Monday, July 28, 2014

Team Colorado Welcomes Hillary "Hillygoat" Allen

Name: Hillary "Hillygoat" Allen

Age: 25

Hometown: Fort Collins, CO

Current residence: Lakewood, CO

Sponsors: Swiftwick, Hammer Nutrition

Personal Bests: Running my first 50 miler this year (2014)! Getting to train and do what I love is the accomplishment for me.

Notable Achievements: 2014 Salida Marathon, 1st woman, 3:45; 2014 Cheyenne mountain 50k, 1st woman, 4:27:29, CR; 2014 Bighorn 50 mile, 1st woman, 8:56:39, CR; 2014 Speedgoat 50k, 4th woman, 7:03.

Goals for 2014/2015 and beyond: Place top 5 in the Run the Rut 50k. Top 5 in the Moab trail marathon. Next year I plan to run another 50-mile race (perhaps quad rock, or san juan solstice). I want to plan a running trip to the pacific northwest, run rim 2 rim 2 rim and go to new Zealand or Iceland to run!

Favorite trails: Mount Morrison, beaver brooke trail, bear creek trail (into Ouray)

Favorite workout: 3-5 min uphill repeats

Favorite races: Salida marathon, Speedgoat 50k

Website/Blog: hillygoat.wordpress.com

Favorite beer: Rampant IPA, New Belgium Brewery

Why Trail/Mountain/Ultra Running? : Although this is only my second year of trail running, it feels like a part of my soul. The mountains have always been a source of inspiration. I spent most of my childhood camping in the mountains near Fort Collins, CO where I grew up. It wasn’t until after college that I started to trail run, I had the endurance (I played tennis in college) and I discovered quickly that uphill was my favorite. Pretty soon I was logging long hours on the trails, the short distances never seemed to be enough, I always wanted to explore more trails. I decided to see how I was at the ultra/mountain running. Turns out I’m hooked and my favorite part about it, is that every day I can enjoy the mountains and trails, but there’s always more to explore!

I’m a total goofball. I’m very expressive and have a hard time smiling for cameras, instead I make silly faces. I love to be outdoors and in the mountains, it’s where I feel most connected to myself and the world. I giggle a lot too, so watch out, cuz it’s contagious.