Going from point a to point b, the cheetah traveled at an average rate of 70 mph. returning to point a, the cheetah traveled at an average rate of 40 mph in a total of 15 minutes. can we say that this cheetah’s average rate was 55 mph? the average rate for the trip is equal to the total distance traveled divided by the total time traveled. the following equations represent the distance traveled on each leg of the trip. first leg of trip: d=r_1 t_1 second leg of trip: d=r_2 t_2 write an equation for the average rate for the trip. remember, the cheetah runs from point a to point b and back to point a.