Several members from the Olds Fire Department will be climbing the stairs of the Bow building in Calgary this Sunday to fundraise for Wellspring Calgary, a non-profit organization that supports people living with cancer.
The Bow building is the tallest building in Western Canada and the highest elevation firefighter stair climb in the world. The trek will take 1,204 steps, measuring at 775 vertical feet.
And the firefighters will be doing it in full gear.
"Between your pack and your full gear and your BA (breathing apparatus) stuff, we're looking at about 50 to 70 pounds," said firefighter Casey Bateman.
Bateman is on one of two teams Olds will send to the stair climb. Team OFD includes him, Will Nel and Cody Maetche. Team Olds Fire includes Jarett Boutwell, Noel D'arcy, Sara Durocher and Ciaran Boggan.
To prepare for the climb, they've been training on a machine Bateman describes as a "ladder treadmill." They've climbed as high as 1,000 vertical feet on it, he said.
"Go a little bit further so you're ready for the real thing. Hopefully it's a little bit easier," he said. "It's definitely going to be a 'Tortoise and the Hare' kind of race."
As well, they've also climbed stairs out in public in Calgary wearing full gear, he said.
This is the second annual Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge, hosted by the Calgary Firefighters Benevolent Society. About 500 firefighters are expected to participate.
Bateman said the fastest climb was by a Calgary firefighter at about 11 minutes and 30 seconds. He considers 15 to 20 minutes a good performance. For more information or to donate, visit www.calgarystairclimb.com. For the Olds Fire Department teams, search "Olds Fire" or "OFD."
