From the Editor-in-Chief

In the twenty years we've been publishing Sophisticated Living, I've been fortunate to travel extensively with other journalists on assignments for magazines endowed with the kind of prestige allowing them to be referred to simply by their initials. As a green 29-year-old journalist, when I'd mention I was from Louisville, the most popular frames of reference were the Derby and, more often, Kentucky Fried Chicken. I could nearly hear the wheels turning in people's heads when they contrasted their preconceived stereotypes of Kentuckians with the fact that I was the editor and owner of a luxury magazine based in the Bluegrass.

Fast-forward to today and my how times have changed. While the Derby still ranks high, bourbon is now a very close second, with people asking about and sharing their preferred pours when I say I'm a Kentucky native. Back when Sophisticated Living was still getting started, there were around seven distilleries open to the public for tours; today, that number is creeping up to 100 and powering a multi-billion-dollar industry.

Kentucky's famous progeny arguably begins with Abraham Lincoln, born just outside Elizabethtown 17 years after Kentucky was granted statehood. While we've had plenty of homegrown standouts in the ensuing years: George Clooney, Jennifer Lawrence, Johnny Depp, Diane Sawyer, Jack Harlow, Wendell Berry, Hunter S. Thompson, Ned Beatty, Bob Edwards, Louis Brandeis, and Muhammad Ali, to name just a few, the list's makeup is pretty homogenous. Cat Runner, who recently added his name to Kentucky's famous folks' list by beating out ten contestants to win a $200k grand prize on the inaugural season of HBO's The Climb, aims to shake up the list as a transgender male athlete. You can read about his ascent starting on page 78.

Finally, it's that time of year when I ask for your support of the American Lung Association's Fight for Air Climb on Sunday, March 26th, at Lynn Family Stadium (climblouisville.org). Offering options for people of all fitness levels, you can learn more about the event and how to register on page 30.

Several months ago, I boldly proclaimed that I would mark my 50th trip around the sun and the 10th anniversary of The Climb by tackling 50 laps of the stadium stairs. Doing so would allow me to give back to one of my favorite charities while serving as a stand-in for what I'd long wanted to do on this big birthday—summit Mt. Everest—something that's all but impossible given my propensity for extreme altitude sickness and the desire not to lose bits of my extremities to frostbite. Tackling the 1,228-stair lap 50 times is roughly equal to 16 vertical miles, three-and-a-half miles further than the distance from South Everest's Base Camp in Nepal to the summit.

While I've long been able to push my physical limits to the brink, one of the benefits of age is that you slowly learn to heed the smoke signals your body sends out before they become a four-alarm fire. As a result, my weekly practices at the Lynn Family Stadium for the past six months have been both humbling and empowering. While the solitary slogs have upped my stamina to tolerate three hours of non-stop climbing, it's a chasm from my current fitness to the 14 hours I estimate it would take to complete the challenge. I am many things, but a quitter is not one of them, so I will save face (and my joints!) by completing 50 laps as pledged over five days leading up to and on the day of the March 26th event.

At the root of this stunt is a genuine desire to raise funds and awareness for the vital work of the American Lung Association. I want to thank Donna Ramsey, Deena Adams, Patti Bailey, Dr. Sean Muldoon, and Kyle Hoylman for generously donating to my cause. Email me if you or your company would like to support my 50-lap quest with a tax-deductible contribution, and I'll forward the details.

I hope to see you on the stairs on March 26th!

Bridget Williams, Editor-In-Chief bridget@slmag.net