AY Honors/Cycling/Answer Key

1. Know the name and explain the purpose of the various parts of a bicycle.

• Bottom bracket- Attachment of crankset to body of bike
• Brake cable- Cable connecting the brake lever to the brake mechanism
• Brake lever- Lever on handlebar to activate brake. Left side is front brake, right is rear brake
• Cassette- There are up to 10 sprockets of increasing size attached to a hub housing making up a modular cassette. This housing is slipped over an outward extending splined part of the hub. The rear hub is a "freewheel" (ratcheted so the wheel is pulled around when pedaling, but allowing the wheel to spin freely while you coast). The chain is shifted from one sprocket to another by moving the right shifter lever to activate the rear derailleur.
• Chain- Circular set of links to transfer power from chain ring to cogs of freewheel
• Chainring- Toothed rings attached to crank that hold chain
• Chainstay- Lower bar on portion of frame that attaches rear wheel. If there's no second tube on dual suspension bike, it is referred to as a swing arm.
• Crank- Lever extending from bottom bracket to pedal, transfers power to chain rings
• Derailleur- Mechanism for moving chain from one cog to another
• Down tube- Section of frame extending downward from stem to bottom bracket
• Dropout- Cut slot at bottom of front fork or chain stay, designed to accept axle of wheel
• Freewheel- Set of rear cogs and idling mechanism
• Front brake- Brake on front fork of bike
• Front shock- Shock absorber on front fork
• Handlebar- Horizontal bar attached to the stem with handgrips at the end, to which attach brake levers and shifters
• Headset- Mechanism in front of frame that connects front fork to stem and handlebars
• Head tube (steering tube) - Section of frame extending downward from top tube to down tube
• Hub- Center portion of the wheel, to which the spokes attach
• Idler pulley- Bottom pulley of the rear derailleur, with spring tension to keep chain tight
• Nipple- Threaded receptacle that holds the end of the spoke into the rim
• Pedal- Platform for the foot to press on, attached to crank
• Rear brake- Brake on the rear wheel, usually attached to seat stay
• Rear shock- Shock absorber for rear tire on dual-suspension bikes
• Rim- Metal ring with U-shaped cross section, holds spokes on the inside and tire on the outside
• Saddle (Seat) - The part your butt shouldn't be sitting on when going steep downhill
• Seat post- Support post for saddle, fits into seat tube with mechanism for changing height
• Seat stay- Upper support arm for the rear wheel, not present on dual-suspension bikes with simple swingarm
• Seat tube- Section of frame extending downward from top tube to bottom bracket
• Shifter, front- Shifting mechanism for the front derailleur, mounted on the left side of the handlebar
• Shifter, rear- Shifting mechanism for the rear derailleur, mounted on the right side of the handlebar
• Skewer- Metal rod that goes through the hub, attaching the wheel to the dropouts of the frame
• Spindle- Freely rotating "axle" to which the crank arms attach, part of the bottom bracket
• Spokes- Thick wires joining the hub to the rim, with tension adjusted via a nipple on the rim side
• Stem- Piece that attaches the handlebar to the steering tube (headset)
• Swingarm- Lower bar on portion of frame that attaches rear wheel with some form of spring, on full suspension bikes
• Tyre- Where the rubber meets the road
• Top tube- Top bar of the bicycle frame
• Valve stem- Stem poking out of rim to inflate tyre
• Wheel hub- Center of the wheel, to which the spokes attach

7. Have the following riding record:

• a. Take three separate 10-mile (16.1 km) rides in different locations.
• b. Take a 50-mile (80.6 km) ride in ten hours or less.