XCO Race, November 8th 2015

While my Norco Sight is not a cross-country bike, I had  decided to take part in XC race to check my stamina.
The race took place in a forest near my city. The race lap length was 6 km and there were lots of mud, roots and dirt. There were 3 laps in a race with race time of a leader approximately 1h 3m. My time was +5 minutes.
3rd place in a local XC race is a very good result for me!

My rear shock (RockShox Monarch R) had failed after this muddy race. It doesn't keep air pressure now. I need a new seal kit for RS Monarch R, and will write about it in my next post.

Norco Sight: New Seatstay!

One month ago I've written a post about Norco Sight Rear triangle issue and during YalgoraRace Enduro I was inspecting my bikes seatstay before every stage. During the race the crack was becoming more and more visible but the frame didn't snap. After the race I've left my bike at LBS for warranty replacement.

New Handlebar Tape for My Road Bike

White handlebar tape was a big mistake. In a few months the tape had become grey and dirty.

Yalgora Race Enduro 2015

I've visited an Enduro race at Yalgora in the end of July, and I'm very happy to get very good results!
I trained a lot and managed to get the 6th place in absolute! The final results.

With Maxxis Highroller II 2.4 tyres my Norco Sight have become a true Enduro bike!

Here are several great photos from Yalgora Race Enduro 2015 event:

Weight of Frame Norco Sight A 2014

My friend had put his Norco Sight frame on a scale WITHOUT suspension bolts and shock mounting hardware, but with headset cups. This is an M-size frame of Norco Sight A 2014 7.2. The result is 2820 grams.

Norco Sight Seatstay (rear triangle) Issue

I've read some info about Norco Sight frame issues at MTBR last autumn, and I've got affraid for my Norco Sight seatstay. Norco Sight is a great trail bike which can let you ride very big speeds like on an enduro bike. 650B wheels, great suspension and perfect geometry make it possible. I've rode approximately 1300km on my Sight and I usually inspect its seatstay for any cracks. I've just noticed a paint crack on the drive side of my bike's seatstay. It seems to me there'll be a crack one day. I hope Norco warranty will help me to solve this problem. Unfortunately it is not the only one rear triangle issue of Norco Sight A 2014 and Sight Killer B 2013.

Norco Sight: Crappy Stock Headset

I am very disappointed that Norco has installed a ball-bearing headset on my Norco Sight Alloy 7.2 2014 trail bike. A headset is not such an expensive part of a bike to save money on. The headset doesn't have proper seals, that's why it is better to grease the balls regularly, especially after rainy rides. Changing a headset requires special tools and should be done by experienced mechanic.

Easy Ghetto Tubeless!

It's not a problem for me to make an ordinary (non-TLR/UST) wheel tubeless. I've taken old fire extinguisher and have made an air compressor with it. I just pump it with 6-8bars of air using ordinary air pump and then I can easily make tubeless any tire on any rim with the help of this compressor and a sealant. I use BMX (20") tyre as a rim tape and Stan's Notubes sealant. This combo works mostly with each rim and tyre.

My Road Singlespeed Bike in Audax Mode

At the 17th of may 2015 I've rode 215km on my Road Singlespeed bike in 10h 20min. It was the "Girvassky Brevet 200". Unfortunataly I've broken my chain in the first kilometer of the ride that's why I've lost 40 minutes of time coming back home for the new chain, and  my brevet was lengthened to 215km. This was my first audax ride ever. I didn't expect to face so many problems, but I've made it! The weather was cold and rainy all the day. Due to broken chain, I had to ride all the distance alone. The first 100km I was fighting with a rain and a wind. The second part of the ride was more comfortable. My gear ratio 39/16 was good for average speed of 25-28km/h. This is a comfortable speed for riding in a group or in a good weather conditions, but my average speed was 23km/h that day, and my cadence was lower than I expected, that's why my knees and steps had got a very big stress during this brevet. I've made 200km and I'm not gonna try it again soon.
I've rode 200km in 9h 40min, alone, in cold, rainy and windy weather, on a singlespeed. I think it is a rather good result. I can do less than 9h, but only in good weather conditions and in a group of cyclists.

This is my bike in audax mode:

Norco Sight: Complete Bike for the 2015 Season

I've been changing some components of my bike during last winter: new handlebar with grips, new wheelset, new chainring with chain guide, new cassette. My custom Norco Sight A 7.2 2014 became 1.25kg lighter than its stock specification.

Weight: Joytech 142x12 (X12)

This is a rear hub from a stock wheelset of my Norco Sight A 2014. A simple ball bearing Joytech 142x12 hub with a steel freehub body. I'm very disappointed that Norco have installed this hub on a bike that costs $2000. I didn't manage to tune this hub, it has two options: or it doesn't spin good, or it has a play in bearings. That's why this Joytech hub was replaced as soon as possible, and I've built a fully new wheelset for my Norco.

A weight of the hub is 440 grams:

Norco Sight: ESI Grips

In the 2015 season I will try to use ESI Chunky silicone grips on my Norco Sight trail bike. They say that these grips are very comfortable.
I've installed ESI Chunky Black with the help of Vodka and they look very nice on my bike. Even  Chunky grips are more fat than ordinary lock-on grips and this will be very good for my large palms. I can't even imagine how fat will Extra Chunky be?

Norco Sight: New Chain Ring and Chain Guide

I've just got  two new components for my Norco Sight: chainring (e13 Guidering, M Profile, 32T) and  chain guide (e13 XCX Top Guide Black BB Mount).
I've changed my 34T Race Face NW chainring for another one, because 34T was too much for me. 34T chainring was good with 26" wheels of my previous trail bike. Norco Sight has bigger wheels, that's why I've decided to change the chainring for 32T (e13 Guidering, M Profile). A weight of the ring is aproximately 45gr.

Final Wheelset for my Norco Sight

I hate when a bike has different wheels, that's why I've decided to change rear rim om my new wheelset from WTM KOM i23 650b to Colt Element 27.5" rim. Now I have similar wheels but with different hubs (ZZYZX 15mm + Novatec 142x12). Colt Element rim looks much more stronger than WTB KOM though Element is only 15 grams more heavy.

Final wheelset for my Norco Sight with Maxxis Highroller II 27.5"x2.4" 3C/EXO and Avid G2CS 180/160mm rotors:

Weight: CS-HG81-10 vs CS-HG62-10 Shimano Cassettes

Stock cassette of my Norco Sight is Shimano CS-HG62-10 (11-36T). It is rather heavy cause its weight is approximately 460grams: