Tim Don’s off-road masterclass: Cornering

Approach

Get all your braking done while you’re travelling in a straight line before you reach the turn. This way, you can brake hard and late while reducing the risk of skidding and losing control. “This is key,” says Tim. “You don’t want to lose too much speed but you do want to stay upright.” Approach from the outside and look through the corner to the exit or, if you can’t see that, the apex.

Turn

Lean the bike, not your body, into the turn. You can do this by pushing the bars nearest the inside of the corner while pulling the bars nearest the outside. Keep your head up but move your upper body down towards the bars. This lowers your centre of gravity for added stability and puts extra weight over the front wheel to improve grip. Come in from the outside towards the corner’s apex.

Exit

Start accelerating out of the corner once you reach the apex. Keep your knees a little wider than usual to allow for the bike’s lean and pedal smoothly to reduce the risk of your rear wheel losing traction. Follow a widening arc to the outside of the corner. The nearer you get to the exit the more you can straighten up the bike, gradually reducing its lean and moving your upper body back away from the bars.

Tim Don Pro athlete and coach

About

After earning short-course kudos as a 3 x Olympian, 4 x ITU World Champion (in triathlon and duathlon) and countless ITU World Cup victories, Tim Don turned his attention to the half-Ironman distance. His unrivaled foot pace and light, lithe running form transitioned seamlessly to longer racing, resulting in a tidy collection of Ironman 70.3 titles, as well as an Ironman victory in his first attempt at the distance. He also holds the British Ironman record of 7:40:23. Despite his warm and slightly eccentric personality, this versatile competitor is often considered a favourite at any distance! He shot to fame in 2017 when he was hit by a car in training just two days prior to the Ironman World Championships. With fractured vertebrae, Tim was given a Halo, a metal structure which screwed directly into his skull, to help speed up the healing process. Tim is now a full-time triathlon coach.