Jun and I ran Mt. Timpanogos last night and had an excellent time. We met at Kohlers grocery store in Highland just before 10:00 pm and Jun jumped into my car and we headed to the Timpanookee trailhead.
It was cool, but not cold, so I went with a long sleeve synthetic shirt and a synthetic t-shirt on top, which worked great until the summit ridge. I also tied another thicker long sleeve on my waist.
After a few miles we spotted some headlamps about a half mile ahead and we both got excited to have someone to pass. After about 10 minutes we passed two women that were hiking up to ski the glacier in the morning, which we thought was pretty cool.
The run up to the saddle was a lot of fun and we really made good time. Both of us were feeling strong and we both took a few gels on the way to keep up our energy. I did have one fall that was a little below average. I fell right on the same elbow that I fell on at Quest for Kings race, and it was a sharp pain, but went away after a few minutes. Once on the saddle the wind hit us in the face pretty good and I put on my extra shirt. It was cold. It only got colder as we made our way to the summit and by time we were on top (2:15) my hands were numb.
We didn't stay on top long. The run down was fun, but my legs and knees got sore from all of the pounding and I couldn't see all that well, so I wasn't speedy. The trail seemed really good on the way up, but running down it seemed extra rocky and it was hard to get into a good groove. Jun waited for me a lot. At around mile 12 I took another nasty fall and banged up both of my knees. It took me a few minutes of hiking before I could run again, and I wasn't feeling so hot, but the more I ran the less they hurt.
We made it down in just over two hours and the total time was about 4:28, although Jun did wait for me a lot on the descent. I was home and in the shower by 3:30 and in bed about 3:55 AM. The run beat sleeping by a miiiiiiiiiile! | 