If you are looking to get humbled both mentally and physically, the Air Up challenge is the one for you. At first you think 4000ft, that’s not even a mile, should be easy. 4000ft is a whole different ball game when you are fighting gravity. I rallied my friends and we decided to take on Mount St. Helens over 4500ft from bottom to summit, not to mention the last mile is pure volcanic ash. We loaded our packs with carbs, water, and electrolytes then started our climb before sunrise. A few hours later we were looking down into a hot and smokey volcano that blew open just 46 years ago. There’s nothing else that makes you feel more alive than spending all day hauling ass up the side of a volcano just to make it to the top and do it in reverse the rest of the afternoon. But as Matt and James always preach, it’s about getting uncomfortable and I am looking forward to knocking out the other challenges that push me past my limits similar to this one.