Long-distance Cycling

Essay by EssaySwap ContributorCollege, Undergraduate February 2008

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You don¡¦t need to worry about traffic jams when going to your destination, you don¡¦t need to ride a roller coaster to feel the excitement of speed, and you certainly don¡¦t need to go to a gym to maintain your physical health. Long-distance cycling can provide all that. It is a sport that can provide a personal sense of accomplishment, a way for you to enjoy the outdoors, and attain physical fitness at the same time. To achieve the above feelings, there are several steps you need to follow.

Before you actually start out on any kind of trip, be it a one-day tour or a two-week tour, it is necessary to make a careful rout selection. Planning the route before the actual trip allows you to anticipate and avoid hazards in advance. First you should study route-related information, such as traffic volume, topography (hills, curves), and road surface condition, which can be obtained from maps or books.

Once you¡¦ve collected the maps and various pieces of information, you can begin planning the route appropriate for your trip purpose. If you are looking for hard physical exercise, you might look for a route with steeper hills and long, non-stop roads. If you are simply riding for recreational purpose, you will find a route with twisting, winding roads more interesting. Good long-distance cycling routes should give you a variety of excitement and challenges. Main highways do not do this¡Xthey are generally too straight and the distance between interesting places are too long.

After you make a decision on your route, you should start the preparation couple of days before the actual ride. The very first ting to do is to check the upcoming weather condition so that you can prepare the proper clothing for the right weather. In a cold weather,