Learning to think in metric

While the Ural’s speedometer measures in both miles and kilometers, the trip meter and odometer read only in kilometers. That takes some mental adjustment, and thinking in kilometers instead of miles is something I’m still adapting to.

The magic formula to convert km to miles, and miles to km

To convert kilometers into miles (km to m):

1 kilometers = 0.621 miles (or just 0.6 miles, depending on how accurate you want to be)

To convert miles into kilometers (m to km):

1 miles = 1.6 kilometers

Here are some basic conversions that can make this a little easier:

Kilometers to Miles

• 5 km = 3 m
• 10 km = 6 m
• 50 km = 31 m
• 100 km = 62 m
• *** 150 km = 93 m (a good mileage rule of thumb to gas up) ***
• 250 km = 155 m
• 500 km = 311 m
• 1000 km = 621 m

Miles to Kilometers

• 5 m = 8 km
• 10 m = 16 km
• 50 m = 81 km
• 100 m = 161 km
• 250 m = 402 km
• 500 m = 805 km
• 1000 m = 1609 km

I’m hoping to get to the point where I can figure this in my head, but numbers are not my strongsuit. Luckily, my cell phone has a conversion function, and that comes in handy on the road as I always carry my cell phone.

What do you do to help you remember and calculate miles and kilometers?