Empire State Building Facts

Although most visitors take the elevator to the 86th floor observatory, there is one opportunity every February to take the stairs. The Empire State Building Run-Up is an important event in the sport of tower running, which is exactly what it sounds like—running very fast up a man-made structure. Competitors in the Run-Up climb 1,576 steps, rising more than a thousand feet. The current women’s record for the event is held by Andrea Mayr, who made the climb in 11 minutes and 23 seconds, and the men’s record is held by Paul Crake, who got to the top in 9 minutes and 33 seconds. The 2017 event, held February 1, will be the event’s 40th anniversary.