Conquer the Overlook 2018 (Race Recap)

What?! A Race?! Less than two weeks after LASIK surgery?

Yup, it’s true. But I didn’t defy any doctors’ orders. I was told I

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Break? What Break? I Just Did the Lemon Climb Denver! (Race Recap)

On Saturday, my sister Sarah and I competed in The Lemon Climb Denver, a 43-story stair race to the top of a tall Colorado skyscraper.

You: Really? A stair race? I thought you were taking a break!

Me: I am taking a break. But the break, while necessary, was a spontaneous decision, and I had registered for this race months ago, accepted money from

One Morning. Two Separate Stair Races. My First Triumphant Double Header! (2017 SkyRise Chicago and Chicago CF Climb Race Recaps)

There are many reasons why I love competing in stair races, but the very first thing that hooked me was the overwhelming feeling that comes after I cross a finish line – a one-of-a-kind swirl of pride, accomplishment, invincibility, pain and exhaustion. Prior to my involvement in this sport, I had never felt it before, and now I can’t get enough of it. This picture, taken moments after crossing a finish line on Saturday, is the closest I’ve come to capturing that feeling:

Now, when I look at it, I can see every component of that feeling pretty clearly:

My Fifth Race Up the Tallest Stairwell in the West! (Stair Climb for Los Angeles Race Recap)

Last weekend was the Stair Climb for Los Angeles, the Downtown-Ketchum YMCA’s annual race up the stairwell in the 75-story US Bank Tower, from the sidewalk to the tallest roof in Los Angeles!

This was my fifth consecutive year competing, and while I was excited to attempt a new personal best, I didn’t have

Stairs + Obstacle Course = A Unique and Rewarding Race Experience! (Tower 2 Tower Race Recap)

I had a nice six-week hiatus from racing, but on Saturday I pinned a bib to my chest and a timing chip to my shoe, and participated in Tower 2 Tower, a fun and different stair race in Oxnard, California. This race is special because it’s the only race I’ve done that involves stairwells in two separate buildings. The race begins with a climb up the 14-story City National Bank Building…

…and ends with a

A New Workout in an Old Location. No, Wait, Make That TWO Old Locations!

I can’t believe it took me 15 years of living in Los Angeles before I checked out Ferndell. Shameful! Ferndell is a lovely 1/2-mile trail in Griffith Park that follows a meandering stream through a lush and green forest that seems downright out-of-place in a desert city like Los Angeles.

I’ve known that Ferndell was there. I even knew where it was. The trailhead is off a major street, Los Feliz Boulevard, that I’ve

My Kinda Sorta Olympic Debut! (2016 Los Angeles CF Climb Race Recap)

I competed in my 16th and final race of 2016 on Saturday, and the setting was a truly spectacular venue.

Yes, it’s a stadium. Yes, it’s a big one! (It holds 93,000.) And YES, it has hosted the Olympic Games TWICE. It’s the