What is "pit stop"

Pit \Pit\, n. [OE. pit, put, AS. pytt a pit, hole, L. puteus a well, pit.]

1. A large cavity or hole in the ground, either natural or artificial; a cavity in the surface of a body; an indentation; specifically:

   1. The shaft of a coal mine; a coal pit.

   2. A large hole in the ground from which material is dug or quarried; as, a stone pit; a gravel pit; or in which material is made by burning; as, a lime pit; a charcoal pit.

   3. A vat sunk in the ground; as, a tan pit.

      Tumble me into some loathsome pit.
      --Shak.

2. Any abyss; especially, the grave, or hades.

   Back to the infernal pit I drag thee chained.
   --Milton.

   He keepth back his soul from the pit.
   --Job xxxiii. 18.

3. A covered deep hole for entrapping wild beasts; a pitfall; hence, a trap; a snare. Also used figuratively.

   The anointed of the Lord was taken in their pits.
   --Lam. iv. 20.

4. A depression or hollow in the surface of the human body; as:

   1. The hollow place under the shoulder or arm; the axilla, or armpit.

   2. See Pit of the stomach (below).

   3. The indentation or mark left by a pustule, as in smallpox.

5. Formerly, that part of a theater, on the floor of the house, below the level of the stage and behind the orchestra; now, in England, commonly the part behind the stalls; in the United States, the parquet; also, the occupants of such a part of a theater.

6. An inclosed area into which gamecocks, dogs, and other animals are brought to fight, or where dogs are trained to kill rats. ``As fiercely as two gamecocks in the pit.''
   --Locke.

7. [Cf. D. pit, akin to E. pith.] (Bot.)

   1. The endocarp of a drupe, and its contained seed or seeds; a stone; as, a peach pit; a cherry pit, etc.

   2. A depression or thin spot in the wall of a duct.

      Cold pit (Hort.), an excavation in the earth, lined with masonry or boards, and covered with glass, but not artificially heated, -- used in winter for the storing and protection of half-hardly plants, and sometimes in the spring as a forcing bed.

      Pit coal, coal dug from the earth; mineral coal.

      Pit frame, the framework over the shaft of a coal mine.

      Pit head, the surface of the ground at the mouth of a pit or mine.

      Pit kiln, an oven for coking coal.

      Pit martin (Zo["o]l.), the bank swallow. [Prov. Eng.]

      Pit of the stomach (Anat.), the depression on the middle line of the epigastric region of the abdomen at the lower end of the sternum; the infrasternal depression.

      Pit saw (Mech.), a saw worked by two men, one of whom stands on the log and the other beneath it. The place of the latter is often in a pit, whence the name.

      pit stop, See pit stop in the vocabulary.

      Pit viper (Zo["o]l.), any viperine snake having a deep pit on each side of the snout. The rattlesnake and copperhead are examples.

      Working pit (Min.), a shaft in which the ore is hoisted and the workmen carried; -- in distinction from a shaft used for the pumps.

pit stop \pit" stop`\ (p[i^]t" st[o^]p`) n.

1. (Auto Racing) A stop by one of the competing cars in a pit by the side of the racetrack, to take on gasoline, change tires, or perform other maintenance.

2. Hence: Any pause in a journey, to eat or drink, or to use a rest room.

3. A place where one may make a pit stop[1 or 2].

n. (context motor racing English) A stop made during an automobile race at the pit to refuel and perform other periodic maintenance on the vehicle.

1. n. a stop during an automobile trip for rest and refreshment

2. a brief stop at a pit during an automobile race to take on fuel or service the car

Pit Stop is a 1969 film directed by Jack Hill. It stars Brian Donlevy and Richard Davalos.

In motorsports, a pit stop is where a racing vehicle stops in the pits during a race for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. Not all of these are allowed in all forms of racing.

The pits usually comprise a pit lane which runs parallel to the start/finish straight and is connected at each end to the main track, and a row of garages (usually one per team) outside which the work is done. Pit stop work is carried out by anywhere from two to twenty mechanics (also called a "pit crew"), depending on the series regulations, while the driver often waits in the vehicle (except where a driver change is involved or in Motorbike racing).

Depending on the circuit, the garage may be located on pit lane or in a separate area. Most North American circuits feature a pit lane with a number of pit stalls (typically 30-50) and a pit wall that separates the pit lane from the infield, with the garages (if used) on a separate road in the infield. In races where there are different series racing together, each series has its own separate garage or are parked in their own area. Circuits in other parts of the World (used in Formula One) typically have the individual garages open directly onto the pit lane through the team's assigned pit box. In American English, it is common to drop the definite article and just refer to "pit road", whereas in British English one would always refer to "the pit lane". A further difference is that in British English, the term "pit box" is universally used, whereas in American English, one would say "pit stall". It is important to note that in NASCAR, a pit box is a tool (see below), though there is a definitive term used for them.

Where it is permitted, refuelling is often an important purpose of a pit stop. Carrying fuel slows down a vehicle and there is often a limit on the size of the fuel tank, so many races require multiple stops for fuel to complete the race distance in the minimum time. Changing tyres is also common to permit the use of softer tyres that wear faster but provide more grip, to use tyres suitable for wet conditions, or to use a range of tyres designated by the rules. Teams will aim for each of their vehicles to pit following a planned schedule, with the number of stops determined by many factors such as fuel capacity, tyre lifespan, and the trade-off between time lost in the pits versus time gained on the track due to the benefits of pit stops. Choosing the optimum pit strategy of how many stops to make and when to make them is crucial in having a successful race. It is also important for teams to take competitors' strategies into account when planning pit stops, to avoid being held up behind a competitor where overtaking is difficult or risky. An unscheduled or extended stop, such as for a repair, can be very costly for a driver's chance of success, because while they are stopped for service, competitors remaining on the track are gaining time on them. For this reason, the pit crew often undergo intensive training to perform operations such as tyre changes as quickly as possible leading to pit stops, for example in Formula 1, where the car is only stationary for a few seconds for a regular pit stop.

In most series the order of the order of the teams' pit boxes is assigned by points standings, race results, or previous qualifying results before the start of the race. In NASCAR and in INDYCAR's Indianapolis 500, typically pit assignments are made after qualifying, with the fastest qualifiers choosing their pit stall first.

Pit Stop is an American drama film, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. Directed by Yen Tan and written by Tan and David Lowery, the film stars Bill Heck and Marcus DeAnda as Gabe and Ernesto, two gay men in a small town in Texas, who begin to build a relationship via their interactions at the local gas station. The film also stars Amy Seimetz as Gabe's ex-wife Shannon and Alfredo Maduro as Ernesto's former partner Luis, both of whom are still involved in their ex-partners' lives.

The film won the Texas Grand Jury Prize at the 2013 Dallas International Film Festival and the Louise LeQuire Award for Best Screenplay at the 2013 Nashville Film Festival. It also screened within Maryland Film Festival 2013.