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BICYCLING ACTIVITY CARD
Just what does it take to become acyclist?
Gear UpA Bike. Think of the type of ridingyou want to do before
you buy one.Mountain bikes are strong andstable and built for
gravel roadsand tricky trails. Racing bikes arebuilt to go super
fast on pavement,and sport bikes, a combination ofboth, are good
for many differentpurposes.
A Helmet. Your helmet should sitright above your eyebrows and
betightly buckled so it doesn't slipwhile you are riding.
Play it SafeUse your head and wear a helmet! You should
alwayswear a helmet when you ride — plus, it's the law inmany
states. It's also important that your helmet isapproved by one of
the groups who test helmets to seewhich ones are the best: the
Consumer Product SafetyCommission (CPSC) or Snell B-95 standards
are bestfor bicycling helmets. Try not to ride at night or in
badweather, and wear brightly colored, or reflectiveclothes
whenever you ride so you can be seen. You caneven put reflectors or
funky reflective stickers on yourbike — who knew being safe could
look so cool? Also,watch out for loose pant legs and shoe laces
that couldget caught in your bike chain.
Be street smart. Ride on theright side of the road, moving
Heart & Lungs
Upper & LowerLegs
Parts ofthe BodyWorked
Lifetime Fitness Bicycling and Walking
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with traffic, and obey all trafficsigns and signals. Discuss
thebest riding routes with yourparents — they'll help youdetermine
safe places to ridenear your home.
When you reach an intersection, be sure to stop andlook left,
right, and then left again to check for cars —then go. Use hand
signals to show when you're goingto turn, and be sure to keep an
eye out for roughpavement ahead so you can avoid it. And although
youmay think you can't go out without your favorite tunes,never
wear headphones when you're on your bike.
How to PlayBicycling can be a great competitive sport, as well
as afun activity to do with your friends. And there areplenty of
different types of bicycling depending on yourpersonality. If you
love to go fast-n-furious, bicycleracing is probably more your
speed. If you like to hitthe rocky road, mountain biking sounds
more like yourtaste. And if you just like to pedal for pleasure,
anykind of bicycling will do. Try riding to school or to afriend's
house!
OlogyThe faster you are going, the longer it will take you
tocompletely stop your bike once you hit the brakes.Science says
that if you are going 20 MPH and you hitthe brakes, it will take 15
feet to stop if you are on drypavement, and 23 1/2 feet if you are
on wet pavement,so make sure you brake early!
Fun Facts100 calories can power a cyclist for 3 miles, but
couldonly power a car for 280 feet.
In 1995, 50-year-old Fred Rompelberg set a new speed
Lifetime Fitness Bicycling and Walking
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1600 Clifton Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636 ) TTY: (888) 232-6348
Page last reviewed: January 22, 2013Page last updated: January
22, 2013Content source: Division of Population Health, National
Center forChronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion
record for cycling at 166.9 mph.
Related LinksThe Science of
Cycling(http://www.exploratorium.edu/cycling/)
(http://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.html)
US Cycling (http://www.usacycling.org/)
(http://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.html)
Bicycling Magazine(http://www.bicycling.com/)
(http://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.html)
Lifetime Fitness Bicycling and Walking
http://www.cdc.gov/bam/activity/cards/bicycling.html [1/22/2014]
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http://www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/requestform.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/NCCDPHP/dph/http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/http://www.exploratorium.edu/cycling/http://www.usacycling.org/http://www.bicycling.com/http://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.htmlhttp://www.cdc.gov/Other/disclaimer.htmlhttp://www.usa.gov/http://www.hhs.gov/
cdc.govCDC - BAM, Physical Activity, Bicycling