Leisure & Nightlife, BRI-DOG
When it comes to free time, everyone has his or her own activity of choice. While some may like to repose with a nice game of bridge, poker, or chess, others may find bungee jumping or bullfighting to be more engaging, and still others would rather opt for hiking or archery. Luckily, there's no shortage of leisure activities available for those who have the time, resources, and inclination to pursue them.
Leisure & Nightlife Encyclopedia Articles By Title
bridle, headgear by which a horse or other burden-bearing or pulling animal is governed, consisting of bit, headstall,......
British Amateur Championship, golf tournament held annually in Great Britain for male amateurs with handicaps of......
British Open, one of the world’s four major golf tournaments—with the Masters Tournament, the U.S. Open, and the......
bull riding, rodeo event in which the contestant attempts to ride a bucking bull for eight seconds while holding......
bullfighting, the national spectacle of Spain and many Spanish-speaking countries, in which a bull is ceremoniously......
bungee jumping, sport in which the jumper falls from a high place with a rubber (“bungee”) cord attached both to......
Burger King Corporation, restaurant company specializing in flame-broiled fast-food hamburgers. It is the second......
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, privately owned zoo and amusement park opened in 1959 by Anheuser-Busch, Inc., in Tampa,......
bushmen’s carnival, exhibition and contest of cattle herding and related skills, the Australian equivalent of the......
butterfly, swimming stroke in which the arms are brought forward above the water and the legs kick in unison in......
buzkashī, a rugged equestrian game, played predominantly by Turkic peoples in northern Afghanistan, in which riders......
tossing the caber, a Scottish athletic event consisting in throwing a “caber,” a straight, approximately 17-foot-......
cafeteria, self-service restaurant in which customers select various dishes from an open-counter display. The food......
café, small eating and drinking establishment, historically a coffeehouse, usually featuring a limited menu; originally......
calf roping, rodeo event in which a lasso-wielding cowboy or cowgirl moves from horseback to foot in pursuit of......
Calgary Stampede, exhibition and stampede (rodeo) held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, annually since 1923. The world-famous......
calisthenics, free body exercises performed with varying degrees of intensity and rhythm, which may or may not......
camel racing, sport of running camels at speed, with a rider astride, over a predetermined course. The sport is......
camping, recreational activity in which participants take up temporary residence in the outdoors, usually using......
Canada Games, national sporting event held every two years in Canada, both the Winter and Summer Games being held......
Canadian-American Challenge Cup, trophy of a series of automobile races that took place annually from 1966 to 1975......
canasta, card game of the rummy family, developed in Buenos Aires, Arg., and Montevideo, Uruguay, in the 1940s......
candlepins, bowling game played on a standard tenpin lane with slender, cylindrical pins about 15 inches (38 cm)......
cane fencing, (French canne), the art of defending oneself with a walking stick, developed in France by the 16th......
canoeing, the use for sport, recreation, or competition of a canoe, kayak, or foldboat, all small, narrow, lightweight......
canter, a three-beat collected gait of a horse during which one or the other of the forelegs and both hind legs......
capoeira, dancelike martial art of Brazil, performed to the accompaniment of call-and-response choral singing and......
card game, game played for pleasure or gambling (or both) with one or more decks of playing cards. Games using......
Every year the four major tournaments of professional tennis—the Australian Open, the French Open, the U.S. Open,......
carom billiards, game played with three balls (two white and one red) on a table without pockets, in which the......
casino, originally, a public hall for music and dancing; by the second half of the 19th century, a collection of......
casino, card game for two to four players, best played with two. A 52-card deck is used. When two play, the dealer......
catch-as-catch-can wrestling, basic wrestling style in which nearly all holds and tactics are permitted in both......
New York City’s proto-punk new wave was a downtown thing, crawling out of the damp stonework in yet-to-be-gentrified......
charade, originally a kind of riddle, probably invented in France during the 18th century, in which a word or phrase......
chariot racing, in the ancient world, a popular form of contest between small, two-wheeled vehicles drawn by two-,......
checkers, board game, one of the world’s oldest games. Checkers is played by two persons who oppose each other......
cheerleading, team activity in which elements of dance and acrobatics are combined with shouted slogans in order......
chemin de fer, French card game played mainly in European and Latin American casinos. The game is played by up......
chess, one of the oldest and most popular board games, played by two opponents on a checkered board with specially......
chess piece, game piece used for playing chess. Chess pieces are distinguished by appearance and made of rigid......
Chicago Marathon, annual 26.2-mile (42.2-km) footrace through Chicago that is held each October. Along with the......
children’s game, any of the amusements and pastimes of children that may involve spontaneous, unstructured activity,......
Chinese chess, strategy board game played in China from about ad 700. Like orthodox chess, Chinese chess is believed......
chuck-a-luck, dice game of medieval origin that is related to grand hazard. It is played with three dice and a......
Jennie Jerome Churchill was an American-born society figure, remembered chiefly as the wife of Lord Randolph Churchill......
clout shooting, in archery, long-distance shooting at a circular target laid out on the ground, a form of competition......
cocked hat, bowling game played on a standard tenpin lane with three tenpins and a duckpin ball (4–5 inches [10–12.5......
cockfighting, the sport of pitting gamecocks to fight and the breeding and training of them for that purpose. The......
Codona family, a family of circus trapeze performers that became famous in the Ringling Brothers Circus. In the......
coin collecting, the systematic accumulation and study of coins, tokens, paper money, and objects of similar form......
College Football Playoff (CFP), annual series of U.S. college football postseason bowl games (2014– ) that determines......
Commonwealth Games, quadrennial international multisport event contested by athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations.......
Coney Island, amusement and residential area in the southern part of the borough of Brooklyn, New York, U.S., fronting......
Terence Conran was an English designer, restaurateur, and businessman credited with making stylish housewares and......
contract bridge, card game developed in the 1920s that was the final step in the historical progression from whist......
Copa América, quadrennial South American football (soccer) tournament that is the continent’s premier competition......
Mary Monckton, countess of Cork and Orrery was a society hostess whose “conversation parties” were attended by......
Cornish wrestling, style of wrestling developed and still practiced in southwestern England. It is also known as......
cosplay, the act or practice of dressing up as a character from a preexisting work of fiction. The term is derived......
cottabus, game of Sicilian origin, popular among the ancient Greeks and to some extent in ancient Rome. In its......
Cotton Bowl, postseason U.S. collegiate football game played on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day in Arlington,......
Cotton Club, legendary nightspot in the Harlem district of New York City that for years featured prominent Black......
coursing, the pursuit of game by hounds hunting by sight and not by scent. In modern, organized coursing competitions,......
crambo, a game in which one player gave a word or line of verse to be matched in rhyme by other players. Thus,......
craps, dice game, possibly the world’s most common gambling game with dice. The version known as bank craps, casino......
crazy eights, popular children’s card game. The basic idea is to be the first to play all one’s cards to a communal......
cribbage, card game in which the object is to form counting combinations that traditionally are scored by moving......
cricket, England’s national summer sport, which is now played throughout the world, particularly in Australia,......
Cricket World Cup, international cricket championship held at four-year intervals that is the premier contest in......
croquet, popular outdoor game, played on a lawn or court, with long-handled mallets with which the players hit......
cross-country, long-distance running over open country; unlike the longer marathon race, cross-country races usually......
cross-country skiing, skiing in open country over rolling, hilly terrain as found in Scandinavian countries, where......
crossword puzzle, popular form of word puzzle. A crossword puzzle consists of a diagram, usually rectangular, divided......
crown and anchor, dice gambling game of English origin, dating back to the early 18th century and popular among......
cruise ship, a large ship used primarily for leisure cruising. While earlier cruises were usually undertaken on......
cryptarithm, mathematical recreation in which the goal is to decipher an arithmetic problem in which letters have......
Cumberland wrestling, form of wrestling developed in northern England and southern Scotland, also called the North......
curling, a game similar to lawn bowls but played on ice. Two teams of four players (given the titles lead, second,......
Curtis Cup, golf trophy awarded since 1932 to the winner of a biennial amateur women’s match played between teams......
cycle ball, an amateur cycling game that is derived from association football (soccer). In cycle ball, two opposing......
cycling, use of a bicycle for sport, recreation, or transportation. The sport of cycling consists of professional......
cyclo-cross, cross-country bicycle racing in open and usually quite rough country with riders often forced to dismount......
Dakar Rally, automobile rally race over a route traditionally run through southern Europe and Africa before finishing......
darts, indoor target game played by throwing feathered darts at a circular board with numbered spaces. The game......
Davis Cup, trophy awarded to the winner of an annual international lawn-tennis tournament originally for amateur......
Daytona 500, annual U.S. stock-car race that is the most prestigious event in the National Association for Stock......
Jean-Gaspard Deburau was a Bohemian-born French pantomime actor, who transformed the character of Pierrot in the......
decathlon, athletic competition lasting two consecutive days in which contestants take part in 10 track-and-field......
deck tennis, game for two or four players, designed for the limited space aboard ship and also played as a garden......
disc golf, a creative variant of traditional golf in which players throw plastic flying discs on a course. The......
discus throw, sport in athletics (track and field) in which a disk-shaped object, known as a discus, is thrown......
Disney Company, American corporation best known as a purveyor of family entertainment. During the 20th and early......
Disneyland, amusement park in Anaheim, California, featuring characters, rides, and shows based on the creations......
diving, sport of plunging into water, usually head foremost, performed with the addition of gymnastic and acrobatic......
In the United States college athletics is a multibillion-dollar industry, with ticket sales, merchandise, and broadcast......
dodgeball, children’s game that requires a large, soft rubber ball, the size of a volleyball or beachball, and......
dog racing, the racing of greyhounds around an enclosed track in pursuit of an electrically controlled and propelled......
dog show, competition in which purebred dogs are judged on the basis of their physical perfection as determined......
Dog sports are organized contests that provide physical exercise and mental stimulation for the animals, fun opportunities......