We remember back in 2008 when we were on our way to our first Warrior Dash. We really had no idea what to expect since obstacle course racing wasn’t really a thing in the US at that point. We weren’t sure how to explain it our family and friends. Fortunately, it was only $35 or so, so you wouldn’t feel too bad telling people who you were paying to run through mud and fire.
Fast forward nearly a decade and everyone is on the lookout for new competition. Everything that involves competition, with either yourself or others, is becoming increasingly more popular, especially in the world of fitness and athletics. Obstacle course racing is a hundred-million dollar per year industry. CrossFit has a national level competition to bring their top athletes into a professional sports stadium for their apex event. Even triathlon is becoming more mainstream as far from elite athletes are willing to shell out ten-thousand dollars on a top bike to compete at their highest level. Still, our attention span can be lacking and as everyone gets bored with the same old thrill, the question is… what is the next big thing?
Now, I’m not going to be so bold to claim that Stair Climbs are going to be anywhere near that level, but they’ll certainly become more popular than they are now. The Los Angeles YMCA has hosted their annual Stair Climb in the US Bank Tower, which is the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, for the past seven years or so. We’ve been fortunate enough to compete in it the last three years, but we really only went for it this year. What do we mean by that?
