Photo: Cassandra Kerwin

And they’re off! Some 600 runners raced 19 kilometres through Quebec City in the annual Staircase Challenge. The race involved climbing up – and down – over 3,000 steps.

After a heavy rain the previous day, runners and walkers woke up to beautiful weather on June 16. At 7 a.m., the start/finish line at the Parc du Bois-de-Coulonge was buzzing with athletes of all ages and calibres. They were warming up for the 1lth Staircase Challenge presented by the Fonds de solidarité FTQ de Québec.