Salt Lake's Kipp Sorensen and Aja Kayser had agreed to get married. But she wanted a spectacular proposal.

"It better be good," she told him.

Judging by the crowd's reaction, it was perhaps one of the most memorable highlights of the Wasatch Back Relay finale Saturday afternoon. Sorensen got down on his knee several yards from the finish line at Quinn's Recreation Complex. His two young sons joined Kayser's 4-year-old boy to hold three separate signs: "Mom Will . . . you marry . . . my Dad?"

She said yes, of course.

It was a day of triumphs for more than 7,000 participants - broken down into 12-member teams - in the fifth annual race that started early Friday in Logan and ended 178 miles later in Park City. BYU Cross Country finished with the best overall time, 17 hours, 19 minutes, 34.8 seconds - a time that helped Brigham Young get over last year's mishap, when one runner went the wrong direction and Weber State took the win.

Team Lehi-Flash wasn't chasing such a speedy goal, but Sorensen wanted to make two days of running in triple-digit heat - as well as darkness - unforgettable.

"We already had plans of getting married," he said. "I just had a hard time figuring out the best way to propose."

He thought about taking her skydiving, but revealed after his true proposal that he was "too chicken to jump out of a plane."

"Oh, is that why?" Kayser said.

He also thought about asking a police officer friend to arrest her in a traffic stop, only to have Sorensen surprise her by asking for her hand in marriage. But that idea fell through.

After forming Team Lehi-Flash with work associates and friends, he revealed his secret proposal plan.

Were Kayser's great expectations fulfilled?

After being congratulated by a spectator, she said, "Isn't my husband cute?"

Guess he passed the test.

csun@sltrib.com