Indianapolis Monumental Marathon logoNovember 5th, 2016
MONUMENTAL STORIES
DETERMINATION: FROM ZERO TO 13.1
January 14, 2015
by Allyson Collins
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I have gone back and forth several times as to whether my story was worth sharing or not. There are so many people with so many incredible stories and mine is really just one of many. If my story inspires one person, then it is worth taking the time to write, so here it goes.
Allyson Collins September 5, 2010 is a day that I will never forget. It was our first day in Tennessee for our annual motorcycle trip to the Tale of the Dragon. We were less than a mile from our campground when an RV came across my lane on a blind curve. I had nowhere to escape and we collided. I remember lying on the ground, looking at my beautiful bike, not understanding why I felt so hot and couldn’t move. It turned out that the RV had run over my lower left leg and my back, hips, pelvis and right ankle were broken. The exhaust from his idling RV was why I had been so hot.
A groggy couple of days passed and I finally awoke to learn what had happened. I told my family right then that I would get back on a motorcycle again. I had never been a runner before, so that wasn’t even a thought. They didn’t tell me that the doctors weren’t sure yet whether I’d walk again. I spent thirty days in the hospital and 10 days in rehab and roughly three and a half months of outpatient therapy. I decided to go back to work 4 months later – two months earlier than anyone thought.
Allyson Collins broken leg I tried several times that following year to get back into my workout routine, lifting weights, cycling, etc. I was pushing myself too hard and would get knocked back down and give up working out for a while. I finally hired a personal trainer who helped me get back to a normal routine.
Fast forward to 2014 and working with a new company that encourages healthy choices. They decided to join the Monumental Challenge as part of the Apex Monumental Challenge – by the way, we won in our division this year and placed second overall! I thought that signing up for the Monumental half would be a challenge to work up to and give me a reason to start running. My first run was the Monumental Mile. I made myself run the entire mile and was thrilled that I made it! My husband thought I was hurt when he saw me crying at the finish line!
Allyson Collins at the IMM Finally November 1st came. If you were there I don’t need to describe the weather. You know how cold it was. The race could not start fast enough for me. But it did start and despite everything that happened over the last year I was on my way! Three miles in I knew my goal time was not reasonable. I threw everything out but finishing.
I was crying and smiling as I ran through the finish line at 2:54:31. I thought it would take me well over three hours to finish. I couldn’t be more proud of myself for being determined and actually running (most of) my first half marathon.
Indianapolis Monumental Marathon
First half, but not the last
Indianapolis Monumental Marathon
This race is known for its flat track and it really is incredibly flat, which is great for keeping a fast pace. I think it is a great race for … MORE
This race is known for its flat track and it really is incredibly flat, which is great for keeping a fast pace. I think it is a great race for beginners. I ran it again in 2015, both years on my company team. I don’t know about running it in the future because it is typically pretty cold, with the race always being the first Saturday in November. I would say that’s the only drawback to that race and likely makes a lot of people shy away from entering.