Have you ever found yourself stuck behind a rider coming into a corner and needing to make that pass for the lead? Unless you take a different line than them, making the pass can be pretty tough. But tough is Landon. Currier's middle name. In a tip we picked up from our little brother magazine, Mini Rider, the Nike 6.0 rider shows you how to square up a turn and cross over the main line, which can set you up for a good pass and shave a few seconds off your lap time when done correctly. Watch and learn, young grasshoppers and old farts...
01 "This is an old-school style of riding. Basically, what I want to do here is come in wide and cross the ruts, which will cut off a few feet and hopefully a few seconds, too. I start this by charging into the corner hard, setting up on the outside and then quickly squaring the corner and making a sharp turn. Notice that I'm not railing the outside line, but I'm just a few feet beyond the rut when I make my turn."
02 "Now that I've made my sharp turn, I get on the gas and launch across the main rut. Having the front end up helps, so you don't get out of shape when you hit it. People are still turning when they're coming out through the corners, but when you can go across the same ruts, you are already mostly straight and on the gas, so it's faster coming out. If I were to have gone through the rut here, I would still be turning rather than starting to accelerate at this point."
03 "As my back end hits the rut, I continue to stand the bike up and get straight. You want to stay on the gas and be sure that your rear wheel doesn't fall into the rut and slide you out, so it's important to just skim across it and keep your momentum up. You should be looking down the track at the next obstacle."
04 "Once you're across the rut, pin it! If you've done this right, you will have lost a little time going wide in the beginning, but since you made a sharp angle, you might be able to make it out of the corner sooner than the main line. One important thing you need to remember is that because you're crossing a main line, you don't want to square across it if there's somebody coming! Be aware of your surroundings and watch out, because other people will be taking different lines than you, so only cross a rut when it's clear. The purpose here is not to cut off riders behind you but to pass someone in front of you, so be smart about the alternate lines that you take. But if you do this right, you can make a clean pass and get in front of whoever is ahead of you."