Ganesh

My WWF CN Tower Stair Climb And Fundraising Story

Hello,

My story with the WWF CN Tower Climb started 6 years ago in 2018, my Year 1, when I first heard about this climb and decided to make a go of it with a much younger acquaintance of mine.  We both had backgrounds in X Country and Track many, many years ago.  

While I diligently prepared over the course of 2 months with the stair master at the local gym, my younger acquaintance prepared with  cosmos, cheese, grapes, and late nights. Needless to say Cosmo won out in terms of handling the physical exertion on the body and time taken to do the climb! Cosmo almost broke the 20 minute barrier.  I finished a respectable, face saving 5 minutes behind.  Both of us won out  in terms of a good time,  the post-climb spa, the pizza and pints of beer or coffee celebrations, and the admiration of our friends. Funds raised by us $650.

The following year, Year 2,  saw me do a solo climb as my new recruits bailed last minute. Something about not being prepared and getting up at 5am on a cold Saturday spring morning.  Undaunted, and wanting to put my stair master training, and last year's climb experience to good use, I proceeded and managed to shave a substantial 2.5 minutes off my time! Success, and more admiration from friends. Funds raised $400.

Year 3 saw the arrival of the Covid-19 rascal. A moratorium was declared which lasted for 2 years. Fortunately, no pandas were affected nor lost to Covid!       

The "new" Year 3, April 2023, saw me return to the climb with three newbie climbers. Two were last minute no-shows.  The third turned out to be an avid Blue Jays fan. Tickets were purchased for the pre-climb night Jays game, which happened to be during the Jays historic ending of the Tampa Bay Rays opening win streak in the newly renovated night club style stadium. A little excitement turned into a night of revelry as almost 18,000 steps were walked, street hot dogs ravishly eaten, and probably the best beers in the world consumed.

Despite the lack of a good sleep, some tired legs and forgetting my gym shorts(!), the climb went relatively well and  I shaved another 35 seconds off my time!  My newbie climber friend, with a massive hang over and barely enough ability to get up, ended up finishing without puking in a healthy 31 minutes. Success! Followed by breakfast at the nearby, trendy Evviva's.  Funds raised $600.

Which brings me to this years climb on April 20, 2024.  My Year 4. Sadly, commitments from fellow climbers have already been broken. But new (younger) recruits are in place though. 

I will be climbing 1776 steps (72 floors) to the top of the CN Tower. I expect a new record time, closing in on the 21 minute mark. Total funds raised from all 4 climbs will be approaching $2k. 

A small donation would be highly appreciated and will go towards supporting WWF-Canada's activities to restore nature, reverse wildlife loss and support natural habitats in Canada. 

Thanks!  

Ganesh

Long Time Waterloo Resident