Sports Glossaries
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altered

A class of drag racer that starts with an automobile body and can then be modified in almost any manner.

autocross

A gymkhana; sometimes used to mean a gymkhana that allows greater speed than usual.

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back off

To slow down; often said of a driver who is attempting to pass and realizes he can't make it, so he backs off to try again later.

banked turn

A turn that's inclined so the outside area is higher than the inside area.

bend

1. A shallow turn. 2. To damage a car slightly.

big banger

A powerful engine; one with a large volume of displacement, usually more than 305 cubic inches.

big bore

Same as big banger.

black flag

The signal for a driver to come into the pits, usually to allow officials to inspect it to determine whether it can run safely after an accident. It may also mean that officials have already decided the car is to slow or too dangerous to continue running, as when it has a serious oil leak that makes the track slippery.

blend

A racing fuel combining methanol and nitromethane.

blip

To race an engine intermittently with repeated short bursts on the accelerator.

block

An engine's cylinder block.

blower

A supercharger.

blown engine

1. An engine that has failed completely. 2. A supercharged engine.

bore

The diameter of the cylinder bore.

box

The transmission.

brake fade

Loss of braking effectiveness, usually caused by overheating.

Brickyard

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

bubble

The last position on the starting while qualifying is going on; the driver in that position is said to be "on the bubble."

bull ring

An oval track of a half-mile or less.

buy the farm

To die in an accident.

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carb

Short for carburetor.

cc

Cubic centimeters, the standard measure of displacement in Europe. A liter, 1000 cubic centimeters, is approximately 61 cubic inches.

checkered flag

The flag of black and white squares that signals the end of a race.

chicane

A man-made corner set up to reduce speed at a certain point on a road track.

chute

A straightaway.

compound

A substance used to make racing tires, generally some blend of natural and synthetic rubbers with resin, carbon black, bonding agents, and other substances.

crankshaft

The shaft that transmits power from the pistons to the differential.

cubes

Cubic inches of displacement, as in, "That car has 350 cubes."

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dicing

Close, dangerous driving; from the notion that the driver is gambling with lives.

differential

The final link in the drive train, which transmits power to the wheels.

displacement

A measure of an engine's size. It's the difference between the volume contained in the cylinders when the pistons are at the bottom of the stroke and the volume that remains when the pistons are at the top of the stroke. It can be calculated by multiplying bore times stroke times 0.785 times the number of cylinders.

downshift

Shifting from a higher to a lower gear, used in road racing to slow a car without any significant change in engine speed.

draft

To follow another car very closely, taking advantage of decreased air resistance.

drift

A controlled, four-wheel slide through a turn, to get a car line up for a straightaway with a minimum of steering.

drive train

The system that carries power from the engine to the driving wheels; it includes the crankshaft and the differential.

dynamometer

An instrument used to measure engine output.

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e.t.

Elapsed time.

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fishtail

Movement of the rear end of a car from side to side. Also a verb, as in, "His car is really fishtailing as it comes out of the turn."

flat out

At top speed; with the accelerator to the floor.

formula

A set of specifications that defines a class of racing cars; Formula One is the best known.

fuel

Usually any fuel except straight gasoline; commonly some mixture of methanol and nitromethane.

full bore

Flat out.

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gasser

A drag racer that runs on gasoline.

go into the country

To leave the track, in road racing.

Grand Prix

Strictly, a race that counts toward the World Drivers' Championship.

grid

The arrangement of cars in the starting lineup; at the Indianapolis 500, the grid is made up of 11 rows with three cars per row.

groove

The fastest route through a turn or around the complete course.

GT

Grand Touring; originally from the Italian Gran Turismo, meaning a sedan built in limited quantities and designed to provide fast, comfortable transportation over fairly long distances.

gymkhana

A competition in which cars are driven around a twisting course, executing certain specified maneuvers, against the clock.

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hairpin

A turn that goes through 180 degrees.

hairy

Frightening; originally short for "hair-raising."

hauler

A very fast car.

heel-and-toe

A driving technique in which the accelerator is operated with the right heel and the brake pedal with the toes of the right foot.

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infield

The area enclosed by a course. Often used for spectator seating at major races.

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juice

A racing fuel blend.

jump

To start before the signal is given; usually in drag racing.

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lap

One trip around the racing circuit. As a verb, when one driver gets so far of another that he passes him, thus putting the second driver more than a lap behind, he is said to have lapped him.

leadfoot

An aggressive driver who always goes for the lead.

Le Mans start

A type of start in which the drivers, at the starting signal, run to their cars, start the engines, and begin racing.

line

The route taken by a driver, especially through a turn; as in, "He took a very high line to avoid being passed."

liter

Used to measure displacement; a liter is 1000 cubic centimeters, about 61 cubic inches, a little more than a quart.

loud pedal

The accelerator.

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nerf

To bump lightly against another car, usually from behind and often on purpose, as a warning or a bit of psychology. Very common in NASCAR racing.

nitro

Nitromethane, commonly used in racing-fuel blends.

normally aspirated

Descriptive of an engine that isn't supercharged. See supercharger.

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pace car

The car that leads the competitors around the course before the race begins.

pace lap

The lap before the official start, on which cars travel in formation, usually behind a pace car, building up speed so they'll be near top speed when they reach the starting line.

pacer

A driver who travels at pretty much the same speed throughout the race, conserving his car in the hope that those traveling faster will be forced to drop out with mechanical problems.

paddock

The infield, in road racing.

parade lap

A lap taken by cars at slow speed, before the pace lap, to give spectators a good view of them.

pit

An area beside the track where cars stop for fuel and servicing.

pit lane

A road that takes cars from the course into the pits and back out again. Also "pit road."

pit stop

The act of leaving the course to enter the pit for refueling, tire changes, servicing, or repairs.

pole

The best position in the grid, usually awarded to the driver who has the fastest qualifying time. In oval-track racing, it's the spot on the left of the front row. On a road course where the first turn is to the right, it's on the right side of the front row.

pop

Any exotic fuel blend.

production

A production engine or car is one that is made in quantity, usually on an assembly line.

prototype

A sports car that is not in production; either an experimental model or a car made in very limited quantities, solely for racing.

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qualifying

Preliminary sessions in which cars race against time to determine their positions in the grid.

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rev

To gun an engine. As a noun, "revs" is short for "revolutions per minute."

riding the rails

Taking the outside line around a turn.

roll bar

A frame of tubular steel that protects the driver if the car rolls over.

roll cage

A structure of tubular steel, padded with foam rubber, used primarily in stock cars for driver protection.

rpm

Revolutions per minute.

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sandbag

To hold back on a car's performance, during trial runs and qualifying, to mislead other drivers as to its potential.

shoes

Tires.

shunt

A collision; British.

shut the gate

To block a competitor who's attempting to pass.

shut-off

A point at which a driver has to begin slowing down in order to negotiate a turn.

slalom

A type of gymkhana in which drivers maneuver through a course marked by pylons.

slicks

Wide, flat tires used on the rear wheels of dragsters.

slingshot

A type of drag racer in which the driver sits behind the rear wheels.

slingshotting

Passing a car by first drafting to conserve power, then suddenly moving out of the slipstream and using the reserve power.

speed trap

An area at the end of a drag strip where electric eyes are used to measure a vehicle's speed at the end of its run.

spin

To lose control so that the car revolves around its vertical axis. Also "spin out."

spoiler

An air deflector that dimishes the tendency of a car to lift off the track at high speed, thus improving the adhesion of the tires to the road.

sports car

Generally, any car that handles better, brakes better, and is more maneuverable than an ordinary passenger car.

sportsman

A type of stock car with a light body and engine modified in certain limited ways.

stock

An unmodified car, almost exactly as produced by the manufacturer.

stock block

An unmodified engine.

stroke

The distance the piston travels within the cylinder.

stroke it

To drive below maximum speed, usually to conserve the car when it has a safe lead near the end of a race.

supercharger

A high-powered fan that forces air into the engine, increasing power. See also turbocharger.

switchback

A hairpin turn; British.

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tachometer

An instrument that measures rpm.

T-bone

To hit another car broadside.

ten-tenths

Driving at the car's absolute limit.

tow

A driver is said to "get a tow" when he drafts another car.

tread

1. The surface pattern of a tire. 2. The width of a car as measured between the centerlines of the tires.

turbocharger

A supercharger driven by a turbine that, in turn, is driven by the car's exhaust gases.

tweak

To fine tune an engine or make any minor modification that will result in a slight power increase.

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wheelbase

The distance between a car's front and rear axles.

windmill

A supercharger.

wing

A spoiler.

wires

Wire wheels.

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X-car

An experimental car.

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yellowtail

A rookie NASCAR driver, so called because cars driven by rookies have yellow rear bumpers.

yellow flag

A flag used to signal caution because of dangerous conditions. A driver is not allowed to improve his position under the yellow flag.

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