Why kms?

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Slick

Guru
This is not meant to be a 'which is better' type thread. I'm just curious.

For me, it just seems easier to think in miles. If a road sign tells me that Little Mulching is ten miles away, I've got a good idea in my head how easy it will be to bet there and back. I'm far too lazy to do the maths to convert it into kilometres...
That obviously says more about you than the unit of measure. Others would find it easier to work it out in metric, simples.

Although to be fair, I am with you on the whole miles thing, and when did it become an LGV? :wacko:
 
I'm far too lazy to do the maths to convert it into kilometres...

Halve the km (80 for example) = 40.
A quarter of 40 = 10.
Add 40 and 10 and voila = 50 (almost exactly)!
 
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I like Skol

A Minging Manc...
It's simple. Uk born, bred and resident cyclists use km to try and make it sound special or pretend to be some kind of pro who works the circuit. There simply is no need or reason to work in units that are not used in this country.
Should we ever convert the UK to metric speed and distance units then we should start to use them for cycling too.
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
It's simple. Uk born, bred and resident cyclists use km to try and make it sound special or pretend to be some kind of pro who works the circuit. There simply is no need or reason to work in units that are not used in this country.
Should we ever convert the UK to metric speed and distance units then we should start to use them for cycling too.
We should have done it decades ago instead of using our own illogical system. Back in the seventies I worked at a firm who use the metric system for weights and measures and it is so much easier to think in that system after the short time it takes to get used to it.
 
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ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
It's simple. Uk born, bred and resident cyclists use km to try and make it sound special or pretend to be some kind of pro who works the circuit. There simply is no need or reason to work in units that are not used in this country.
Alternatively...

A UK born, bred and resident cyclist who was forced to use ridiculous imperial units until the age of 11 was then switched over*** exclusively to metric units after changing school post 11-plus, and never saw an imperial unit again when studying for 'O'-levels and 'A'-levels!

As for university - use inches, foot-pounds, gallons, Fahrenheit etc. there and people would look at you as if you were an alien! :laugh:


*** That was 54 bleeding years ago - die-hard imperialists, it is time to catch up!
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
Sorry Smokin Joe, are you agreeing with me or questioning my statements?
Neither, just making my own point. Using Km or miles on a bike is down to individual preference.
 

Twilkes

Guru
I don't rely on road signs... I plan my routes on digital OS maps which use kms and I have my GPS set to kms which matches the units that I worked in when planning the ride. I know that I can average about 16 km/hr when doing very hilly rides, 20 km/hr when doing lumpy rides, and nearer 30 km/hr if making an effort on flatter rides (as long as it isn't windy) so it easy to work out how I am doing.

I find it much easier to work out gradients in metric units. For example - Otley East Chevin Rd gains near enough 150 m in 1.5 km, so it is 10%. It is about 500 ft in 0.94 miles, which is, er, not as easy to work out in one's head! :laugh:

+1 for elevation in metres, distances in km just makes sense in association with that.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
A typical UK map produced by the UK's world-respected national mapping organisation, and used by UK cyclists. Distances measured in kms, elevation in metres...

566991


If I understand it correctly, we are supposed to translate the kms and metres back into miles and feet in case we ever see a road sign that we don't need to use, or talk to someone who has a curious emotional bond with an antiquated system of units that never made sense from the time it was introduced...
 

Milkfloat

An Peanut
Location
Midlands
Having lived in the UK, the Netherlands and the USA I can just about get by in any unit, however metric makes most sense to me. Having said that; I weigh things in metric, long distances are in miles but short ones are in meters, unless I am going upwards. Pre-decimalisation means nothing to me. It would be nice if the whole world went metric
 
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