At 11 a.m., Cathy and Gabby raced off together from the starting point of a path. Cathy ran at an average speed of 3 m/s. Gabby ran at an average speed of 4 m/s. Upon reaching the end of the path, Gabby rested for 4 minutes. She then immediately ran back along the same route at 4 m/s. At 11.45 a.m., Cathy met Gabby.

1. Find the total distance covered by the two runners when they met each other. Express your answer in km.
2. Find the length of the trail in km.

(a)
From 11 a.m. to 11.45 a.m. = 45 min

Duration that Cathy ran = 45 min
Duration that Gabby ran = 45 -  4 = 41 min

1 min = 60 s

41 min = 41 x 60 = 2460 s
45 min = 45 x 60 = 2700 s

Distance that Cathy ran
= 3 x 2700
= 8100 m

Distance that Gabby ran
= 4 x 2460
= 9840 m

Distance that Cathy and Gabby ran
= 8100 + 9840
= 17940 m

1000 m = 1 km

17940 m = 17940 ÷ 1000 = 17.94 km

(b)
Length of the trail
= 17.94 ÷ 2
= 8.97 km

Answer(s): (a) 17.94 km; (b) 8.97 km