South Sister (OR)

[Peter Bakwin]

Max King has the round trip FKT of 2h10m16s (1h23m00s ascent), August 9, 2015.
Mario Mendoza has the ascent FKT of 1h20m19s, September 6, 2014.
Sarah Keyes seems to have the women's ascent (2h10m) and round trip (3h42m01s) FKTs, September 22, 2015.

South Sister (10358 ft) is the third highest peak in Oregon. It is the highest of the Three Sisters, near Bend, Oregon. The route to the summit is mildly technical (class 3) and ascends 5600 feet in about 6.25 miles.

The Bulletin of Bend (published in Jan. 2013) credited Max King and Ryan Bak with the ascent (1h26m18s) and round trip (2h41m) FKT, set in October 2011. Bak is quoted as saying "That was the first time I ever tried to ascend something as fast as I could. It was fun and new to me. There's definitely a whole crew of people who are very into that. It's very different than just going out for a run in the mountains. The way it fatigues your muscle groups is different when you're using the same muscle groups for two to three hours during an ascent.”

A some faster ascent and round trip times have since been reported. Mario Mendoza reported doing the ascent in 1h20m19s on September 6, 2014, but did not provide any further details. Cricket McKay ran up in 1h22m23s on October 14, 2014 (see link for GPS track on Strava). Max King did the ascent in 1h23m00s and set the round trip FKT of 2h10m16s on August 9, 2015. Below, David Mitchell reports running up in 1h38m23s and doing the second fastest round-trip in 2h22m06s on August 15, 2016 (with link to GPS track on Strava). Mitchell lists some other fast times from Strava.

Runners should note whether they start/finish where the Climber's Trail crosses Hwy 372, or at the TH, which adds about 200m in each direction. King's RT FKT was from the TH. McKay's ascent was from the highway, but Mendoza does not indicate his starting point.

David Mitchell reports below some fast times by females on this route, which he found on Strava. The fastest is Sarah Keyes ascent in about 2h10m & round trip in 3h42m01s on September 22, 2015. This seems to be starting & finishing (approximately) at the TH. These Strava times have to be considered approximate.

The Five Peaks Traverse summits the Three Sisters plus Mt. Bachelor and Broken Top.

[Burrito]

I saw on Strava that there are two guys who ascended in 1:15 and change. Is that verified? If so, beating King and Bak by ten minutes in 2011 when both were in great shape is something to put on a grave stone.

[Dan Kraft]

www.strava.com/segments/5886656

here is the strava segment for the ascent. From what Cricket told me, Mario Mendoza, also of Bend, beat his time of 1:22 with a 1:21 last September.

[snot]

Does this route start at the highway or Devil's Lake trailhead?

[snot]

So, I put in my fastest time on South Sister this morning, and I can't really seem to figure out the actual FKT on this route.  I ran a 2:21 round trip from the Highway, with a slowish 1:32 to the summit.  Here's my Strava info.  Any info would be helpful.


www.strava.com/activities/676926730

[snot]

As much as I would like to claim this FKT, I couldn't do so without doing some further research.  As it turns out, Max King put in a blazing round trip time of 2:10:13 on August 9, 2015.  There doesn't seem to be much interest in round trip times as opposed to ascents, but I'm more infatuated with former.  That's probably because I'm a slow climber, and because my main goal in wilderness travel revolves around getting home reasonably unscathed and eating food.  At any rate, the following are the fastest times I could find with GPS data on the South Sister round trip route.

1. Max King - 2:10:13 - 8/9/15
2. David Mitchell (me) - 2:22:06 - 8/15/16
3. Mitch Thompson - 2:34:XX - 8/6/16
4. Tyler Green - 2:41:13 - 7/23/16
5. Max King and Ryan Bak - 2:41:XX - 10/XX/11

Rick Floyd also put in an impressive effort on 7/19/15, but didn't seem to tag the summit.

There might be some other quick times that I haven't located.  I'll work on putting together list of female times, as that interests me as well.

[snot]

And for the ladies:

1. Sarah Keyes - 3:42:01 - 9/22/15 (Likely fastest ascent ~ 2:10)
2. Alexis Gibbons - 3:48:23 - 7/17/16
3. Taryn Hand - 4:07:10 - 10/17/12 (Ascent 2:12:39)
4. Amy Sproston - 4:08:32 - 7/24/16
5. Corie Townsend - 4:19:51 8/15/15
6. Rhonda Sundermeier - 4:23:14 - 8/4/13

These are the fastest times I could find while sorting through GPS data on Strava.  There doesn't seem to be much info elsewhere on the internet.  Other, and faster, times may exist.  The route and data is a bit convoluted, however.  Some choose to start their run at the Devil's Lake TH, some at the highway, and some at the permit box 100 feet down from the highway.  Since Max King ripped this route apart from Devil's Lake, I think all future attempts should start/finish from the permit box at that trailhead.  Many run the trail around the summit crater to gain the highest point, and many run, if frozen and runnable, across the lake at the top to reach the summit.  The lake run, in the right conditions, subtracts mileage and is faster.  I think the summit route choice is a matter of personal preference and comfort.  

It's a great route, and I would love to see more efforts put into round trip attempts rather than simply ascents.  There is no better feeling than flying down a volcano at mach 40 while smiling at folks grunting their way up this beast.

[snot]

On 9/17/16, Alexis Gibbons managed to surpass the known female round trip and ascent times on South Sister. She put up a 3:14:24 round trip from the trailhead, 3:10:55 from the road, and a 2:07 to the summit from the TH. I ran the route with her on this windy September day, and, I'm happy to say, she only nearly bulldozed a couple of hikers on the way down. It was quite crowded. 

www.strava.com/activities/715682767