Cornering.....

lorrod said:

What is the best way to improve cornering? I know - practice it. But what specifically do you do in your practice to improve your cornering - for criteriums or twisty descents?

I think you may have answered your own question! Seriously, I found after years of practice that one day everything just "clicked". I think the best way to learn (the way I learned 😄 ) is to follow a good cornerer/descender as close as you can; if they can make it through the turn, so can you! It's mostly a matter of confidence.
As for technique, I found the one espoused by Davis Phinney to be the most intuitive - push a little bit with the arm that is going into the turn, while the outside pedal is weighted out. Leaning the inside knee into the turn is not necessery, but some people find that it helps them balance. I'm sorry, I've forgotten the name of the book by Phinney, but a quick net search should turn it up. He has really good advice in there, and can explain better than I can!
Also try Friel's "criterium sprints" (into and out of corners) from the Training Bible.