Corner like a pro: Boost your mountain bike cornering techniques

“Jumps are for show, corners are for pros” is an old downhill racers’ adage. It may sound a little silly, but there is much truth in it. If you break down a World Cup downhill run, it is always in the corners where the world’s best make the biggest difference against the clock. Even if you are not going for gold and just want to feel better out on the trail, good cornering is one of the key skills in mountain biking.  

Anticipate, brake, set up and let it roll. These are the four steps to tackling a corner with speed on your mountain bike. We have broken these down here into manageable steps to help you corner your mountain bike faster than ever. These basic rules have been written to tackle a fairly simply corner, and there is plenty more to learn as you get into the advanced levels of cornering, but even the world’s best use these fundamentals every time they ride.  

As you approach a corner, you should be nicely centred on your mountain bike in the ready position, looking ahead. As you approach a corner, it is not so different to getting ready to go to work in the morning. If you have enough time to get everything ready, leaving the house in the morning is not too difficult. But we all know that if you leave things to the last minute, or if unexpected things happen, then it becomes a stressful rush to get out of the door. Cornering on your mountain bike is rather similar. If you can anticipate what is coming, then you can give yourself enough time to get ready without the rush and the stress. 

Anticipating corners means thinking about where and when you have time to prepare. Is the run-in nice and simple? If it is, you can use the time to set up and turn. However, mountain bike trails are not always simple. If you find obstacles on the entry to a corner, you might have to plan a little more. For instance, if there is a slippery root where you would want to brake you will need to decide whether to brake before the root or after. If you brake early you are going to lose more speed through the section, but is there enough room to brake safely after the root? 

On a relaxed ride, getting your braking finished before the obstacle is the safest option. If you are looking to set a fast time and are not sure if you can brake enough after the root, then you will want to brake both before and after. It may sound simple to let go of the brake for a moment while you go over the root, but it is not an easy skill to master and may require some practice to dial in.

There is a golden rule in braking on your mountain bike: you want to avoid using your brakes when the wheels are not in a straight line. If you want to learn more about effective braking, check out our MTB braking techniques guide. 

To carry on the work analogy, multitasking is hard, right? It’s not hard to write an email normally. But if you have to organise your calendar, prepare a presentation and write an email at the same time? Well that’s a lot to handle in one go. When you are asking your tyres to turn and brake at the same time, that is effectively what you are forcing them to do. Good mountain bike cornering technique is to try and keep things simple.  

To make sure you have as much grip as possible in the corner, you want to slow down before the corner so that when you are turning you can let go of the brakes and let the bike run. This means you will need to learn how to judge your entry speed. There is no hard rule for entry speed, it is a combination of the trail conditions, your bike setup and your riding ability, and the only way to learn is to go out and ride. The more you do this, the more natural it will become.  

Once your speed is under control, you need to get your body and bike ready for the corner. Don’t worry about your handlebar. If you pay attention on your next mountain bike ride, you should notice that as you go faster, your handlebar is used less and less for steering. You should only be using your it for turning at low speeds, when you are going faster it is your gaze and your body position you will need to use (Discover our guide on how to go faster on your mountain bike with expert setup tips). 

You should already be up, out of the saddle, now you need to look at the exit of the corner. Your mountain bike will naturally follow your gaze through the turn. If the corner is tight, you will probably want to raise your inside pedal. As you turn, you will probably notice that your bike naturally leans into the corner. This is an important part of cornering technique, but it can make it hitting your inside pedal more likely, you can use this simple step to prevent that from happening. It also sets your body in a great position for cornering. As you lift your inner pedal, this takes the outer pedal lower, twisting your torso into the corner, bringing your body weight into play.  

You should now be right on the entry of the corner, your mountain bike nicely slowed down, eyes on the exit and inner leg cocked up. All that is left is to let it roll through the corner. If this is a new technique to you, then it will probably feel a little weird at first. That is completely normal. It takes a little time to get comfortable with a new technique, but if you head out and practice this technique on every corner you find, then pretty soon it will become second nature.  

If you have been braking through corners until now, it may feel a little out of control in the beginning. There is another old downhill adage that is worth remembering here: “slow is smooth, smooth is fast.” In other words, focus on becoming smooth through the corner, and the speed will take care of itself in time. So if it you do feel a little out of control, slow things down even more and trust that as you practice more the speed will naturally follow. 

Want to enhance your riding even further? Don’t miss our how to shift gears on MTB guide! 

 Yes, big jumps look more impressive, but a veteran downhill racer like Troy Brosnan will tell you that races are won in the corners. Anticipate, get your speed under control, set your position up and let it roll. These four, simple steps will help you master the corners out on the trails.