Question

RUNNING

The length of a marathon was determined by the first marathon in the 1908 Olympic Games in London, England. The race began at Windsor Castle and ended in front of the royal box at London’s Olympic Stadium, which was a distance of 26 miles 385 yards. Determine how many feet the marathon covers using the formula $f\left(m,y\right)=5280m+3y$, where $m$is the number of miles and $y$is the number of yards.

Short answer

Marathon covers138,435 feet.

Step-by-step solution

- Find value of m

As m is the number of miles and distance is 26 miles 385 yards, so value of m is 26

- Find value of y

As y is the number of yards and distance is 26 miles 385 yards, so value of y is 385

- Find distance in feet

Substitute 26 for m and 385 for y into $f\left(m,y\right)=5280m+3y$to get$f\left(26,385\right)=5280\left(26\right)+3\left(385\right)$

To simplify this equation multiply from left to right then add the resulting terms as shown below

$\begin{array}{c}f(26,385)=137,280+1,155\\ =138,435\end{array}$

Thus marathon covers 138,435 feet.