About the Team

The team of stair climbers who contribute to this site are some of the leading names in the sport of stair climbing in the USA. As amateur athletes, these climbers all maintain full-time jobs and are able to still succeed in this very demanding sport.

Terry Purcell

Terry is one of the most successful and long-standing climbers in the sport of stair climbing. His first climb was in 1993 in Sydney Australia, and from 1993-1998 was Australia's leading stairclimber - winning the prestigious Empire State Building RunUp in 1998 - considered the World Championship at the time. After moving to the USA - Terry dominated the sport in the Chicago from 2003-2011 - winning the 94 Floor Hustle Up the Hancock 9 times, Willis (Sears - 103 floors) Tower climb 3 times, and Step Up for Kids (Aon Center - 80 floors) 5 times. He has also raced in 6 different countries. After retiring from the sport in 2011 - Terry has dedicated his time to studying the most efficient climbing technique, training and racing approaches, mentoring other elite climbers, and assisting race directors to deliver a positive race experience to climbers. He re-emerged in 2017 and is again racing at the same level as when he left the sport.
Take a look at his secrets here (click on the word secret).
Outside of stair climbing, Terry is a leading authority in Database Search Technology for IBM mainframe computers and holds more than 25 US patents.
​Terry is powered by Kyani.

Eric Leninger

Eric began climbing in 2005 and is currently one of the leading elite stair climbers in Chicago - having won Chicago's Hustle up the Hancock 3 times, Step up for Kids 4 times and the Willis Tower climb once. He is the king of the multi-climbs - with 17 wins and race records across 7 different US races that range from 30-50 floors and include a "Power hour" or multi-climbs such at Chicagos' Oakbrook Terrace, Presidential Towers climbs, and also Indy's Bop to the Top.
Eric is powered by beer and pizza - and by kyani when he is @ full fitness.

John "Oz" Osborn

Oz began climbing in 2009 and has since traveled the US to climb. He's a regular top 3 finisher in most climbs - with several wins - most notably the 2017 Dallas Vertical Mile, Los Angeles' AON climb, the MET climb in St Louis and the Power Hour at the Bank of America tower in Jacksonville Florida. He is an ACE Certified Personal Trainer, certified SPINNING instructor, and Les Mills BODYPUMP certified instructor and is Head Trainer at Rocket Fitness in Rochester IL.
Oz is powered by Kyani - and beer and pizza over summer.