The bicycle became an invention of our ancestors as a means of transportation and transportation of goods at the dawn of the 19th century. But for the generation of the new era, the bicycle has ceased to be only transport. Gradually improving, it turned into a means for playing sports, and also did good service to those who dream of sports victories and Olympic peaks, and became one of the ways to achieve new sports results. This is how cycling was born. The desire to compete and set records has diversified the environment of big sport.
Formation
The first official competitions were held in France in 1869. The mileage of the route was 120 km. It is surprising that the racers covered this considerable distance on wooden bicycles, and the winner managed to set an average speed of 11 km/h. So cycling competitions and championships have become a prerequisite for the progress of two-wheeled transport, equipping it with the necessary inventory and equipment.
Each sport has its own directions and styles. Cycling is no exception, and like many other sports, it has its own list of disciplines.
The goal of each of the racing disciplines in cycling is to cover the distance as quickly as possible.
Cycling sports and their varieties
Today, in cycling, there are such areas as racing on the highway, track, cross-country (cross-country). Cycling also includes extreme areas, including flatland (flatland (English flat – flat, land – surface, earth), freestyle (freestyle (English free – free, style – style, manner), downhill or downhill (English downhill – “down the hill”), as well as freeride (English free ride – free ride).
Road racing can be considered the great-grandmother of all cycling, since it was from the highway in the 19th century that the whole epic began. It is the most popular and developed discipline, requiring riders to ride paved roads on road bikes.
Road cycling has many varieties and features.
But the most prestigious for every professional is the victory and participation in the grand tour – a competition that is a multi-day race consisting of several stages. The legendary Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España are grand tours, and victory in them is more valuable than gold at the Olympic Games or the World Championships. Some models of road bikes can be found here.
Track cycling is a cycling sport that involves moving along an oval closed ring (track) with a wooden or concrete surface, with a surface slope of 42 degrees. In competitions, different distances can be set for riders: both 1000 m and 40 km. Such competitions are held at velodromes – on special cycle tracks equipped with stands.
Cross country is a popular cycling sport.
Cross-country is cross-country racing, with ups and downs, with artificial and natural obstacles on a mountain bike track. Any cross-country race, held at the world or regional levels, every year acquires new, more complex features and elements.
Cross-country racing incorporates the features of extreme cycling sports, such as downhill. The popularity of cross-country is gaining momentum. The number of amateur races and championships is growing, and each time such events attract more and more people – both advanced experts and amateurs.
Freeride is a cycling discipline that is characterized by aggressive riding on unprepared tracks with natural or artificial obstacles, moving at high speed along various types of trails (cliffs, narrow mountain paths), as well as jumping from cliffs several tens of meters high. Freeriding requires a mountain bike with a strong frame and good cushioning.
Flatland and freestyle are characterized by performing tricks on a BMX bike. Flatland and freestyle are more like movement than cycling. But still, you need to reckon with them, because for most BMXers this is not just a sports hobby or a fashion movement – it’s a lifestyle. Freestyle is a whole set of types of skating, more precisely, “twisting” “bunnyhops” and “no-handers”.
Mountain biking
This is a discipline in cycling, which consists of competitions on mountain bikes. Also, the word “mountain bike” refers to a mountain bike.
Among the disciplines in mountain biking are:
- cross-country is one of the most popular types of mountain biking. It’s downhill racing
- climbing, overcoming both natural and artificial obstacles;
- dirt – includes jumping from the ground over springboards;
Downhill skiing is going down the side of a mountain for a while. As a rule, downhill courses are very difficult with many obstacles; - freeride – style without limits. But for athletes who prefer this style of skating, there are very strict requirements, since this sport is very difficult and traumatic;
- parallel slalom and dual – pair disciplines;
- biker cross is a team sport that is both bright and very dangerous at the same time.