To finish first... first you must finish! Triathletes often overlook some really important skills. Skills have nothing to do with fitness but can make a huge difference to your Triathlon or IRONMAN performance. Examples include Transitions, drinking on the bike, sighting in open water... but one of the most important skills is cornering on the bike.
Triathletes who can corner efficiently and effectively save huge amounts of nervous energy, are more likely to avoid accidents, ride faster and inevitably save time.
In this article F4L Triathlon Coaching's Paul Jones takes you through a guide to improve your cornering technique:
First: always look where you want to go. Cornering on a bike you are only interested in the future... what's up the road. When you are looking up the road, what can you see? Traffic (not all races are on closed roads), hazards, other riders, potholes, pedestrians etc.
Prepare yourself. Don't try and go through a corner on the TriBars. Sit up and cover the brakes. If you are on a road bike, you should be on the drops to get the centre of gravity nice and low. If you are on the TT bike, move your hands to the hold the bars with the brakes on.
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As you approach the corner. Lift the inside pedal, keep the inside knee slightly bent and apply some pressure to the outside pedal, this helps balance the bike. Push down slightly on the front wheel. This in turn creates more control at the front end.
Let go of your brakes. Once you have prepared for the corner. You need to let go of the brakes. If you hold onto the brakes the bike will not turn as efficiently... look forward and have confidence that you will glide through the corner.
Select your line through the corner. There are three parts to a corner.
Entry: the point where you turn into a corner. By this time you have slowed down, changed gear and are already looking for the apex...
Apex: the slowest point of the corner... where you can start to accelerate out of the corner confidently and efficiently... eyes focused on the exit of the corner.
Exit: back up to speed and onto your TriBars.
Do not turn the bike... lean it.
Leaning a bike into a corner will enable it to go through the corner. It takes confidence and belief. Look where you want to go... turn your head, the body (and the bike!) will follow.
Finally, you need to go out and practice.
Yes you can practice on your rides. It would be prudent to go out and practice between rides also. Find an empty car park, use your driveway, a cul-de-sac, drop some cones and practice cornering.
Paul is a Professional Triathlon Coach. Passionate about the sport of Triathlon. Paul empowers athletic achievements with quality individualised bespoke triathlon coaching.
Coach Paul is a British Triathlon Federation Level 3 Coach and a Triathlon Australia Performance Coach.
He is also an IRONMAN Certified Coach. F4L Triathlon Coaching offers triathletes and other endurance athletes a full coaching and training service that caters to all levels of triathletes. F4L offers professional triathlon and endurance coaching and the reliability triathletes and endurance athletes require. Each athlete is an individual, every athlete has different needs.
