120 Feet Visualized: Understanding What It Looks Like in Real Life
When we think of distances like 10 feet, or even the larger distance of 50 feet, it’s not very difficult to picture in your head – about the width of a bedroom, couple cars long, side alley etc. But when it gets to 120 feet, your imagination starts to stretch. This is no average distance you are walking in an office or a house. But in the real world — and construction, sports, transportation, nature — 120 feet is more common than you might think.
So just how long is 120 feet, anyway? This distance we will now discuss and make real by comparison, example and description.
How Long Is 120 Feet Exactly?
First of all, the figures 120 feet are 1,440 inches or 36.57 meters in the metric system. On the yard, it is 40 yards – the very distance of a short sprint in American football.
That is to say, in case you are on a football field, and you are on one end of the field, 120 feet would bring you to approximately one-third of the length of the field. It is a far and countable distance, yet in unambiguous focus. The two ends are easy to view, but it is substantial to walk.
120 Feet in Everyday Terms
Suppose that you are taking a stroll in your neighborhood. The distance of the steps is about 2.5-3 feet. The distance of 120 feet would cover 40-45 steps. It is half a minute of vigorous walking.
In order to imagine this length, we will take eight standard-sized sedans, one behind another, each 15 feet long. That procession of vehicles would amount to some 120 feet. Or imagine the three city buses in line one at an end and the other at an end, the buses being about 40 feet long.
It might be as much as 120 feet across a distance of two corners of the streets or the width of a small parking lot in a common neighborhood. With one end to the other straight, you might look right across it standing on one corner, and then, even then, your walk would be a right one.
Architecture and Construction 120 Feet.
The 120 feet dimension is significant in architecture. It is commonly employed to determine the size or width of big halls, gymnastics and warehouses. To illustrate, a small warehouse in industry can be 120 feet in width, and 200 feet in length. That is a huge area that can accommodate a number of trucks or heavy machinery.
A plot of 120 feet is a big size of land- enough to accommodate a huge garden, various buildings or car parks as far as residential planning is concerned. Most developers base their commercial lots on commercial frontage of 120 feet in the suburban areas.
On the vertical, 120 feet would be approximately 12 stories high making the assumption that the height of each of the floors is approximately 10 feet. It is a fine experience, when standing at the bottom of such a building and looking up at how high 120 feet is, not too high, but high.
120 in Sports and Recreations.
One of the most appropriate visualizations of a distance is sports fields. A basketball court is 94 feet between the baselines to another 26 feet and you have 120 feet. That is as much standing out of the boundary of the court and looking down its full length and a few more steps.
In the baseball, the distance between first base and the home plate is 90 feet. Then you do add another 30 feet and then you have 120 feet. that is about the distance that a ball in the field of the infield will go in a solid hit.
In swimming, an Olympic pool should be approximately 50 meters, which equals 164 feet. That is nearly three-fourths of it covered by 120 feet. A few more strokes would bring you against the wall.
To football fans, 120 feet is precisely 40 yards which is roughly equal to four first-downs in the American football. It is approximately the length of an American football field that is approximately 160 feet wide. And the width of the field is nearly 120 feet.
120 Feet in Transportation
Transportation gives numerous obvious comparisons. The legal limit of the length of a semi-truck and trailer in the U.S. is approximately 80 feet meaning that 120 feet would mean one and a half of such giant rigs.
Imagine a Boeing 737 plane – the fuselage of this plane is an average of 120 feet in length. That is the distance with which you will see one on a runway next time. It is an ideal real life picture of 120 feet of monolithic engineered precise.
A single railcar in train transport is approximated at 60 feet on average. Two of them, when paired, comprise about 120 feet, or a little way of a complete train.
Many massive luxury yachts are approximately 120 feet even in the boating industry. This is a large yacht with several decks, cabins, and dozens of passengers can easily be accommodated.
Nature and the Environment 120 Feet.
There are beautiful specimens of the 120-foot scale furnished by nature. It is easy to find many tall pine, oak, or redwood trees which are more than 120 feet in height. Peering at one of them will give an ideal understanding of verticality, it is the type of height that evokes awe.
It would be a magnificent waterfall of 120 feet high, and one that would form mist in the waterfall and draw people to see its beauty and power.
In geography, cliffs or hill sides of 120 feet are normal in the coastal regions or the valleys among the rocks. It is only big enough to fit within a panoramic landscape, although you would need climbing gear to climb one.
When comparing to the wild life, the largest blue whales ever known are around 100-110 feet in length- almost as big as our 120 feet sight. Being next to something of that size would make you seem so small.
Also Read: 80 Feet Visualized: Understanding What It Looks Like in Real Life
Urban Design and Engineering: 120 Feet.
Even in urban designs, the width of a wide road or intersection can be 120 feet. As an example, a four-lane boulevard having sidewalks, median, and street lights, can be easily covered 120 feet on one side to the other.
The scale is also applied by engineers in the span of bridge, pedestrian crossing or the length of the crane arm used in medium-range lifting. A boom crane of 80 to 120 feet is common on a construction site of small and middle-sized structures.
Even flagpole or communication towers are about 120 feet high which are visible over neighborhoods or over rural areas.
FAQs About 120 Feet
How many meters is 120 feet?
120 feet = about 36.57 meters.
How many yards is 120 feet?
There are 40 yards in 120 feet.
What is 120 feet long?
About 120 feet is the length of a Boeing 737 airplane, three city buses parked nose to tail or a tall tree such as a redwood or a pine.
How many stories is 120 feet?
It’s equivalent to about a 12-story building.
120 feet can hold how many cars?
Eight standard-sized cars placed bumper-to-bumper would be approximately 120 feet.
How far could you walk in 120 feet?
When walking at a slow, normal pace, it takes about 20 -25 seconds to walk 120 feet.
Can you see 120 feet clearly?
Yes. From an ordinary viewing distance, 120 feet is wholly visible — it seems far, but not so distant that detail gets obfuscated.
Imagining 120 feet can be a wonder for framing large-scale distances in minor perspective. Whether it’s the length of an airplane, the height of a 12-story building or the span across a wide avenue, it is a distance that looms large yet still feels within reach.
It’s not something you’re likely to wind up testing indoors or in a small room, but it’s everywhere outdoors — in buildings, the natural world and transportation. If you begin to pay attention, you’ll see that the world is constructed on this very scale far more than most people would realize.
So the next time you hear 120 feet, imagine a jet airplane or three buses or even a tall pine tree. You’ll immediately get a sense of how simply grand, useful and balanced that length actually is.
