I Never Knew There Was a Word for It - Adam Jacot De Boinod [120]
blackadder (West Scotland playground slang) the action of allowing a bike to continue its journey without a rider (usually performed at the top of hills on either old, borrowed or stolen bikes)
endo (US slang San Francisco 1987) a bicycling accident in which the rider is thrown over the handlebars
SMIDSY (cyclists’ acronym) Sorry Mate, I Didn’t See You
acrobrat (UK playground slang 1970s) a kid who attaches poles to the front axle of his bike so he can bounce up and down on the front wheel
GO CART
Once upon a time more substantial vehicles moved slowly and with difficulty:
unicorn (1785) a coach drawn by three horses, two abreast and one in the lead
timwhisky (1764) a light carriage for one or two people, pulled by one or two horses
quarter (Shropshire) to drive a cart in a lane with deep ruts, in such a way as to keep each wheel clear of them
to hunt the squirrel (18C) for two coachmen to attempt to upset each other’s vehicles as they race along a public road (veering from side to side like a frightened squirrel)
Now the opposite is too often the case:
garyboy (East Anglia slang 1995) a male who drives a car usually noticeable by its sporty appearance and souped up engine
swoop and squat (US slang 2005) to pull in front of another vehicle and slam on the brakes, deliberately causing an accident to collect the insurance money
chawbuckswar (Anglo-Indian) a rough rider
TICKET TO RIDE
Not that you need to have your own transport to get around:
fly canaries (underworld slang 1945) to pass off used tram tickets as new ones
monkey board (mid 19C) the step on the bus on which the conductor stands
hong! and midor! (UK transport workers’ jargon) ‘hurry along’ and ‘mind the doors’
Cinderella fare (US cabdrivers’ slang) people left behind on the platform when the last train leaves late at night
I SPY
Travelling piquet (1785–1840) was one way bored travellers amused themselves when riding together in a carriage. Scores were given for people and objects passing by on their side of the carriage, as follows:
a man or woman walking = 1
a horseman = 2
a post chaise = 5
a flock of geese = 10
a flock of sheep = 20
a man with a woman behind him = 30
a man, woman and child, in a buggy = 40
a cat looking out of a window = 60
an old woman under a hedge = game won
a parson riding a grey horse with blue tack = game won
GRICER’S DAUGHTER
Let’s not forget those who are happy just to watch. Trainspotters may be mocked by the outside world, but they don’t take criticism lying down: the language of gricing is notable for its acidic descriptions of outsiders.
bert the majority of people on trains, only interested in getting from A to B
insects occasional railway enthusiasts who swarm at certain times of year
kettle basher someone obsessed with steam engines (looked on as an effete sentimentalist)
baglet a woman, generally looked upon with unfriendliness. Gricers are invariably male. Worst of all women is The Baglet – Lady Thatcher, whose reluctance to travel by train was legendary and who set the privatization of British Rail in progress
ELSEWHERE
Hopefully you will arrive safely at your destination. Though some places, traditionally, have been more euphemistic than real. You could go to …
Jericho (late 18C) to become drunk
Bath (mid 17C) to take up life as a beggar
Chicago (US late 19C) to run away, especially to avoid one’s debts
Copenhagen (1950s) to have a sex operation
the Bahamas (US slang) to be sent to solitary confinement
Peckham (early 19C) to sit down to eat
WORD JOURNEYS
muddle (17C) to wallow in mud
walk (from German) to press cloth, knead or roll paste; then (Old English) to roll, toss, move about
insult (16C from Latin) to leap upon; then (16C) to glory or triumph over
random (15C) great speed, violence; then (17C) of a shot: haphazard, without purpose, fired at any range other than point blank
MUTTONERS AND
GOLDEN FERRETS
Sport
Sport is sweetest when
there be no lookers on
(1616)
Sport has always been a part of British national life.