SOLUTION: After a sailboat had been on the water for 5 h, a change in the wind direction reduced the average speed of the boat by 4 mph. The entire distance sailed was 132 mi. The total time
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Question 1079197: After a sailboat had been on the water for 5 h, a change in the wind direction reduced the average speed of the boat by 4 mph. The entire distance sailed was 132 mi. The total time spent sailing was 8 h. How far did the sailboat travel in the first 5 h? Answer by ikleyn(52817) (Show Source):
Let u be the rate of the boat in the first 5 hours.
Then the rate of the boat is (u-4) in the last 3 hours.
Your equation for u is the "distance" equation
5u + 3(u-4) = 132.
8u - 12 = 132 ---> 8u = 132 + 12 ---> 8u = 144 ---> u = = 18.
The speed of the boat during first 5 hours was 18 miles per hour.
Hence, it covered the distance of 5*18 = 90 miles during the first 5 hours.
