Many riders head straight to steep and technical trails, only to wonder why their confidence and technique don’t progress. Especially when it comes to cornering.
To ride steep corners effectively, you need to be able to release the brakes & let your wheels roll smoothly at the right moments.
To learn this it’s essential to improve fundamental cornering skills in a low-risk environment before tackling steeper trails.
Here’s a cornering progression I use with downhill, enduro, and cross-country mountain bikers to help build confidence and speed while descending.
Improve Technique on Easy Gradient: Rolling Through Turns Without Brakes
- Find a hill with enough gradient that you don’t need to pedal, but not so much you need to brake hard to avoid accelerating.
- Set up some wide turns and see if you can navigate them without heavy braking.
- Gradually work towards no braking at all.
Focus on these technique points:
- Centred body position – your weight needs to equally spread over both wheels. This means your hips are positioned over the central point between both wheels (which is somewhere between the bottom bracket and forward pedal). You should stay centred the entire time, but don’t be rigid. Be soft through your hands and ankles and allow the bike to move underneath you.
- Use wide lines to moderate speed – your wheels will cover more ground over each corner. Effectively giving you more grip.
- Look where you want to go – your body follows your head.
- Pumping turns – as you get faster you may need to pump through the turns for better control. Start by being as subtle and soft with your movement and gradually apply more pressure as you get faster. Avoid pumping only with your legs, this will shift your weight back.
Don’t overcomplicate the technique, like many online tutorials suggest. The technique points above are enough to make a lot of progress.
Progress Technique on Corners with Support: Pumping Turns & Maximal Braking
Next, find a section of trail with more gradient and well-supported corners.
Pumping corners – Practice pumping through the turns. Pumping technique helps you apply pressure at the right point in the turn, allowing for better direction control and smooth exit from the turn.
Maximal Braking – Hopefully you’ve learnt to ride without braking on a gentle gradient. But you’ll need to brake at some point on steeper trails. Avoid dragging the brakes constantly, as this will disrupt your flow. Instead, use maximal braking at key points where there is more support, then let your wheels roll through the turns.
Its a good idea to practice both of these techniques on smooth flat ground before doing it on the trails. If you are not familiar with pumping & maximal braking technique have a look at my other videos/blogs.
Weight shift – Maximal breaking requires weight shift. So you need to do this on sections of trail where there is good support and space.
Apply Techniques on Steep & Technical Corners
Now it’s time to apply the skills learned in the previous steps. It might take several attempts to get it right, so keep these key technique cues in mind:
- Body centred over the bike
- Let the wheels roll through turns
- Pump turns for control
- Wide lines for better grip
Key Takeaways for Improving Your Cornering Skills
To effectively progress in cornering, practice in low-risk environments, gradually building up to steeper trails. Remember, cornering is a skill that takes time to develop, so be patient and keep practicing!
Ready to take your cornering skills to the next level?
Consider a MTB coaching session or course that can help you ride with confidence.