Watch for her at major events such as Crankworx and Sea Otter; if you spot her come over and say hello!
National XC champion Andrew Watson is back for 2010 and will likely be ripping up the National Circuit again this year. Lets just hope that the Moustache doesn’t come back.
	Catherine Vipond is racing the National XC circuit for 2010. Coming off a great season in 2009 Catherine will be fighting her way to the front of the pack all across Canada.
Young Gunner, Nick Geddes is racing the DH/4X circuit and not looking back. Keep your eyes on the Junior Podium and you may just find Nick rising to the top.
	Newcomer Sam Dueck is a new addition to the team for 2010. With a 2009 season including Goatstyle, Crankworx Colorado and Crankworx Whistler, watch for Sam to make a splash in the 2010 Slopestyle circuit.
Ben Kaufmann is the first BMX rider to join the Norco Team in some time. Ben will be competing in events on the East Coast of Canada and may even come out to say hi in the West. Ben adds a new flavour to the team and will bring new energy for 2010. Watch for more on Ben coming soon!
	Fionn Griffiths is taking on the world once again with the Norco World Team, watch for her travelling the world cup circuit again for 2010.
Bernard Kerr is moving up in 2010. Coming off a recent title of British Junior Champion, Bernard will be stepping up to the plate on the Norco World team trying his hand in the pro category.