We’ve run a few cyclocross and mountain bike clinics recently where we have been talking about cornering and getting our cranks level before initiating the turn. This “ready position” we’ve nicknamed the “Van der Poel” position, as he frequently seen demonstrating this to set up for corners, technical sections and to help him recover from high intensity bursts of power. Here’s an example if you aren’t familiar with it.
This is a great position to initiate a turn from when on dirt, drop and weight the outside foot and push down on the inside hand to make the turn.
Gear Up Coaching 