Norco has just announced a major redesign of its enduro bike, the Range. The 2022 model is the latest bike to feature a virtual high-pivot suspension design.
High-pivot designs are surely getting their time in the spotlight recently on downhill and enduro bikes. Earlier this week, Cannondale announced its new Jekyll featuring a similar high-pivot design. No matter the brand, however, the designs all use some configuration of an idler pulley to create a rearward axle path. This minimizes braking forces and also helps keep speed while experiencing big compressions.
Norco also says the idler helps make the bike more efficient by increasing power transfer on the climbs, eliminating pedal-bob from the Range's 170mm of rear travel.
The brand has also revamped the Range's sizing and geometry, customizing the geometry for each individual size. The contact patch of the front tire will remain the same distance from a rider's center of gravity, no matter what size bike they are riding. This leads to more consistent and customized handling that stays consistent whether a rider is short or tall.
The new Range is a 29er designed for enduro riding, no matter if you're on the racecourse or tackling big backcountry days. Riders can customize their fit and suspension tuning by using the brand's 'Ride Aligned Setup Guide'. The online setup guide allows riders to enter their gender, height, weight, and bike model and then gives specific numbers for things like bar width and height, and suspension settings.
Pricing for the Range starts at $3,799 for a frameset, which comes with a custom-tuned Fox DHX2 Factory Coil shock.
There are three complete build options, starting with the Range C3 at $5,599. The C3 features a 170mm RockShox Zeb fork, Shimano drivetrain and brake components, a TranzX dropper post, and Maxxis tires.
For the top-end C1 build ($8,999), a Fox Factory FLOAT 38 fork is used in addition to a SRAM XO1 drivetrain, SRAM Code RSC brakes, a OneUp Adjustable Dropper, and Maxxis tires.
On a size large, the reach is 480mm with a wheelbase of 1285mm. The headtube angle is 63.25mm, with an effective seat tube angle of 77mm. The bike is available in size small-XL.
