The Big Climb Results.

As the day of the Big Climb crept closer I started to worry that I was in over my head. It's one thing to walk up four flights of stairs when an elevator is out of service, but the notion of getting to the top of the tallest building in Seattle by stairs alone seemed more and more absurd. There was simply nothing in my past experience to prepare me. I didn't even have a feel for how long it would take. Despite these concerns, we met at the Columbia Tower and started the race just past 10:45 AM. (It's anyone's guess how Kevin and I ended up with the same start time.)

Racers are allowed through the starting gate in ten-second intervals to avoid congestion in the stairwell. The stairwell is small enough that you can grab the railings and make each flight in three big steps. The plan to pace myself was forgotten. I rushed up the first ten flights in an adrenaline panic. The twentieth flight saw my heart rate peak. I had to pull back and begin pacing. The rest of the flights were more of a climb than a race.

Kevin crossed the finish line in a stunning 15 minutes and 7 seconds. My time was a more modest 18 minutes and 24 seconds. I guess we've established what I need to beat next year. The distribution of finish times makes me feel a little guilty that I didn't push myself harder.