| 主权项 |
1. A treadmill comprising:
a base frame having a pair of side frame members; a pair of rotatable pulleys secured to and extending between the side frame members; an endless belt trained over the rotatable pulleys, the belt having an upwardly exposed exercise section; a deck secured to the base frame, the deck providing support to the upwardly exposed exercise section of said belt; an impact absorption mechanism operatively positioned at least in part between the deck and the base frame, wherein the impact absorption mechanism enables the deck to move relative to at least a portion of the base frame during impact events on the deck; and a selectively engageable deck stiffening mechanism that eliminates movement at a contact point between the deck stiffening mechanism and the deck during impact events on the deck, the deck stiffening mechanism comprising:
one or more generally rigid members and an engaging mechanism, wherein the engaging mechanism selectively engages the one or more generally rigid members with the deck to provide support to the deck during impact events on the deck; and wherein the impact absorption mechanism is configured to be incapable of contacting the contact point such that when the engaging mechanism selectively disengages the one or more generally rigid members from the deck, no support is provided at the contact point during impact events on the deck. |
