Bentley Fire Captain Stephen Lush (center), completed the Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge at Calgary's Brookfield Place on June 8, 2025. (Stephen Lush/provided)

By Jordan Rein

Stephen Lush

Bentley fire captain participates in Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge

Jun 11, 2025 | 1:39 PM

Bentley Fire Captain Stephen Lush has completed the herculean task of climbing all 57 floors and 1,370 stairs of Calgary’s Brookfield Place skyscraper, full firefighter gear included.

The Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge, now in its 11th year, raises money for Wellspring Alberta, an organization supporting firefighters and others battling cancer.

Lush says he was among around 400 firefighters from across Canada and beyond who took part this year, including one participant who flew in from Germany just for the event.

The fire captain, who’s also a vice principal at Bentley School, didn’t expect to be climbing Calgary’s tallest building when he signed up for the climb. But on event day, that’s exactly what he did.

“I actually thought we were climbing the Calgary Tower,” Lush said with a laugh. “It wasn’t until the day of that I realized it was Brookfield. It’s a bit higher.”

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At the foot of the 56-storey Brookfield Place, Calgary, AB. (Stephen Lush/provided)

Lush, who raised $850 in donations, said a fellow firefighter convinced him to do it because he didn’t want to do it alone. The 2025 event raised around $350,000 in total.

Climbing in full firefighter gear, including a 45-pound self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), Lush described the challenge as both physical and mental.

“The first 20 floors weren’t bad,” he said. “But by floor 30, that’s when you started fighting yourself mentally and physically.”

During the ascent, Lush says he thought about people who’ve battled cancer, people who’ve lost their battle, as well as heroic firefighters responding at the World Trade Centre towers on September 11, 2001.

“That pushes you through,” he added.

Bentley Fire Captain Stephen Lush says firefighters encouraged one another during the grueling ascent up Brookfield Place’s stairs. (Stephen Lush/provided)

Lush completed the climb in just over 24 minutes, pausing only briefly along the way to catch his breath. “It was sweaty and gross by the time we were done,” he said. “We were very happy to take the elevator for the ride down— but it was absolutely worth it.”

He adds, while it was a challenge for all, firefighters encouraged each other throughout the climb, sharing words of support and pacing together. Lush climbed alongside a firefighter from the Northwest Territories, both finishing around the same time.

The elevator ride in Brookfield Place. (Stephen Lush/provided)

Now back in Bentley, Lush says he’s already thinking about next year — with a goal of finishing in under 20 minutes.

“It’s a very worthwhile cause, and I’d challenge any firefighter that’s either volunteer or paid firefighter to take it up,” said Lush. “I like different challenges and I like to push myself, and this definitely was a tough challenge for sure.”

To learn about Wellspring and the Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge, click here.

(Stephen Lush/provided)