two minute man
n.— «The field race in a pure time trial format with the lowest ranked athletes going first up to the highest ranked who goes last. Athletes go at two minute intervals (this possibly needs to be tweaked a bit based on some better statistics but it’s a pretty good starting point.) They swim, transition, bike, transition and run against the clock. The fastest overall wins. And, just to add a little extra frisson of excitement, if an athlete gets caught by their pursuer—your “two minute man” in cycling parlance—then it’s game over.» —“Thoughts on how triathlon should be run at the Games” by Henry Budgett Tri247 Aug. 21, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Eric often drives past cotton fields near his home in Tucson, Arizona, which has him wondering about the phrase He’s walking in tall cotton, meaning “Things are going well.” Variants include to be in tall cotton and to walk in high cotton. This is...
We spoke with a listener about the German word querfeldein, or literally “diagonally into the field,” which he used to describe an informal route he and his wife had taken while out for a walk. Many other listeners chimed in with proposed...