“Believe that your best athletic days are ahead of you.”
Hillary Allen
Hillary Allen
My career as an endurance athlete has not been straightforward. Through injury, setbacks and being told I would never run again, I’ve had to re-think what I consider impossible, as I continued to push myself, believing in my best athletic days ahead.
Early in my career, I earned the nickname “Hillygoat” for my love of the uphill and my ability to run fast on steep, technical mountain terrain – a style of running known as Skyrunning. I won the US SkyRunner Series in 2014 in my debut season and since then, I have raced all over the world, racking up wins and course records, establishing myself as one of the best mountain ultra runners in the world.
In 2017 I had a life threatening accident, where I fell 150 feet off of a ridge-line during a Skyrace in Tromsø, Norway. I broke a total of 14 bones and I was told I would never run again – let alone compete at the elite level. After several years of rehab and recovery, I made a full recovery and returned to elite level racing, running some of my longest and most challenging races post-accident.
I maintain the belief that ‘your best athletic days are ahead of you,’ if you’re willing to work hard for what you love and never give up on yourself.
I also am a scientist, I have a masters degree in neuroscience and physiology and structural biology, I’m a running coach, and a gravel cyclist.
I share my story of recovery both physically and mentally, and hard-earned knowledge that the path forward is not always linear. Out and Back is an inspiration to anyone who knows what it means to reclaim and rebuild your life, one day and one step at a time.