April 04, 2014
Midland Radio Corporation, proud maker of telecommunication products, originally started manufacturing Citizen Band (CB) radios in the early 1960's. Suddenly people on the road had the capability to converse with one another and with that came CB jargon. As CB radios grew in popularity, a culture was born. Used mostly by truckers, CB lingo was created to keep conversations short on open air bands. As stated in one of Midland’s original CB manuals, “If you’ve listened to CBers talk before, you know we have our own special style and language. Your Convoy Buddies use codes and special jargon (often a little bit on the humorous side) so that they can communicate better and faster while using fewer words.”
So let’s put your CB lingo translation skills to the test: “I just passed a pregnant roller skate feeding the bears.” This phrase may bring a hilarious picture to mind, but it does a have meaning. When translated using Midland’s lingo guide from the 1970s, it means “I just passed a VW getting a ticket.”