BY THE NUMBERS Participation in Outdoor Recreation According to The Outdoor Foundation, participation in outdoor recreation reached a six-year high in 2012 with nearly 50 percent of Americans ages six and older taking part. However, the numbers show more effort needs to be focused on young people and minorities, as participation rates in these demographics are falling. 141.9 million: Number of Americans who got outdoors in 2012. 87.4: Average number of outings per participant. 12.4 billion: Total number of outings taken by Americans in 2012. 71: Percentage of youth and young adult participants in 2012 who are non-Hispanic Caucasian (compared to 63 percent of the general public). 57: Percentage of participation in outdoor recreation among adults ages 25 to 44 in 2012. 48: Percentage of participation in outdoor recreation among adults ages 25 to 44 in 2006. 52,187,000: Number of runners/ joggers in 2012. 49,121,000: Number of bicyclists (road, mountain and BMX) in 2012. 35.4: Percentage of increase in adventure race 63: Percentage of participation in outdoor recreation participation between 2009 and 2012. among youth ages 6 to 12 in 2012. -4.1: Percentage of decrease in camping 78: Percentage of participation in outdoor recreation participation between 2009 and 2012. among youth ages 6 to 12 in 2006. Source: The Outdoor Foundation's 2013 Outdoor Recreation Participation Topline Report (www.outdoorfoundation.org/ pdf/ResearchParticipation2013Topline.pdf). 72 Parks & Recreation | A U G U S T 2 0 1 3 | W W W. N R PA . O R G