How-to: Learn to Corner Better - Video by diamondbackusa

25 3

Chromagmonk (May 9, 2012 at 15:46)

I bought Simon's Fluidride DVD last year and it was the best money spent on riding all last year - that includes two trips to Whistler and a new Demo 8. He presents some great concepts in a way that is understandable. If you only watch the cornering stuff, it is totally worth it.

22 2

Hermit185 (May 9, 2012 at 18:07)

i know these videos are great, but between that and whistler and the new demo....

19 2

shawnca7 FL (May 9, 2012 at 20:17)

Seriously, I'd take the Demo and learn the hard way if I have to.

3 1

nouser (May 10, 2012 at 0:01)

I watched it on the computer and applied it to my 951 I've had for 2 years

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ruralrider528 (May 10, 2012 at 15:23)

center for kids who cant corner good and who wanna learn to do other stuff good too

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mtnbker395 (May 10, 2012 at 16:18)

Excellent video, thanks guys!

22 1

brenthillier (May 9, 2012 at 15:30)

Wow! How come every time someone talks about cornering the focus is on pedal position. Your feet shift in response to moving and rotating your hips. When it comes to cornering think about hip rotation before anything else.

Check out this advice!

nsmb.com/5214-hey-coach-ep-1

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RONDAL (May 9, 2012 at 16:26)

agreed. if you point your hips (belly button) to the exit your feet (and the rest of your core) will automatically turn where they need to go and you end up doing all of what is posted above without thinking

1 0

vi5a (May 9, 2012 at 16:31)

They make learning fun(ny)!

8 47

stacykohut (May 9, 2012 at 16:38) (Below Threshold)

those who can..............do. those that can't.............coach.

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hernanf (May 9, 2012 at 17:14)

Best training video award!!!!

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moabRover (May 9, 2012 at 17:33)

I've ridden with Simon. The guy can ride. Those who rip, rarely know how to teach. He does both very well.

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Je3Re3My (May 9, 2012 at 18:08)

@stacykohut...Tomac coaches Gwin

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remark-j (May 9, 2012 at 18:22)

I really like the skiing analogy (even though I snowboard!)

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rigodon777 (May 9, 2012 at 18:23)

Best advice I ever gotten about cornering was from Kirt Voreis, and what he said was something along those lines: Outside knee putting pressure on the frame, and outside knee acting as a balancing post. and after that, I was able to corner twice as fast on off-camber turn, and loose turns.

3 2

Bowen1911 (May 9, 2012 at 19:00)

it's "those who can coach, those who can't teach"

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dirtjumper771 (May 9, 2012 at 21:45)

im disagreeing with all of you, those who can, ride. Those who can teach and ride, coach.

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Rolas (May 9, 2012 at 21:50)

Personally, i've never been able to corner faster until i thought about my elbows. I think most of a time, pedal position and pressure comes naturally if this is not your first year on a bike, but it is important! I always struggle to turn right and these videos shows where the problem is - pedals. I'd like to see more this great stuff on pinkbike.

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richardmorris (May 10, 2012 at 5:34)

Point with your pecker, WIN!

1 0

mountainman24 (Jun 22, 2012 at 10:59)

^ lol ^

4 1

rgmglglg (May 9, 2012 at 21:07)

Oh and another thing I learned. Slow the bike down before you enter the turn and exit fast. The tires were meant to do only one thing at a time. Break in a straight line and dont touch the brakes in the corner. If you brake AND turn at the same time you will go down as the tires can only do one thing at a time. (Something else the 19 year old taught me)

3 1

baca262 (May 10, 2012 at 9:16)

this here is vehicle dynamics 1on1. this applies to any ground vehicle, be it a car, motorcycle or a bicycle. EVERYONE should know this.

and i meant weighting the outside foot should come naturally since in corners when you lean the bike, you don't want to clip anything with your inside foot therefore you raise it and the outside foot naturally takes all the weight. if you come in too hot on a regular basis, practice drifts, drifting is a great way to shed excess speed. also, not to lean with the bike should be common knowledge. it's so simple to practice - just find a straight open sidewalk with some manhole covers and roll up at some 10mph to say, left side of it, then, without yourself moving curve the bike around the right side (and vice versa). the point is to keep yourself going in the straight line but the bike moves around the manhole underneath you.

2 1

baca262 (May 10, 2012 at 9:22)

i forgot to add you will need to counter-steer in order to drop the bike into the corner. again, this should be picked up on naturally, there's really no other way to get it done.

2 1

whiskeyjarphotography (May 10, 2012 at 10:26)

I learnt the whole brake straight thing the hard way .... On my face :L

3 1

domparsley42 (May 9, 2012 at 15:28)

I need tips on my position, shifting of weight and my posture. No matter whether Im riding my local bmx track, some dirt jumps or dh trails... I feel fine but when I watch myself back on videos I look uncomfortable. If anyone's willing to help I will put an edit together that shows my position

2 0

si618 (May 9, 2012 at 19:30)

a href=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVEh9Tby54g&list=PL5136880C65D6FCC6&index=1&feature=plpp_video">Check this video out./a>

Cornering is about 14 minutes in but I found the whole thing worthwhile.

There's also some other training type videos in that playlist which you might like.

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iamamodel (May 9, 2012 at 19:50)

Dom, get yourself a copy of Mastering Mountain Bike Skills by Lee McCormack and Brian Lopes. That book has a cult following for a reason.

2 0

iffy (May 10, 2012 at 14:17)

^^ +1 very good book

2 0

domparsley42 (May 10, 2012 at 14:17)

Thanks for that I will get looking for that. Why did I get neg propped for my comment?! Thanks guys.

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iffy (May 10, 2012 at 14:35)

dom

www.leelikesbikes.com

4 2

RichDaviesGB (May 9, 2012 at 15:49)

It's similar to mx or trials in the way that your whole body has to be in tune with the action. The bigger you make the contact patch between tyre and surface, then the faster covering potential. It's all a matter of leverage. YAY PHYSICS!

2 0

pdxsteve (May 11, 2012 at 12:42)

Find that Golden Thread, boys. I've taken a handful of group and small group lessons with Simon with a wide skill range of riders. EVERYONE walks away better, faster and with new riding skill homework.

We all complain that when you learn a new skill your riding seems to suck, as you are now focused on a new body position (or whatever) but as soon as his cornering technique is second nature, you'll rip!

3 1

rgmglglg (May 9, 2012 at 21:04)

BTW baca 262 shouldn't everybody pick up on this after a year of riding naturally, without conscious effort?
I have been riding moto for 40 years since I was 5 and I consider myself really fast dh on an mtb but a good friend pointed out that I was doing exactly as this video says. I was coming into stuff too hot and leaning with my shoulder pedals level not weighting outside foot. I kept hitting my shoulder on trees and hilliside. Since I have tried this technique I feel like I have slowed down but my times are down and I am riding always riding on the edge. Before I was always on the edge of crashing. I still have alot to learn but I have found that when you get older you need to listen as there is always an opportunity to learn. The guy I learned the cornering tips from was 19 and a pro DH rider. If I was stubborn or cocky then I would not be advancing. I hope to learn constantly and keep riding until 80 and beyond.

3 1

icaka93 (May 10, 2012 at 0:23)

I'm very thankfull for this video and all the comments and tips mentioned above.Thanks to you guys I actually do corner faster and smoother. It is a great feeling when I learn to do something which I usually strugle a lot to achieve! Thanks for the wonderful community here in Pinkbike. Much respect!

2 1

iffy (May 10, 2012 at 2:15)

+1

2 1

hermo44 (May 9, 2012 at 17:32)

The rule for me is that where the head and eyes point the bike will follow. I find that if my head is always pointing in the direction i want to go then my shoulders and respective knee will point in that direction as well. The most important thing is that this should feel natural and not forced otherwise the turn won`t be smooth. Giving tips on cornering is difficult because everyone has different styles. I just think about having my head facing where I want to go, drop the inside shoulder into the corner, and point the inside knee ever so slightly. There is so much more detail you can go into when it comes to cornering but those are the three most important things for me.

2 1

knobzy (May 9, 2012 at 16:25)

I was just out riding a few days ago and hit some nice smooth berms, but didn't do them great, nor had the speed. I was thinking to myself, i'm heading for a bike road trip this summer and need to figure out how to do berms and such better. Well this sure helped out alot. Going to give it a try this weekend for sure.

2 1

Beerswe (May 9, 2012 at 16:55)

Well when i ride and i have just watch a video like this one i think to much on how i should ride.. I think its just better to ride and feel your way in to whats best and learn by your self, but it was a great tip this video.

2 1

mutton (May 9, 2012 at 19:06)

Simon is a legend. I had a great time learning from him. I didnt really know what to expect...but within 5 mins he had totally got my attention. His basic skills really get you thinking and after listening to his advice it is amazing how different and easier things start to feel.

I crashed trying to ride around one of his little flat corners going as fast as i could - and 5 mins later i was able to not only go much faster but also choose my entrance / exit lines and my apex. that was pretty cool. He has wisdom.

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BIGD11 (May 9, 2012 at 15:22)

Great tips!!!!

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Doddsy2801 (May 9, 2012 at 15:32)

agreed, i suck in corners, loose so much speed because im all over the place and i dont know what im doing

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mcmahonad (May 9, 2012 at 16:02)

good tips, more articles like this would be great! Maybe make it a weekly thing like tech tuesdays?

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pacifico (May 9, 2012 at 17:09)

Yeah, that would be nice. Not only do I loose alot of speed in the corners, but not being able to scrub is a big hinderance too.

1 1

taletotell (May 9, 2012 at 15:30)

Looks like his dreamliner is set up with 4" in the back and at least 6" in the front with a ton of sag. Maybe I'm wrong, but if not that is a wild setup. Obviously the guy knows what he is doing, I'm just saying it is weird.

1 1

hobbnobs (May 9, 2012 at 15:35)

Ive been riding for 8 years and me and my friend only just caught on to switching feet in corners! Such a simple thing but loads of riders dont do it. And come to think off it most of my crashes are on right handers.

1 0

oldschoolj (May 9, 2012 at 17:09)

a def. help. I was doing this all last season, and just out for a ride this week, and I was noticing I couldn't hit a solid right turn, this is a great refresher...thanks...

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pdxsteve (May 11, 2012 at 12:43)

Oh, almost forgot. Duthie rules!

1 0

pumptracker120 (May 9, 2012 at 15:50)

Totally fast every were else hit the corner and lose so much speed video helped

4 1

mph51 (May 9, 2012 at 17:34)

I love Duthie.

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kwilliams420 (May 9, 2012 at 18:43)

The graduated drops kind of give it away.

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pieters (May 9, 2012 at 23:20)

and to think all this time i was cornering with my arms, using my handlebars.

1 0

iffy (May 10, 2012 at 2:21)

this might be interesting, proof that you do nto use your bars to turn!

www.superbikeschool.com/machinery/no-bs-machine.php

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patatta (May 10, 2012 at 7:19)

If i have understand it right so if im gonna turn right im gonna press with my left foot?

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postmodum (May 14, 2012 at 12:20)

Yep... correct

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tresfiddies (May 10, 2012 at 7:39)

i think thats duthie hill...

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perpetualmotion (May 9, 2012 at 17:05)

thanks that really actually helps

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jbook (May 9, 2012 at 17:30)

so is this bike there riding called a dreamliner

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tlong2 (May 9, 2012 at 20:31)

its actually listed in their 2012 book or website as a 4x/slopestyle frameset, not the dreamliner. They only have the frame available currently, but hopefully in the future they market it as a full setup too. When you go to the website look under framesets

1 0

Bradun (May 9, 2012 at 23:58)

Realy helpful ,dude! 10x

1 0

table8 (May 10, 2012 at 9:49)

haha the "nod of understanding" at 1:45 is classic. Duthie FTW!!

1 0

dennisc (May 11, 2012 at 14:10)

Really instructive ! More article like this one please !

1 0

endurocat (May 9, 2012 at 15:27)

When the Dreamliner Will be available ?

1 0

beaskiro (May 9, 2012 at 15:33)

Pretty sure it is available this season, at least it is on the DB shop form under frames.

1 0

wilkey (May 9, 2012 at 18:51)

this video made me feel good about myself

2 0

SHEESHKAH (May 9, 2012 at 19:43)

Duthie!

1 0

santacruzLOCal (May 9, 2012 at 19:47)

thought he said fluoride for a sec.

1 0

rgmglglg (May 9, 2012 at 20:55)

Very simple and very helpful. Thanks.

1 0

jubilee55 (May 9, 2012 at 21:08)

Turn on your heart light!

2 1

schneiderbox (May 9, 2012 at 21:40)

this was shot at duthie hill in washingtion... i love that place

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aznmtbiker FL (May 9, 2012 at 21:42)

great refresher for the season

1 0

kerberos FL (May 9, 2012 at 23:56)

I wish I could fave this.

1 0

wigi (May 10, 2012 at 9:16)

Try to turn your bar...

1 0

viper741 (May 14, 2012 at 11:20)

tiny bike?

1 0

octalex1 (May 9, 2012 at 18:21)

OMG IT WORKED

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DownHillCooper (May 9, 2012 at 20:04)

love it

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Karpiel073 (May 9, 2012 at 21:23)

This will come in handy