How does one convert yards to furlongs?
220 yards make a furlong, so divide by 220. That puts 660 yd at 3 furlongs and 440 yd at 2.
The number worth remembering is 1,760, the yards in a mile: 1,760 ÷ 220 gives the 8 furlongs to the mile that horse racing still runs on.
Round numbers of yards rarely come out tidy, though – 1,000 yd is about 4.55 furlongs.
What is a yard?
A yard is 3 feet or 36 inches. In the US you mostly see it on football fields, which run 100 yards between the goal lines, and in the UK short road distances are still signed in yards.
The yard is traditionally the distance from the nose of King Henry I of England to the thumb of his outstretched arm, though its length varied from place to place for centuries. It was only fixed internationally in 1959, at exactly 0.9144 meters.
Nearly every other country uses the meter instead. In the US, bulk soil and mulch are still sold by the cubic yard, which is 27 cubic feet.
What is a furlong?
A furlong is 220 yards or 660 feet, which is exactly 201.168 meters. It is an eighth of a mile.
The origin of the term "furlong" can be traced back to Old English, where "furh" meant "furrow" and "lang" meant "long." This reflects the historical use of furlongs in measuring the length of a furrow in agricultural fields. In horse racing, furlongs are used to measure the distance between the starting point and the finish line. A racecourse typically consists of multiple furlongs, with the most common distances being 5 furlongs (5/8 of a mile) and 8 furlongs (1 mile).
Outside the racecourse the furlong has almost gone. British racing still gives distances in miles and furlongs, so a mile and a quarter is written 1m 2f. Road signs don't use it – they give miles and, for short distances, yards.