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Many people don't ride a bicycle because they believe it is a dangerous activity, but there are greater risks to avoid, such as not exercising.
The public health community now recognizes that lack of physical activity, and a decline in bicycling and walking in particular, is a major contributor to the more than 300,000 premature deaths caused by heart attacks and strokes - this number dwarfs the the more than 40,000 annual deaths due to motor vehicle crashes and the relatively small 700 bicyclist deaths that occur each year, most of which could have been avoided by the bicyclist, even though a motorist may have been at fault.
Several studies about the risks of bicycling have been done, but none of them are definitive. It is difficult to determine the risk of bicycling because it is difficult to ascertain how many hours or miles bicyclists travel each year. Motorist information is much easier to come by.
The secret to safe bicycling is knowledge and skills, which are easy to acquire through a little learning.
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Safety 
