Reading what John Betmanis and Doug Smith wrote made me think that a couple of other terms.
\u201cOil up\u201d \u2013 car behind, already explained
\u201cOil down\u201d \u2013 car approaching from the front
\u201cEasy\u201d \u2013 shouted by the front man, telling those beh ind to slow up.
The urgency of these calls was determined by the loudness of the voice.
\u201cEASY!\u201d was accompanied a split-second later by sounds of Ma facs (best brakes in the world!) locking wheels.
\u201cPressures\u201d \u2013 High-pressure rims = Clincher rims
\u201cTuggo\u201d \u2013 derisively applied to cyclists tuggi ng a saddlebag behind them. Being sensible, they were also riding pressures.
\u201cThe bonk\u201d (aka hunger knock) \u2013 caused by not eating enough, either before or during the ride. The sugar level in the body goes down and you end up feeling like death, sitting in a ditch, in the rain, eat ing an apple. If you are lucky, a real-friendly tuggo will stop, take pity o n you, and give you a couple of sandwiches from his lovely saddlebag. This w ill change your attitude to tuggos and people in general.
Have you guessed who was in the ditch yet?
\u201cBonk bag\u201d \u2013 Mussette, used to carry enough food to avoid being found in a ditch in the rain.
\u201cDouble clanger\u201d \u2013 derisive term used by peopl e using Sturmey-Archer hub gears to describe a front changer, and the noise made when changing from one chainring to the other, stemming from the old at titude that derailleur gears were something foreign and noisy, therefore not quite nice. \u201cCampag\u201d \u2013 the ONLY proper term for Campagnolo produ cts!
I'm always a bit wary about recommending books, but, for those interested in an impression of Brit cycling in the 50s/60s, which broadens out into a his tory of cycling, try "One more kilometre and we're in the showers" by Tim Hi lton
Geoff Margetts,
Dreieich,
Frankfurt,
Germany