Glossary of sports and reporting terms abbreviations
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Bailing Out [SURF]: Jumping off and getting safely away from the surfboard. Bait [B&F]: Natural or artificial lures to attract fish. Bait-Casting [B&F]: Placing a natural or artificial lure in the area of fish by using a rod and reel. Balance (GYM) To maintain equilibrium during a routine. Balanced Line [FB]: Offensive line in which there are an equal number of linemen on each side of the center. Balestra [FEN]: See jump advance. Balk [BASE]: Illegal act by the pitcher that allows all runners on base to advance one base. A balk is technically a pause during the normal pitching motion. Ball [H&R]: in handball, the ball is 17⁄8 inches in diameter and weighs between 2⁄10 and 3⁄10 of an ounce. Ball [TT]: Made of celluloid, approximately 4¼ inches in diameter, hollow, and weighing 37–41 grams. Ball Control [BB]: the ability to maintain possession of the ball through dribbling or passing. Ball Control [FB]: to keep possession of the ball by gaining yards until a score is made. To keep gaining yards (and first downs) prevents the opposing team from gaining possession. Ballast [B&F]: Weight, usually metal, placed low in the boat, or externally, on the keel, to provide stability. Ballast [BAL]: Weights used to maintain a flight altitude. Now seldom found in hot air balloons. Ballast [DIVE]: Weights used to allow the diver to sink or maintain a specific depth. Balloon [BAL]: Lighter-than-air vehicle that obtains its “lift” from hot air or a gas such as hydrogen, helium, or methane. Also refers to the envelope itself, which contains the air or gas. Banana Peel [WSKI]: trick or slalom ski with rounded tips, which vaguely resembles a banana peel. Bang [BOX]: to punch hard, without finesse. Bank [HANG]: to tip to one side. Bank Shot [BB]: A shot that bounces off the backboard into the basket. Bank Shot [POOL]: A shot against a cushion and then into a pocket. Banking, Banked Turn [MOTOR]: turn that has a raised outer side to help driving control during the turn. Barbell [WTL]: a steel bar approximately 5–6 feet long, with wheel-shaped or disc- shaped weights attached to each end for weightlifting. Barefoot [WSKI]: Skiing barefoot, which can be accomplished by kicking the skis off while skiing 34 mph or faster. Barge [SURF]: a huge, cumbersome surfboard. Barograph [BAL]: A barometer that shows variations in air pressure as altitude or height above a specific point, on a paper graph. Barrel Roll [WSKI]: a tumble off a water ski ramp during a ramp jump. Barrelroll [PARA]: Side roll, to the left or right, done in free-fall. Also a requirement for the class “C” license and good RW techniques. Base [PARA]: the “anchor” position in any relative work formation. The base is caught in free-fall (pinned) by the second, or pin jumper. A good base-and-pin combination is necessary to good fast stars. Without a stable base-and-pin the rest of the formation may be sacrificed. Base Jumping [PARA]: Skydiving from an altitude high enough to be reasonably safe, but without an airplane or helicopter (without any aircraft). The sky diver may jump from a skyscraper (Building), TV Antenna, a bridge (Span), or a natural height such as a cliff (Earth). Not for the inexperienced. Jumpers usually face arrest if they jump from office buildings or other such “non- jumpable” facilities. Has nothing to do with “base-and-pin” RW jumping. Baseball Annie [BASE]: Woman attracted to baseball players. Also known as a groupie. Baseline [TEN]: End boundaries of the court, 39 feet from the net. Basket [BAL]: same as gondola. Basket [BB]: An 18-inch metal ring with a suspended cord net. Players attempt to shoot the ball through the ring to score. Basket Catch [BASE]: Catch made with the glove held at waist level with the palm up. Baton [T&F]: Metal, cardboard, wood, or plastic cylinder that is passed from runner to runner in a relay race. Baton Pass [PARA]: in the earliest days of RW jumping, a baton pass between two jumpers in freefall was considered the ultimate achievement. Now no one bothers with this; everyone goes to four- or eight-man or larger stars. Batten [B&F]: a light wooden or plastic strip inserted into a pocket in a sail to help shape it. Battery [BASE]: the pitcher and catcher as a team. Battery-Mates [BASE]: same as battery. Batting Average [BASE]: Number of hits divided by the number of times at bat. Batting helmet [BASE]: Protective hat-like helmet now required of all professional teams, to prevent injury to the head by a pitched ball. Protective helmets were first used in 1941 by the Brooklyn Dodgers. Batwings [PARA]: Rigid or semi-rigid extensions on the jumpsuit arms and legs. Because rigid batwings made it impossible for the jumper to bend his or her arm and pull the ripcord, batwings were judged suicidal and outlawed years ago. Not to be confused with underarm additions to the jumpsuit that are cloth and flexible. Beach Break [SURF]: A wave that breaks on the beach. Beam [B&F]: the width of a boat at its widest. Bean Ball [BASE]: Ball thrown to deliberately hit (or just barely miss) a batter’s head. In 1920, a ball thrown by Carl Mayes of the Yankees hit and killed Ray Chapman, of the Cleveland Indians, which has been baseball’s only fatality. Also called brushback and knockdown pitch. Beat the Count [BOX]: to get up before the count is over. Beech [PARA]: twin Beech aircraft. Beeches and other aircraft capable of carrying 8, 10, or 12 jumpers (or more, in the case of aircraft like the SkyVan and the DC-3) made RW jumping possible. Beer Frame [BOWL]: Frame during a bowling game in which the player with the lowest score buys beer for the team. Beer Run [PARA]: In many parachute clubs, the achievement of some individual goal— first free-fall, first two-man, SCR jump, first ride under a high performance canopy, or other achievement—means that the participant buys beer for everyone; sometimes beer to drink, sometimes beer to be showered over the jumper in question. Requirements vary with each parachute club. It’s a rare jumper who hasn’t had to buy beer for everyone sooner or later. Bell [BOX]: a bell that is rung to indicate the beginning and the end of a round. Bells [PARA]: Jumpsuits with bell-bottomed sleeves and legs. The bells flare out in free- fall like the skin of a flying squirrel and allow the jumper greater capability for falling faster or slower and approaching a star with greater accuracy. Belly [ARCH]: Side of the bow nearest the string. Belly [FRIS]: the underside of a disc. Belly Board [SURF]: A small surfboard used for body surfing. Below the Belt [BOX]: a punch that lands below the top of the hipbones, generally in the crotch. If a low blow is deliberate, a fighter may be disqualified. Bench Jockey [BASE]: A player who seldom plays. He “rides the bench.” Bends (Caisson Disease) [DIVE]: Excess nitrogen in the body that expands as the body ascends. Benefit of the Doubt [FEN]: if two side judges disagree and if the meet director has no opinion, no point is scored. Berth [B&F]: a bunk or sleeping place in the cabin of a boat. Best Ball Tournament [GOLF]: tournament in which the better score between members of a two-person team on each hole is used as the team score. BHP [MOTOR]: (Brake Horse Power) Net power available at the output end of the engine. Brake refers to a dynamometer, a measuring mechanism, not the brakes of the car. Bicycle kick [SOC]: a maneuver in which players throw their body up in the air and flip their legs overhead to kick the ball. The players’ legs twirl as if riding a bicycle. Also called a scissor kick. Big League [BASE]: either or both professional leagues. Billiards (or three-cushion billiards) [POOL]: A game played on a table without pockets. Billiards is played with three balls, two white and one red. Each player (only two can play at one time) uses a white ball as a cue, and shoots to strike the other two. The cue ball must touch the cushions at least three times before striking the second of the two object balls. Billiards is a very difficult game that demands a thorough knowledge of table angles and English. Billiards is played for money much less frequently than pocket pool. Bingo Card [JOUR]: Postage-paid insert in a magazine, which readers can complete and return to begin a magazine subscription. So called because they are often the size of bingo playing cards. Download 7.55 Mb. Share with your friends:
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