Handling Drills
 

How many of you guys set aside some time to concentrate on cornering/handling? I know you can try a few things on any old ride, but how many of you set specific times to focus on this and nothing else?

If you do, what things do you do?

I'm going to start doing this as soon as the weather cooperates for more than a few days. There are plenty of empty parking lots and little cul de sacs around here. I have officially used "cul de sac" in a sentence.

The biggest trouble I have with drills is getting up to a normal speed, that is in a parking lot it can be metally difficult (the physical part is a great work out) to get up to 22-25mph, then execute a drill while maintaining the flow that you'd have on a normal ride. So instead for some rides where there are lots of corners, etc. I focus on these elements.
Al

parking lot + cornering = falling

falling = learning

?

falling at 25MPH = sucks!

The problems I have with parking lots are the fact that you tend to have stuff like drainage peices and stuff which can make you fall at high speeds. I work on speed skills before each of our night rides in the parking lot. I can easily sprint to 20 - 25 MPH before a corner then take the corner then sprint out. It is just knowing the area and being careful.

I still am a little scared of tight corners at speeds > 20 MPH... :(

I worked with a coach who would have the team do several drills on occasion. The first was to practice falling. In the sand, without a bike. A good tucking instinct will save a collarbone. Other drills included touching tires, leaning on other cyclists while riding, picking up objects off the ground while riding. We always practiced these on the grass.

I rounded a corner (to the left) on my regular route the other day at a much faster than normal speed. I had a strong tail-wind and was maintaining 50 km/h. As I came around and realized how low I was I didn't think I was going to make it. It was a pretty close one, as I came back upright inches from the curb.

Either I need practice or experience or both.

It just takes time... I am still working on that too...

I had a nice little mishap with the high-school parkinglot next to where I live. I was doing laps around it, trying faster and faster each time, I was spinning * 2 in 52-11 around a corner when I suddenly hit a patch of sand. My bike slammed into the curb and I was thrown (with my bike) into a chainlink fence (OUCH), I had to call for a ride home so I could nurse my wounds.

So, my words of wisdom, if you try this type of activity, bring a broom or find another parkinglot.

As bizzare as it sounds, I ride in a cemetery that has several corners in it. Ride it at speed until corners become like breathing.
If you're turning the bike several times to get through ONE turn, you're doing it wrong. And you're scrubbing off speed in the process.


At the USOTC in Colorado Springs, we used to play a game called "Chop".
You get 10 riders in a grassy area the size of a tennis court, and you slowly ride around in it playing a sort of slow-motion demolition derby. This gets you used to bumping into other riders.

We also did a couple of different drills (on the lawn) where we'd ride along side each other bumping elbows, leaning on each other, and purposely overlapping wheels.

Then we did something called the Rickets. Two lines of riders ride side by side leaving a small gap between elbows. The guy at the back rides up between the lines.

It always amazes me that most riders will do Criteriums all summer but will never hone their cornering skills.

I agree. I was surprised that more people didn't reply to this thread. I thought more people would at least spend maybe 10 mins every couple weeks or something like that. I think cornering is my biggest weakness, so I'm eager to work on it.

I like the cemetary idea. Today I found this place by the football stadium that has a little path just wide enough for 2 people to walk on. It has all kinds of twists and turns and if I fall down I'll fall down in the grass. My theory is to get comfortable at a certain speed and then gradually increase it.

This is how I learned to drive a car.


rickets
Main Entry: rick·ets
Pronunciation: 'ri-k&ts
Function: noun plural but singular in construction
Etymology: origin unknown
: a deficiency disease that affects the young during the period of skeletal growth, is characterized especially by soft and deformed bones, and is caused by failure to assimilate and use calcium and phosphorus normally due to inadequate sunlight or vitamin D

wicket
Main Entry: wick·et
Pronunciation: 'wi-k&t
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English wiket, from Old North French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old Norse vik corner, vIkja to move, turn
1 : a small gate or door; especially : one forming part of or placed near a larger gate or door
2 : an opening like a window; especially : a grilled or grated window through which business is transacted
3 a : either of the two sets of three stumps topped by two crosspieces and set 66 feet apart at which the ball is bowled in cricket b : an area 10 feet wide bounded by these wickets c : one innings of a batsman; specifically : one that is not completed or never begun <win by three wickets>
4 : an arch or hoop in croquet

;)

Good advice

My club has a beginner race program where we bring everyone out in a field and do similar stuff. Intentionally rubbing/scrubbing the rear tire of the rider in front of you in the grass at 5-6 mph hurts a lot less when you go down the first few times than it does on asphalt. Leaning drills are great also. Anything to help prepare beginners for what they may come across in a race is good so they don't have to learn some of the stuff the hard way.