Photogshooter14

According to what I've read, both here on this site and on some others as well, a century ride is one of 100 kms or 100 miles. This got me thinking though, with the metric to imperial conversions of both distances. If in the imperial system world, a century ride is 100 miles, how could a ride in the metric world of 100 kms be the same thing? If the conversion is done, 100 kms is only 62.1 miles.
I'm not trying to stir up anything here with the century riders. I give full props to those of you that do these long distance endurance rides. I'm more asking out of curiosity as to a potential standard or lack there of with the distance. Just sitting here watching the tube, browsing this site and contemplating my own potential century ride this summer and the question popped into my head so I thought that I'd ask.

bikemig 

A century in the states means 100 miles. If you do 100 km, that's a metric century. You can have as much fun doing a metric century as doing a "full" century. It's all a state of mind.

StephenH

"how could a ride in the metric world of 100 kms be the same thing?"

They're not the same thing.

Machka 

A Metric Century = 100 km
A Century or an Imperial Century = 100 miles
A Double Metric = 200 km
A Double Century = 200 miles

unterhausen

"Century" is a weird expression, I would guess that most riders in the world just say how far they rode.

tarwheel 

In the US, when someone talks about riding a century, that means 100 miles, because miles are the standard unit of distance measurement.

If they are talking about riding 100 km, they refer to it as a metric century, which is 100 kilometers or 62 miles.

I don't understand the confusion. You're talking about two different ride lengths, centuries (100 miles) and metric centuries (100 km).

Bandera

The etymology is in British English where "Pulling the Ton" is going 100MPH on a motorcycle, more puzzling than 100 miles equals a Century.
Single interest groups often develop an "insider" language that's a bit inexplicable to others like the great Jazz musicians did to enliven American English.

Dig it?

FBinNY 

Of course they're not, but so what?

I imagine that a century is a bigger deal in imperial measure countries, but there again so what/ It's just a word.

StephenH

The question asked was how they could be the same thing, and I just answered that question as simply as possible.

softreset

Most of the distance guys that I've ridden with will usually use the following language:

Metric - 100 Km
Century - 100 miles

I rode "the metric" or "the century," versus the numeric value/distance.

Machka 

+1

As in ... I'm planning to do "a metric" later this month.

And I'm hoping to be able to do a metric CAM this year.