Fight For Air Climb - Climb the Carew - Run


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Cincinnati, Ohio
United States
American Lung Association
 		Total Time = 07m
Overall Rank = 14/489
Age Group = M19-39
Age Group Rank = 5/104
Pre-race routine:

I've had my eye on this race for a long time and this was the year the stars finally aligned and I was able to do it. It's a pretty awesome concept, climb the 45 stories (804 steps) in the Carew Tower in Cincinnati as fast as you can. I didn't do much stair specific training for this race other than run up the stairs in my house 10-15 times in a row in the middle of a treadmill run a few times.

I arrived about an hour before the race and ran into an old friend from graduate school who had just finished her fourth time running this race (start times are staggered over 3 hours to avoid congestion in the stairwell). One of the cool things about this race is you have access to the gym in the basement of the Carew including the nice locker room so I headed there to get ready (Yay! No Gear Check!)
Event warmup:

I hopped on the treadmill and did a two mile warmup at an easy pace. A few minutes later I was standing in line ready to rock.
Run
  • 07m
  • 0.21 miles
  • 33m 20s  min/mile
Comments:

I had decided to take the steps two at a time and I pretty much stuck to the plan the entire race. I was unprepared at how short the flights were and how many times you had to turn in the stairwell as you went up the short flights. I actually got a bit dizzy early on. The first 20 stories went pretty smoothly, but my quads started to scream after that. I made it to the halfway point in about 3 minutes but I definitely slowed down. I hit some traffic on the stairs for the last three flights and instead of trying to barrel through I just sort of walked up behind the group.
What would you do differently?:

Run the last 3 flights instead of just walking it in behind that group... would have broken 7.
Post race
Warm down:

It sucked standing in one place waiting for the elevator ride down and in the elevator. On my way back to the gym my legs felt really out of sorts on the stairs so I got back on the treadmill, did another mile and a half, and then stretched. After that everything felt great so I hit the shower and headed to nada for a well deserved Goetta Eggs Benedict.

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of stair training. Congestion in the stairwell near the finish.

Event comments:

This race was a great time. I love the concept of running up a skyscraper and the facilities they had to help you get warmed up were awesome. Also, pristine post-race shower facilities are something I wish I could have at every race! I might try the Vertical Mile (ten times up. ten times down) at some point.




Last updated: 2015-02-15 12:00 AM
Running
00:07:00 | 00.21 miles | 33m 20s  min/mile
Age Group: 5/104
Overall: 14/489
Performance: Good
Course: The Carew Tower's 45 floors (a total of 804 steps).
Keeping cool Good Drinking Just right
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Good
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 5
Good race? Yes
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Good
Race evaluation [1-5] 5