By Nancy T. Lu/ Taiwan news, Staff Writer

While as many as 5,000 visitors a day take the fast and easy way up, using the elevator, champion runners Paul Crake and Andrea Mayr headed for the top differently - literally relying only on stamina and legwork to establish records for Taipei 101. Crake, an Australian, took 10 minutes and 29 seconds and Mayr, an Austrian, needed 12 minutes and 38 seconds to climb the 2,416 steps to the finishing line on the 91st floor during an exciting run-up race in November 2005. The height reached was 390 meters. Both winners were record-holding champions of the Empire State Building race in New York.

Alain Robert, dubbed the French Spiderman, saw in Taipei 101 a new challenge after his success in clawing his way up the heights of the Empire State Building, the Petronas Twin Towers, the Chicago Sears Tower, and the National Bank of Abu Dhabi. In fact, he chose to scale the exterior wall of Taipei 101, which features auspicious ancient coin, "ju i" (as you wish) scepter, and gold ingot decorative motifs, on Christmas Day in 2004. For the ambitious Taipei 101 project, architect C.Y. Lee has tried to bring together elements of Chinese good fortune, harmony, and nature. The number eight, ever associated with prosperity, figures prominently in the construction's physical facade. Every eighth floor from a certain level, for example, opens onto a balcony. Frenchman Robert's daredevil solo climbing act put Taipei 101 in the world news spotlight. He wanted to climb only with his bare hands, but the management of Taipei 101 insisted on a safety rope for such a spectacular but dangerous feat. Robert successfully picked up the flag at the top of the building after three hours of hard work and showmanship.

Photo courtesy of Taipei 101