Learn English with News: ADVANCED English Conversation + Vocabulary Training | Free English Lesson

I did some sledding recently and it got me  thinking about winter sports. So let’s learn  

some new vocabulary today as we learn  English with News. Watching a story about  

three weird winter sports. The sports  are obscure, but the vocabulary  

isn’t. We’ll learn 29 words, phrases,  and idioms, in this news story.

I just used the word “obscure”. It’s an  adjective that means not well-known, not  

known to most people. These sports are obscure.  If you’re listing every sport you can think of,  

you might not even be on your list. This  is also a verb that means to try to hide  

something or make something hard to understand.  They tried to obscure the truth about the scandal.

Now let’s check out this  first part of this news clip.

Hurtling along snow or ice on  metal blades isn't insane enough?  

Check out these other weird winter sports.

Hurtling. Hurtle is a verb that means to  move rapidly or forcefully. An object might  

be hurtling through space. On a roller  coaster you’re hurtling through the air.  

Hurtle and hurtling sound  just like the word with a D,  

hurdling, which we also associate with  racing. A hurdle spelled with a D is this,

And hurdling is the act of jumping over an  obstacle. We have a related idiom here. When there  

are hurdles involved in a situation, that means  there is some difficulty. For example, there were  

some hurdles involved in getting my son signed  up for summer camp. Maybe I had to prove his age,  

that he’d gotten his vaccines, maybe I had to  list any allergies, and so on. Extra things to do.  

So hurdling with a D, jumping over something.  Hurtling with a T, moving very very fast.

Hurtling along snow or ice on  metal blades isn't insane enough?

That isn’t insane enough? This is a dramatic  way to say that you think something is crazy,  

dangerous, or scary. It’s insane to  ski a double-black diamond if you’re  

not an expert skier. We also use ‘insane’ to  describe something that’s hard to believe.

“I can’t believe you got a perfect  score on the SAT. That’s insane!”

Hurtling along snow or ice on  metal blades isn't insane enough?  

Check out these other weird winter sports.

Let’s start with horse skijoring.

Skijoring is putting a skier  behind a horse with a 30-foot rope.  

Asking the skier to go around 16 to 20 gates,  a few jumps, and the horse to go wide open.

Here in Pennsylvania, this is not a winter  activity I’ve seen, so I did some reading,  

and yes, I had to look up the pronunciation,  and I found that the word “skijoring”  

comes from a Norwegian word meaning “ski  driving.” It’s said to have originated as  

a mode of winter travel with a horse, dog,  or motor vehicle pulling a person on skis  

through the snow. Now, skijoring is mostly a  competitive sport. Let’s hear that word again.

Skijoring

Skijoring. Three syllables with  stress on either the first or second  

syllable. The narrator puts stress  on the second syllable here, “jor”

Skijoring

The man being interviewed put  stress on the first syllable, “ski”

Skijoring is putting a skier behind  a horse with a 30-foot rope. Asking  

the skier to go around 16 to 20 gates, a  few jumps, and the horse to go wide open.

Wide open. This means open  all the way, like a door.

“The door wasn’t cracked; it was wide open.”

But it also means without limits or restrictions.  So, if the horse is going wide open,  

that means it is running just as fast as it can,  as fast as it wants to. No restrictions or limits.  

You know what this reminds me of? Hurtling,  with a T, to move rapidly or forcefully.  

I don’t know about you, but I do not want to be  pulled by a horse when it’s going wide open. Let  

me quickly take 5 seconds of thanks to shout out  the people here on YouTube who support my channel  

through the membership. Thank you, thank you.  Just click the join button to find out how you  

can support my channel and get perks like audio  lessons and private posts. Okay, back to the news.

Skijoring is putting a skier  behind a horse with a 30-foot rope.  

Asking the skier to go around 16 to 20 gates,  a few jumps, and the horse to go wide open.

Still not crazy enough? Well,  the skiers also try to gather  

rings that are suspended along the  course and stack them on their arms.

There are three terms here that  are worth taking a look at.

First is the verb “gather.”

Well, the skiers also try to gather rings.

When “gather” is used with an object, it  means to bring together into one group,  

collection or place. “We gathered  some firewood for our campfire.”

But it doesn’t have to be a tangible thing,  

“Hey, we’re just trying to gather  some ideas here in this brainstorm."

It can also mean to bring together  or assemble from various places;  

“The college is gathering faculty from  all over the country for a conference.”

It can also be used without an  object, and it means not to collect,  

but to bring around a central point. For example,  “Gather around; it’s time to sing Happy Birthday!”

That’s like saying, come here. Or,  “Clouds are gathering in the southeast.”  

They are coming around a point, coming  together, over there, in the southeast.

Well, the skiers also try to gather rings  that are suspended along the course.

Suspended. The verb “suspend” has many meanings.  

Let’s focus on the definition used here. It  means to hang something or attach an object to  

something above to allow free movement. “The  chandelier is suspended from the ceiling.”

In skijoring, the rings are suspended on polls;  they’re free hanging to make them easier to grab.  

“Suspend” used without an object most  commonly means to come to a stop;  

to cease operation for a period of time.

“We aren’t sure if we want to  keep our tv streaming service,  

so we suspended payments for now.”

The third term in that clip is “stack.”

Well, the skiers also try to gather  

rings that are suspended along the  course and stack them on their arms.

As a noun, a stack is more or less an  orderly pile or heap. A stack of books.  

A neat stack of notes. The verb stack  can be used with or without an object;  

meaning to pile or arrange  objects on top of each other.

“Let’s stack the boxes in that corner.” “The  chairs easily stack on top of each other.”

That means they’re stackable, an adjective now,  which makes it easier to store them. Once I  

posted this to Instagram with the caption, Friday  morning face stack! Let’s hear that bit again.

Well, the skiers also try to gather rings that  

are suspended along the course  and stack them on their arms.

Next up, we have a couple of fantastic idioms  

that you can use in any context.  Their use is not limited to sports.

Guys that are doing it  successfully have some ski racing  

behind them or, you know, a lot  of skiing under their belt.

To “have something behind you”. Literally, this is  about order and orienting objects to one another.  

The wall is behind me. The camera is in  front of me. But it has other meanings  

as well. To have something behind you means  that you have experience doing something.  

“I have some competition behind me.”  “I have some graduate work behind me.”

“I’m not totally new at this. I’ve done  this before. It’s not my first time.  

They have some ski racing behind them.”

That is, they have some experience in  ski racing. They’ve already done that.  

Be careful not to confuse this with “putting  something behind you,” which means to forget  

about a bad experience, to try to move on. “We  had a huge fight, but we’ve put it behind us.”

Another way to say you have accomplished  something or have practice at doing it  

is to say that you “have it under your  belt.” A lot of skiing under their belt.  

I read that this idiom came into English  as a way to reference how much alcohol  

a person has drunk. But as in idiom it means,  experienced. Once you’ve worked hard at a skill,  

the ability is under your belt. It’s in  you. You can do it. “I’ve got Over 10  

years of teaching under my belt.” Or, “I’ve  got 10 years of teaching behind me.”

Again, take care that you don’t accidentally  say a really similar idiom that has a different  

meaning and that would be below the belt.

Don’t say “below the belt” when you mean  “under the belt.” Hitting below the belt  

is when an opponent unfairly targets a weakness or  vulnerability. As with boxing, you can’t hit your  

competitor’s lower abdomen; it’d be too painful,  and it’s prohibited. So let’s say you’re fighting  

with your partner and they bring up something  your mom said that was hard for you to deal with.  

In this fight, bringing that up, man, they  know you’re sensitive about. You could say,  

that’s below the belt. Or, that’s  a low blow. Below and under,  

similar meanings. But ‘below the belt’  and ‘under the belt’, different meanings.

If you have experience, you have it under your belt.

Let’s go on to the next segment.

The whole race only lasts about 20 to 30 seconds,  

and takes skiers at speeds of up to 40 miles an  hour.

The skill set is missing a few brain cells and  

making some calculated decisions  and definitely accepting the risks.

Skill set is a term you might see related to a job  post. What are the skills required for the job,  

what are the skill sets they like to see in  job applicants? Those would be skill sets.

So this guy is joking here, the  participants are a little crazy,  

“missing a few brain cells”. We use this  term to mean not smart. If you’re willing  

to let a horse pull you up to 40 mph,  you might be missing a few brain cells.  

Let’s face it, it’s an insult, but he’s  using it jokingly. Let’s hear it again.

The skill set is missing a few brain cells.

I love this next collocation. A collocation  is a pair of words that often occur together.  

This collocation is an adjective plus a noun.

making some calculated decisions--

Calculated decisions. Calculated, you’ve thought  it over thoroughly, you’ve weighed all the risks  

and rewards, you’ve done your homework on this  issue. You’re not just randomly choosing. So  

as you’re going down this course you’re making  calculated decisions about how to use your body.  

Intentional, thought out. Something you can  do in the moment when you’re experienced.

Making some calculated decisions  and definitely accepting the risks

Coming to terms with possible consequences, and  being ok with whatever happens. Risk acceptance.

Let’s keep going.

Next, why waste that snow shovel on your  driveway when you can use it for racing?

It’s kind of a crazy idea but a lot of  people end up really liking the feel of it.

Felt great! Let’s do it again!

Shovel racing started in the 1970s at  the Angel Fire Resort in New Mexico.  

The course is a thousand feet long with a 400  foot vertical drop. The resort still hosts the  

world championship. The record for the fastest  time is 13.5 seconds at almost 75 miles an hour.

Oh wow! That set a record I  think for height of shovel.

Did you catch what the racers are sitting on?

Next, why waste that snow shovel on your  driveway when you can use it for racing?

Not a traditional sled, but it takes  you down the hill pretty quickly.  

And did you hear the phrase used  to describe how high the hill is?

The course is a thousand feet long  with a 400 foot vertical drop.

Vertical drop. That’s about a 122  meter descent over a 305 meter length.  

Not very high compared to traditional skiing, but  I’m not sure I’d agree to ride a shovel down that.  

Shovels have some very sharp edges.  “Vertical drop” is another collocation  

that I hear a fair amount. Let’s list  some synonyms for “drop.” We have:

Decline. The hillside has a steep decline.

Descent. Going down. The descent  of the trail begins here.

Plunge. I often think of this with water. He  jumped off the cliff and plunged into the lake.

Drop-off. A noun. Be careful, there’s  a steep drop-off just off shore.

Grade. There’s a 5% grade on this road.

A second meaning of “drop” as a noun is a  tiny bit of fluid, shaped like a sphere.  

A drop of rain. Eye drops. Today I will  not have even one drop of alcohol.

And third, “drop” occurs regularly as a verb,  meaning, to fall unexpectedly or suddenly.  

I dropped my phone. Have you heard  the idiom “to drop the ball”?  

This means to make a mistake, to not get something  done. It has nothing to do with an actual ball.  

I missed registration for summer camp  and now it’s full. I dropped the ball!

You can also use “drop” as a verb  to explain that something doesn’t  

matter anymore. I know we disagree,  but let’s drop it and move on.

And another meaning I use,  

meaning to release something to the public. My  new videos drop on YouTube every other Tuesday.

Ok, let’s take a look at the  third and final unusual sport.

Finally, there’s fat bike racing.

Three, two, one, begin!

You’ve probably seen them before. Mountain  bikes with tires that are at least 4 to 5  

inches wide. This makes them perfect for winter  races that usually take place on snow-covered,  

cross country type trails. There are races  all over the country, but the premiere race  

in North America takes place on the 65 mile-long  American Birkebeiner Trail in Cable, Wisconsin.

My bike tires are definitely not that wide.  How did she describe the width of the tires?

Fat bike racing.

Fat bike. To link those first two words  smoothly, we put a stop T in fat so it’s  

not released. Fat bike. Fat bike racing.  I like the way the landscape is described.  

Native speakers sometimes  create strings like this:

Snow-covered, cross-country-type trails. The  formula is “Adjective + Adjective + type” or  

“Noun + Noun + type.” And there’s no limit to  how many adjectives, nouns, or complex phrases  

you can string together. You end the phrase  with “type,” meaning “that kind of thing.”  

Let’s practice building a  couple of these descriptive  

strings. I’ll give you the noun, and you fill  in the adjectives, the descriptive phrases.

Let’s describe someone who’s very romantic.

“He’s a roses and chocolates type guy.”  you can also use ‘of’, type of guy.

“He’s a sing-love-songs-in-public,  send-you-gifts-at-work type of guy.”  

What did you fill it in with? Share  your ideas in the comments.

Now try one describing a super expensive car.

“It’s a midlife-crisis,  sell-your-house-to-pay-for-it type car.”

How about describing a job you’ve always wanted?

“It’s my dreams-come-true,  once-in-a-lifetime type job.”

If you think of other ways to string  

adjective phrases or noun phrases  together, share in the comments!

Last, let’s look at the word “premiere.”

The premiere race in North America  takes place on the 65 mile-long  

American Birkebeiner Trail in Cable, Wisconsin.

Premiere as a noun is the first  performance or exhibition.  

The debut. The opening. It’s the  world premiere of a new opera.

Or, As a verb: The movie is  premiering tonight at midnight.

And as an adjective: The premiere showing  is tonight at midnight. But it can also  

mean the principal, the most important. The  Met is the premiere opera house in the US. The  

hotel is one of the premiere resorts in the area.  Here, she says “This race is the premiere race.”

It’s more important than the others.

There are races all over the country  but the premiere race in North America  

takes place on the 65 mile-long American  Birkebeiner Trail in Cable, Wisconsin.

Ok, great! We pulled out so many vocabulary  words and idioms from these clips.  

Which words were new to you? Let  me know in the comments below.  

I have several other Learn English with News  videos, check them out on my YouTube channel.  

And be sure you subscribe with notifications on  so you never miss a lesson. I love being  

your English teacher and accent coach. That’s it,  and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.