Now this is pathetic - more people fish for sport in this country than cycle. In fact cycling participation rates just took a major nose dive, dropping 13.3 percent from 2005 to 2006, according to a survey conducted by the National Sporting Goods Association. At least cycling still made the top ten activities:
- Exercise walking - 87.5 million
- Swimming - 55.2 million
- Exercising with equipment - 52.4 million
- Camping - 48.6 million
- Bowling - 44.8 million
- Fishing - 40.6 million
- Work-out at club - 36.4 million
- Cycling - 35.6 million
- Aerobic exercising - 33.7 million
- Weightlifting - 32.9 million
I was surprised to find that running/jogging was only the 14th most popular activity with only 29.2 million Americans participating. So why does cycling seem like such a fringe activity compared to running when there are almost 7 million more people participating?
It seems that scooters, skateboards, and in-line skates are partially responsible for cycling's decline:
“The decline in bicycle riding was the most dramatic change in the Top Ten,” NSGA Vice President of Information & Research Thomas B. Doyle said. “America’s youth appears to be opting for other forms of wheels -- scooters, skateboards and wheeled footwear. Even off-road mountain biking, which had been strong in recent years, declined more than 5%.”
What's really scary is that 6 of the top 10 recreational activities are indoors. Does anybody go outside anymore?
(Via BRaIN)
