Question

In a relay race, 5 friends ran an equal share of the distance. The total distance of the race was 3 miles. 
 
What is the distance that each friend ran?
 
 

 mi

Answer 1

A 3-mile race never turns into a 15-mile race. No.

Each person runs the same distance, but not at the same time. First A runs a certain distance. Then B runs that same distance, Then C. And so on.

Your job is to figure out what that "certain distance" is.

What would happen were you to assign 5 people to take responsibility for running the same distance, one after another, on this 3-mile route? How far would each person have to run?

Answer 2

Imagine dividing an apple up into 5 equal parts. Then each of 5 people get one part that is of the same size as his friend's part.

Imagine a 4-mile long route. If we're going to let 5 people run just a fraction of those 4 miles, and everyone runs the same distance (a lot less than 4 miles), then how far does each person have to run? 5 times that distance would be 4 miles.