Army Physical Fitness Test - 6.2-mile Stationary-bicycle Ergometer Test


This event is used to assess the soldier’s cardiorespiratory and leg-muscle endurance.


Equipment
Two stopwatches, one clipboard and pen for each scorer, a copy of the test instructions and standards, and one stationary bicycle ergometer are needed. The ergometers should measure resistance in kiloponds or newtons. The bicycle should be one that can be used for training and testing. Its seat and handlebars must be adjustable to let the soldier fully extend his legs when pedaling. It should have an adjustable tension setting and an odometer. The
resistance is usually set by a tension strap on a weighted pendulum connected to the flywheel. See Appendix D for guidance on using various types of stationary bikes.

Facilities
The test site can be any place where there is an approved bicycle ergometer. This could be the post’s fitness facility or the hospital’s therapy clinic. Each
test station must be two yards wide and four yards deep.

Personnel
One event supervisor and at least one scorer for every three soldiers to be tested are required. Appropriate safety, control, and medical personnel should
also be present.

Instructions
The event supervisor must read the following: “THE 6.2-MILE STATIONARY- BICYCLE ERGOMETER EVENT TESTS YOUR CARDIORESPIRATORY FITNESS AND LEG MUSCLE ENDURANCE. THE ERGOMETER’S RESISTANCE MUST BE SET AT TWO KILOPOUNDS (20 NEWTONS). ON THE COMMAND ‘GO,’ THE CLOCK WILL START, AND YOU WILL BEGIN PEDALING AT YOUR OWN PACE WHILE MAINTAINING THE RESISTANCE INDICATOR AT TWO POUNDS. YOU WILL BE SCORED ON YOUR ABILITY TO COMPLETE 6.2 MILES (10 KILOMETERS), AS SHOWN ON THE ODOMETER, IN A TIME EQUAL TO OR LESS THAN THAT LISTED FOR YOUR AGE AND SEX. WHAT ARE YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS EVENT?”

Administration
After reading the instructions, the event supervisor answers any related questions. Each soldier is given a short warm-up period and allowed to adjust the seat and handlebar height.

Timing Techniques
The event supervisor is the timer. He uses the commands “Get set” and “Go.” Two stopwatches are used in case one fails. As the soldiers pedal the last two-tenths of the test distance, the event supervisor should start calling off the time in minutes and seconds (for example, “Twenty-thirty-one, twenty -thirty-two, twenty-thirty-three,” and so on). He calls the time remaining every 30 seconds for the last two minutes of the allowable time and every second during the last ten seconds.

Scorers' Duties
Scorers must ensure that the bicycle ergometer is functioning properly. They must then make sure that the bicycle ergometers’ tension settings have been
calibrated and are accurate and that the resistance of the ergometers has been set at two kiloponds (20 newtons). The scorers must observe the soldiers throughout the event. From time to time the scorer may need to make small adjustments to the resistance control to ensure that a continuous resistance of exactly 2 kiloponds (20 newtons) is maintained throughout the test. At the end of the test, they record each soldier’s time on the scorecard in the 2-mile-run block, initial the appropriate block, and note in the comment block that the time is for a 6.2-mile stationary-bicycle ergometer test.