I came super close to buying the lowest spec Specialised Stumpy EVO alloy but it turns out that the local shop that had it listed as “in stock” didn’t have it in stock, and then I realised the lowest spec model doesn’t come with the genie rear shock, so I figure I go for a hardtail and look for an e-MTB next year (probably an AMFLOW).
I spotted this Norco Torrent S1 on FB Marketplace a week before I made my last post. The owner had it listed at $2200 AUD. I tried to haggle him down to $1500 AUD but he wasn’t having it. A few days later I saw the same bike being listed, but with different photos. I reached out to the seller and it turns out he only just sold the bike for $1500 AUD last week to the guy who was now selling it for $2200! IE: Someone bought the bike just looking to flip it for a quick buck. Super frustrating.
Knowing this I tried my best to haggle the guy down to $1500 and even mentioned being in touch with the previous owner, but again, he wasn’t having it. In the end I got it for $1950 AUD and yesterday I hit the trails with it.
The first owner had just bought a new AMFLOW e-MTB and he literally stripped it and put all the new parts off the AMFLOW onto the Torrent. Everything from the bars, stem, Magura MT7 Pro brakes, Fox 36 Performance fork, Maxxis Assegai and Dissector tyres and AMFLOW wheelset.
First thing I noticed was the bike is HUGE! It makes my 1996 GT avalanche look and feel like a BMX bike. The bike is so long that it didn’t fit in my Honda Jazz (which easily consumes 2 road bikes without taking wheels off). I had to remove the front wheel to get it in there. Next thing I noticed was the bike is damn heavy (I knew this was going to be the case). On my scale it came in at 15.3kg’s.
Just some first impressions after a 15km trail ride (mostly XC):
– I need to spend more time adjusting the fork, it’s not as plush as I want it to be (will watch some guides and get it dialled in).
– The tyres have been set up with tubes. I’m 60kg’s and at 30psi I just felt like they were way too hard. Will convert to tubeless ASAP so I can more safely run lower pressures.
– 800mm bars felt too wide, will cut them down.
– Going downhill is hilarious fun. Initially I was washing out all over the place but halfway through the ride I started leaning my weight forwards a lot more when cornering and everything started to click! So much more grip in the corners, feels a little scary, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it the more I ride.
– Towards the end of the ride I just got so tired going up that I just coasted on the way down (won’t lie, I was screaming for an e-bike), but having said that, this loop which I used to do in the late 2000’s used to really destroy all of us, and what was interesting was that we were getting to parts of the trail WAY quicker than I remembered. This could be because I’m more fit now that I’ve been riding road bikes most days of the week since December last year, or that the 29″ wheels just roll so much better, or a bit of both?
– The Magura brakes were rubbing pretty hard. I aligned them by eye and trued the rotors a bit and they’re much better now but there’s still the very slightest of rubs on both front and rear. On doing some research it seems these brakes are known for it!
All in all it’s just so awesome to be out on the trails again. Mountain Biking is so much more physically demanding than road riding, blows my mind. So much more upper body work and way less sitting down so the legs get worked hard too.
Happy with the bike. No doubt about it an e-MTB would have been the better bike for the type of trail we did yesterday, or even a modern dually, but hands down the Torrent is a much more capable bike than my 1996 GT Avalanche! As a weight weenie I’m pretty determined to knock a couple of kg’s off the bike; carbon bars, wheelset, lighter tyres, cranks etc. But for now I just want to ride it more.
