Cornering session

[Lister Farrar]

I will be doing a session on cornering with some of the high school riders Monday am at 6:00, at the Bastion Square course. TS members are welcome too. Basically we will discuss the line to take, weight distribution, speed adjustment, and then practice alone, in pairs and in a pace line. Meet at Yates and Wharf. Now known as "Fast, Safe Corner".

[Lister Farrar]

Five out this am, Matteo, Bryan, Brian, Duncan, and Sean. We had a few laps of the Bastion circuit scouting out the lines, but then the street sweeper came by and left the fastest corner wet. Plus it was already busier than useful for us. Guess it will have to be 5:00 am next time.

So we moved to Windsor Park and it was nice and quiet. Rode in a pace line at moderate pace to figure out the line, then in threes, then two abreast and then three abreast. Seemed to work for all there.

It would be safer with spotters on the corners, but we didn't have any incidents. If we had 12 riders, we could take turns spotting the corners and riding.

[Rolf]

Couldn't make it today, Lister. But do let me know if you'll have a repeat before the 30th.

[FairweatherMike]

Me too - would like to do a session with you -
Mike S.

[matteo]

It was very good practice, thank you Lister!
I found it very useful, I hope we'll get the chance to try it again.

[Greg Miller]

I am game for the next session, even if it is 5am...

[emilederosnay]

Hi,

I'm not game for 5am, but I have a few questions. Well, comments, but take them as questions, since I'm not sure if what I do is right:

1. brake BEFORE you lean (brake before the corner, not on the corner). This allows you to corner faster. At CP last week, I was working with a very fast rider who kept on braking on the corner, slowing us way down. When you're on a break, corners should be an advantage!
2. when it's wet, lean your body more than your bike
3. look at the destination (i.e. far end of the line) when cornering
4. accelerate with your centre of gravity further behind the pedals out of the corner (like climbing, it gives you more power at a lower cadence—the opposite is true once at optimal cadence: just look at trackies and time-trialists)
5. sit further back to put more weight on the rear wheel when on the corner
6. don't be afraid to pedal through the corner, especially if you follow #1, 3, and 5, and if the corner is wide. (The only corner I don't pedal through on the Windsor Pk course is corner 3. I would say that if it's dry, you can pedal through corners 3 and 4 on Bastion [yes, corner 3 is crash corner].)
7. be careful when you're tired and/or frustrated. You might not be able to control the former, and never be the latter.

The advantages of fast cornering are obvious, but especially if you force those behind you to work more with little effort on your part.

These rules (esp. #2) have worked for me ever since I crashed 4 times on crash corner in a wet 2007—including 3 rainy crits, one of which I won . Although I did crash at Yaletown last June because of a failure to follow #5 and 6.

Emile

[Lister Farrar]

Thanks Emile. I completely agree on the brake early advice. (I prefer the term speed adjustment because sometimes you're doing a last couple of pedal revs to match the speed of the guy in front before you lean.)

I don't, at least consciously, do the lean the body more thing in the wet, or the weight back thing. Not writing it off though, but since a bike turns by leaning, doesn't doing less of that make it hard to get it around?

But I do feel more secure and faster lower, which is probably a combination of torso lower and butt back, which suggests the centre of gravity is about the same place between the wheels, but lower. Given that it's usually the back wheel that slides first, not sure if weighting it more, when it's already got 55% + of your weight, helps or hurts. Where's a physics guy when you need him?

I think the line you take is the most important thing. That crit where you fell 4 times, I was back a half lap with a guy that fell three times, usually charging up the inside, then trying to lean it over before he hit the far curb. Didn't work for him. I felt like I was in a Sylvester Stalone movie with bombs going off in front and behind. Going in as wide as possible, aiming for the apex, gives you options coming out of the corner. Guys that go up the inside have fewer options. Lay it over or hit the curb.

As a footnote, I've been shy about mentioning this for Tuesdays. All the slips I've seen on the paint at corner 1, have been guys going up the right and trying to do the whole turn on top of the cross walk. If you go in wider, do part of the turn before the cross walk, straighten up for the cross walk, then finish it after, it's easier on your nerves, hips and the riders nerves behind you.

Here's a reference from a former king of criteriums in the US. http://www.active.com/cycling/Articles/ ... ecrets.htm