Watch out, the race is about to begin! This little carrot has put on its shoes and looks determined to break the speed record around the vegetable garden. With its arms stretched wide, huge smile, and leafy green top bouncing above its head, it's hard to believe that carrots normally spend most of their lives hidden underground!

Carrots are root vegetables: the part we eat grows beneath the soil, while their long green leaves stay above ground in the sunlight. Orange may be their most familiar color today, but carrots can also be yellow, white, red, and even purple. They contain beta-carotene, a natural pigment that our bodies can turn into vitamin A, which is especially important for healthy vision.

Our little athlete isn't the only carrot bringing fun to the garden. You can meet a mischievous cartoon carrot, then discover another funny carrot proudly showing off its tall leafy top. Three very different characters to discover the same vegetable!

For this Coloring Page, try bright tangerine orange, golden orange, or even purple for the root, then use several shades of green for the leaves. And of course, those little shoes can be as colorful and imaginative as you like. Once our speedy carrot has all its colors back, it can continue racing through our Fruits and Vegetables Coloring Pages... if the radishes and potatoes can keep up!