Have you ever run a race and then looked down at your Garmin or GPS device and realized it says that you have run longer than the expected race distance? If you were not running the tangents of the course, then here is the bad news...you actually were running too far. The easiest way to explain 'running the tangents' is this: running the tangents allows a racer to run the shortest legal distance in a race. This is the fastest and most efficient way to get from the start line to the finish line, and the easiest way to set a PR. Overall, by making fewer large curves and running the tangents, you essentially make the race course a straight as possible. There is no perfect way to run the tangents. The goal is to find out what works best for you in getting through the race course's fastest route, as quickly as possible.