# A cyclist travels along a straight, flat road. She pedals hard for a while and then stops pedalling, but does not brake. Explain what happens to the motion of the cyclist after she stops pedalling, until she eventually comes to rest.

> WJEC GCSE Physics (Wales) — 2.3 Forces and motion · Explain · 4 marks

## Mark scheme (4 marks)

1. The driving force from pedalling is no longer acting (once she stops pedalling)
2. Friction (and/or air resistance) continues to act on the cyclist, opposing her motion
3. The resultant force is no longer zero / forces are unbalanced, so she decelerates (slows down)
4. She eventually comes to rest because the resistive forces have removed all her kinetic energy / acted over a distance until her speed reaches zero

## Related

- [Revision notes for WJEC GCSE Physics (Wales)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Explain" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
- [Practice this with AI marking (free)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/start)

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