NSMB.e.MAGAZINE - Freeride, Extreme and North Shore style Mountain Biking

2003 Norco A-Line
msrp $3399 CDN
The Ultimate Weapon for the Whistler Bike Park?
Steve Sakamoto

When I first learned that Norco was releasing a bike named after the fabled North Shore, I thought of two possible reasons: either they were hoping name recognition could carry the bike on the sales floor, or they were confident enough in the bike's abilities to flaunt it.

And how did the VPS Shore fare? Today, 2 years after its release, all it takes is a few minutes on any North Shore trail before you spot one flying by. It's a good thing too, since they would have been crucified by the freeriding elite if they had released a sub-par bike named after the mountain biking mecca.

For 2003 Norco is trying it again; they are offering a bike designed for, and named after, the quintessential resort-style trail, A-Line. This bike was built specifically for taking on its namesake. It's a solid, burly bike created for big drops, big hits, and big air. The trail at Whistler Mountain is an impossibly fast run built up with huge ramps, doubles, tabletops, and insanely banked corners.

Norco appeared to have two main objectives when designing the A-Line: strength and value. It has been built from the 2002 Team DH frame, although they have added some additional refinements (the seat stays have been tweaked to allow greater clearance while adding to the structural integrity). I've been assured that the production-model rear triangle will be large enough to admit a 2.6" rear tire with plenty of clearance; the prototype's tire rubbed slightly.

The bike looks very similar to last year's VPS line-up with a few notable exceptions. Perhaps the most eye-grabbing is the 8" Monster T2s propping up the front end. Norco had the forks custom-made by Marzocchi for the A-Line, without any external adjustments. The idea is to set and forget them. Ideally, once you have the proper oil and spring set-up, you can count on a burly, reliable fork that is more than willing to attack the A-Line Drop, while still floating over fields of fist-sized rocks without complaint.

The fork reportedly weighs in at 13 lbs (3 pounds heavier than the current-model Monster) and it's definitely noticeable. The bike is anything but light. It's built for the kind of abuse that the local hills can dish out, and most of its weight is carried in the front end. The forks I tested came with the lightest spring/oil set-up that Marzocchi offered, and I found myself nearly bottoming out riding down stairs. If you're larger than the average Smurf, then you'll definitely want to put in some heavier oil.

The bike seems to ride bigger than its weight to boot. I'm a hair under six feet, and I was riding a medium, which is usually a comfortable size for me. The forks have changed the angles, and really cranked up the standover height; I had some difficulty standing over the bike flat-footed. I had to cut the seat post down to only a few inches, in order to keep it from nailing the shock during heavy compression. And I know it's petty, but the Setlaz saddle is the worst I've ever ridden. It's comfortable enough to sit on, but unless you're riding in spandex, the long narrow nose and the double barbs on the rear are guaranteed to catch on your clothes within a pedal stroke or two.

My assessment was somewhat reserved, and it didn't improve at all as I rode from the top of the Fitz chair to the top of Joyride. (Ok, ok-I rode B-Line first to warm up) That small climb nearly killed me on the first run of the day. The combined 16 inches of travel (well, 15-the prototype was limited to 7-and-a-bit inches in the front, and the rear suspension has three travel settings between 6.2-7.8 inches) did its best to sap all of my McMuffin-fueled energy as I tried to climb to the trailhead.

I think we got off on the wrong foot, but I made my best effort to keep an open mind as I steered the big behemoth down B-Line. Like the forks, the rear shock was set up without any compression or damping, and had as little preload as possible…and foolishly, I left it as it was for our inaugural ride. The rear end felt almost as if it were hanging by a thread, slipping out on every corner and bouncing around over the smallest bump. Once I reached the bottom, I was wondering how exactly someone could manage to ride this bike on a daily basis - its imposing size, tremendous weight, and the sloppy suspension was nearly the death of me after one ride!

I caught my breath on the way back up again, and the fresh oxygen sparked a thought in my mind - adjust the shock, dummy. Almost immediately, I had the bike dialled in, and we headed out again for the fabled A-Line. I was somewhat nervous after my first experience, but after the first few pedal strokes, the weight didn't seem quite as noticeable. Instead of having to force the bike uphill, we were working as a team towards one goal - speed. While the A-Line grumbles at low speed, and protests violently at the slightest incline, I could almost hear it singing as I piloted it down its namesake. At low speed, its mammoth proportions were a nuisance at best, but its size was very reassuring once I started moving. When set up properly, the bike handled like a dream - it railed through the corners, and it flowed over rocks, roots and bumps. I had a tough time keeping it in the air, but with some stiffer coils up front I'd have been in orbit easily enough. The folks at Norco certainly geared this bike for chairlift riding, or wide, open-throttled trails - the faster you go, the more nimble the bike is. If you find yourself going a bit too quickly, however, the dual 8-inch Hayes hydraulic discs (the new 9.0 model) will stop you in a matter of milliseconds.

As much fun as it was riding along at Whistler, this is not the kind of bike I'd want to have to bomb down the Shore with any regularity. First of all, the Truvativ Box Guide is great for keeping the chain where you want it to be, but it's not particularly protective. Unlike the popular MRP or Envy guides, there is no bash guard to keep your chain from being flattened on the roots and rocks common to the Shore. Despite the fact that I'm not a small guy, I had a tough time wrestling the front end up and over smallish obstacles, and I had to eject from more than one teeter-totter, lacking the speed to get me up and over. Manoeuvring in and out of the trees was no idle feat either - this bike really prefers straight lines. The A-Line is a niche bike that has been designed and built with a specific purpose in mind…chairlifts and fast, open trails with lots of air time. I would love to ride this bike all summer long at Whistler, but it's not going to make easy work of the Shore, or any other twisty, narrow and technical trails.

The Verdict
Should you lay down your hard earned dead prime ministers or presidents for an A-Line? Absolutely. The VPS has become the ride of choice for the rapidly expanding freeriding cult, and with good reason. The people at Norco pride themselves on offering frames so strong that Paul Bunyan himself would have a tough time breaking, and the A-Line is certainly no exception. It's a burly bike that's made to handle the abuse that season-pass holders can dish out without complaint.

The component spec Norco has assembled on the A-Line is a great combination of performance and affordability. How they have managed to offer an excellent, long-travel, big hit bike for $3400 is beyond me, but I think it's safe to say that next summer I'll be ogling a whole lot of A-Lines in the lift line at Whistler.