DURING THE FIRST PART OF A TRIP, A CANOEIST TRAVELS 35 MILES AT A CERTAIN SPEED. THE CANOEIST TRAVELS 17 MILES ON THE SECOND PART OF THE TRIP AT A SPEED OF 5 MPH SLOWER. THE TOTAL TIME FOR THE TRIP IS 3 HRS. WHAT WAS THE SPEED ON EACH PART OF THE TRIP?
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For this problem, let V be the speed during the first 35 miles. The speed will then be V-5 during the last 17 miles.
The time spent at each speed equals distance divided by velocity at that time. The total time is 3 hours. Therefore:
35/V + 17/(V-5) = 3
Solve that equation for V