By Ron Dalby
Driving to Alaska means you have to first drive through a large part of Canada, a real treat. However, Canada is a separate country with differing customs and, for more than 50 years, uses the kilometers of the metric system instead of the miles that Americans are so familiar with.
The basic thing to remember is that kilometers are shorter than miles so there are more of them. The ratio is approximately 100 kilometers equals 60 miles.
Decades ago my father taught me a fairly simple way to convert kilometers to miles in my head. His words were, “Multiply the number of kilometers by six and drop the last digit.” For example, if a sign indicates your destination is 350 kilometers away, multiplying by six yields 2,100. Drop the last digit and you have 210 miles, a figure that is correct within a kilometer or two. Or if a speed limit sign in a school zone says 30 KPH, this formula will yield 18 MPH.
Ron Dalby is the author of Guide to the Alaska Highway.
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The other way to calculate miles is to split Km in half and add 10%! 30 km in half is 15 + 3 = 18 miles, same figure!
Another quick way is to look at your speedometer. Analog speedos have both MPH and KPH listed on the dial. If you are going 60 MPH the needle will also align with 100 KPH so 60 miles = 100 KM.
Aside from the dual scaled speedometers, I have just internalized the relative distance. Bet most Americans do this to some extent without even thinking about it anymore. When is the last time you looked at a 2 liter soda bottle and mentally converted it to ounces? If not, you have internalized the relative size. When the sign says the distance is 500km and my speedometer says I am driving 100km, I think “5 hours + stops”. I don’t 1st convert my speed and distance to imperial units to come to the same time estimate.
Due to current politics…driving in Canada for Americans won’t be so hunky dory.
Hopefully they don’t invade and teach us a lesson.
Thank you for the hint, Ron! Very useful. Have a great week and safe travels!
Simply divide miles by half and you are pretty accurate. If one wants to be better than pretty good add another .1 to it and then you will have the. .6 of the mile to get kilos. If going from kilos to miles just double it and add .1 more to be accurate. Or just divide or multiply by .6 and add a very small bit.
simple, love it