SkyRise Chicago, etc.

On November 4, I participated in SkyRise Chicago, a race up the 2109 stairs of the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower, to the 103rd floor SkyDeck. As the tallest tower race on the planet (and more than 3x taller than the Frost climb I did in May), it is a brutal, lung-searing affair. I probably could have done it quicker, but my time of 19:47 was within the range of what I expected. The sub-14 minute time of the winner seems absolutely superhuman by comparison. As a result of this experience, I might be hooked on tower running, as if I needed another hobby sport.
Also, to piggyback on this post with some things I've done since that don't quite merit posts of their own, the subsequent weekend I did part of the Tour das Hugel, a 100+ mile ride of the steepest hills in Austin; then on Sunday raced in the Daisy 5k.