Pat,
Good point! Interestingly enough, we call 1600 meters a metric mile for
track and field events, the same way that the French (and others) call 500
mL a pint. Ironically, we in the U.S. call 500 mL a "1/2 liter" as
indicated on bottled water and such. Of course, the official quantity
declaration is in correct SI usage (500 mL or .5 L). While horse racing may
indeed be fairly easy to convert to metric (although I still don't think it
is necessary or desirable,) football, with its status in the U.S. would be a
much tougher nut to crack for the reasons mentioned in Stan Doore's post.
Phil
Or maybe not. 10 meters to a first down is only about 10% more than 10 yards. A team with a good defense, or with good passing, would have a slight advantage. In many cases a first down is achieved by 11 yards or more anyway. The difference is meaningless if the first down is achieved by a Hail Mary.
Carleton
