Quite a climb

Yesterday Cory Parris (www.coryparris.com) and I went to the Columbia Tower in Downtown Seattle to photograph a spectacular event. Nearly 1,500 Firefighters from as far away as New Zealand and as close as Everett were there to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. It was an awesome event. Wearing 50 pounds of Fire Combat Gear including an oxygen tank, mask, huge pants and a coat they raced up to the 73rd floor of this mammoth building as fast as they could. On the 40th floor was an Oxygen Tank changing station. The first round of firefighters opted to skip the tank change and charged ahead to get the best possible time. Many climbed two stairs at a time and most that skipped the station were completely out of oxygen by the time they reached the finish. The alarm on their tanks were screaming. They swiped their arms over the card reader to indicate they had finished and collapsed into the arms of the waiting EMT's. The only word that comes to mind is INTENSE! Some were vomiting, some were delirious, others looked like they could have turned around and ran back down the stairs. All in all it made me feel as though I am in sad shape. I have two short flights of stairs in my house and it isn't uncommon for me to be winded going from my computer to the refrigerator. Some say that exercise would help with that, but I think it's a myth. The pics of Seattle and Qwest Field and Safeco field were shot from the 73rd floor of the building. What a view!