NORCO

For almost as long as Canadians have been riding bikes, Norco has been making them. Over the past four decades, Norco has been reinventing how Canadians look at bikes - and how they ride them. In order to keep ahead of the pack, we draw on the knowledge of our factory team, staff riders, and design team to create bikes that we simply love to ride.

There aren't too many places in the world where you can freeride on world-class trails, do a 200-km road ride, take a spin on cruiser-perfect cycling paths, or get dropped by a float plane into remote areas for an All Mountain epic. Our backyard is definitely our playground and our best testing facility.

You'd think that with all the possible riding opportunities available to us, nothing would ever get done. Sure, we ride...a lot...but we're equally passionate about making quality bikes for real-world trail conditions and riders. Every minute that we spend out on the road or on the dirt goes into making wise decisions on the product we build.

Just take our line-up of Supercross bikes for example. They were originally developed because a core group of staff riders would hit the park and dirt jumps every free moment they could find (including lunch hour missions to the local secret site just down the road). The same goes for our Thursday night road crew, a group that heads out for road rides through the Fraser Valley. Or, you can always look to the many Norco staff that push their big bikes to the limits out on trails from the Shore to Whistler.

If you were to ask any of these Norco staff why they do it, they'd probably just shrug and say it's because they love riding. But, it's really more than that. It's about commitment and heart. Whether it's creating award-winning bikes, bringing innovations to the industry like front-suspension geometry designs, or supporting grassroots and trail building initiatives, the folks at Norco have always maintained the same spirit - for us it's all about the ride, no compromise.

If you're not lucky enough to live in what the UN has dubbed 'the best country in the world to live in' for years on end, perhaps you can get a taste of life in the Great White North, aboard a 2007 Norco.

Complete Bikes

• Downhill
• Mountain Hardtail frt/susp

A2Z of NORCO

NORCO ATOMIK *Current Offer (2009) (On display in Complete Bikes » Downhill)
NORCO Storm *Current Offer (2009) (On display in Complete Bikes » Mountain Hardtail frt/susp)


HISTORY
For almost as long as Canadians have been riding bikes, Norco has been making them. In 1964, Bert Lewis founded Northern Cycle Industries Ltd. with the dream of creating a Western Canadian- based bicycle company committed to quality product and outstanding customer service. Since then, Norco has grown from its humble beginnings as a couple of guys in a garage to over 150 employees in three offices across Canada. We now have two major Canadian warehouses in Vancouver and Toronto, as well as a domestic manufacturing facility and over 25 international distributors.

From the start, Bert's vision of Norco was to create a company committed to supporting your community by only selling our bikes through independent bicycle retailers who share our high standards of customer service. This means that each and every Norco bike is professionaly assembled by trained, knowledgeable sales staff who want to keep their customers satisfied, not just the day they make a purchase, but every day they own their bike.

The bicycle industry has changed dramatically since 1964. Through each stage of this change, Norco has consistently brought leading edge products with strong margins to its dealers, allowing them to stay one step ahead of the competition.

Bert still rides and runs to stay fit and healthy; he encourages his staff to do the same.

1964
Began assembling bikes in Canada to service the Western Canadian Market.

1968
First Canadian company to capitalize on the Road bike market by importing the Gitane Road bikes.

1969
Introduced a complete Norco packaged accessory program making it easy for dealers to display and sell cycling accessories.

1970
Opened a distribution centre in Toronto to better service Eastern Canada.

1973
Developed and brought the first full suspension BMX bikes to Canada.

1975
Designed and developed a complete line of panniers and bicycle bags. Today our Axiom panniers are proven, well respected and sought after throughout the world.

1977
Launched Bike Guard bicycle locks to meet consumers demands for theft protection. First Canadian company to develop U lock and today Bike Guard is the top selling bike lock brand in Canada.

Set up Veet Industries (Very Efficient Economical Transportation), our bicycle and wheel assembly plant in response to increasing import duties placed on complete bikes coming to Canada.

1980
Developed Norco Factory BMX team to promote and support our BMX line of bicycles. Our team went on to win three Canadian National team titles and numerous individual highlights on a national level, and in world events.

1984
One of the first Canadian bike companies to design and manufacture mountain bikes for the Canadian Market.

1988
Launched Axiom Performance Gear, a premium line of bicycle parts and accessories.

1989
Developed Activa Performance Wear cycling clothing. The first Canadian company to design a waterproof jacket specifically for cycling.

1991
First Bike Company to modify production frame geometry to accomodate front suspension forks (now industry standard) called "suspension specific geometry".

1994
Developed and released first interupted seat tube, fully active, full suspension bike for the Canadian Market. The FTS is the predecessor to the current VPS.

1995
To meet the needs of a growing company, we moved our head office and western distribution centre into a 92,000 sq. ft. state of the art facility in Port Coquitlam, B.C.

Began exporting Norco bikes and proprietary product lines to other distributors around the world. This partnership has now grown to over 13 countries worldwide.

1996
First Canadian company to sponsor a full trials team and develop a trials specific production frame.

Acquired BLT Light Systems, and after a complete re-design, began production in our Canadian assembly plant.

1997
Aquired Adams Trail-A-Bike which pioneered the Trail-A-Bike category and is still the most trusted, well respected, and most recognized brand worldwide.

Began development of monocoque frame Variable Position Suspension (VPS). Today the VPS line encompasses over 5 models. Norco's VPS bikes are known worldwide as premium Freeride or Downhill full suspension bikes.

1999
Became the title bike sponsor of the Ride Guide TV Program (on OLN) and supplied team riders and equipment for the season. We have continued to be the primary bike sponsor, now in its 4th season, and Ride Guide is now seen throughout North America, Europe, and Australia.

2000
Ryan Leech, a Norco Factory Trials Rider, breaks side hop world record. Kris Holm, also a Norco Factory Trials Rider, breaks world Unicycle sidehop record.

2001
Additional distributors picked up the strong Norco bike line, bringing the total up to 9 countries.

2002
Launched Mace Clothing and Gear, a breakthrough in Urban and Dirt specific accessories.

Team Rider Mike Jones, the 2002 BC Cup Downhill Pro Men's Champion selected as a member of the Canadian National Downhill Team to go to the World Championships. Kris Holm once again breaks the sidehop world record at the World Championships and is crowned as the two-time world champion. More locally, Mike Jones and Deb Mckillop both earned #1 Pro-Elite Riders in the highly contested BC Cup Downhill Series. And our very own Scott Goguen took the overall spot as BC Champion on the road.

2003
The One25 wins Mountain Biking Magazine's Bike of the Year award.

Norco hosts and industry-first, when they launch their first Customer Appreciation Day, 'VPS-Fest', at Whistler Bike Park.

2004
Norco Celebrates its 40th Anniversary!

IMBA-Canada opens its doors. Norco signs on as their first corporate member.

Norco expands their 'VPS-Fest' (customer appreciation day) events to include three bike park locations, including the first Eastern event at Blue Mountain, in Collingwood, Ontario.

2005
Norco is recognized by BC Business Magazine as one of the '25 Best Companies to Work for in BC'.

Norco's VPS Six wins Mountain Biking Magazine's 'Bike of the Year' award.

Norco's VPS Shore receives 'Best Gear of the Year' accolades from Explore magazine.

2006
Norco's Team DH is awarded the first ever 5-Star rating from NSMB.com online magazine.

PR/Marketing Manager, Peter Stace-Smith is nominated as an inductee into the 'Mountain Bike Hall of Fame'.

Norco moves up the ranks and is recognized for the 2nd year in a row by BC Business Magazine as one of the '20 Best Companies to Work for in BC'.

2007
Norco is recognized by BC Business Magazine as one of the '25 Best Companies to Work for in BC'.

If you can't find the items you are looking for within our main site, you should be able to view the complete range from NORCO by visiting their own website: (although please be aware that not all products may be available within the UK)



VISIT NORCO Website