dirtwest spotlight - Norco Aurum 1

This a new series for us here at dirtwest. The dirtwest Spotlight series will be an ongoing "real-rider" product review series. For our first episode we were lucky enough to borrow a pre-production version of the brand new 2012 Norco Aurum 1.

We took this bike to a lot of lower mainland BC mountains: Burke Mountain, Burnaby Mountain, Mt. Fromme, Whistler Bike Park and Invergarry, an inner-City jump spot. Most of this video was shot(after work) in Invergarry Park(City of Surrey Bike park coming Spring/Summer 2012). Here is our take on the fantastic new Downhill rig:

Our impressions of this bike were really positive: The Aurum 1 was Light and confident bike to ride. The bike features a tapered headtube, a detail shared among many of Norco's 2012 line up. This feature provides the strongest frame possible while keeping weight to an absolute minimum.

The new A.R.T. suspension is another stand-out feature. ART is an acronym for Advanced ride technology. Basically, ART means your suspension system is tuned respective to the size frame you purchase, something uncommon in the bike industry. The Aurum's new ART suspension design handled small stutter bumps and hard square edge hits really well. The Aurum was fast and precise over rough terrain, and pedaled extremely well.

The bike accelerated rapidly and braked responsively in all conditions. I suspect this great performance is largely due to the use of ART suspension and the hydroformed aluminum frame and light weight parts our Aurum 1 came spec'd with.

We appreciated Norco's attention to detail on the bike. Cable routings were neat and tidy. The Aurum1 runs an X9 10 speed drivetrain with Syntace's X-12 axle system; used together the Aurum had incredibly crisp and precise shifting. Another nice detail were the bike's integrated fork bumpers. Overall, The Aurum is great looking bike, it is equipped with an excellent spec, and best of all the bike is extremely quiet.

Special thanks to Norco for lending us this bike for review!
For more info on the Aurum visit http://www.norco.com

Watch us take the Aurum 1 down Ninja Cougar/Fade to Black at Whistler Bike Park. Filmed on a GoPro HD Hero:

Watch the Aurum 1 GoPro footage from Ninja Cougar/Fade to Black at Whistler Bike Park:

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