Got2Swim 4 Miles for Colin’s Hope
by Alissa Magrum
Contributor
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Through Got2Swim 4 Miles, Austin’s first-ever community-sponsored 4-mile swim, founder Alissa Magrum is attempting to raise $10,000 and awareness for local water safety and drowning prevention non-profit Colin’s Hope.
Read this fascinating first-person account of how, in the midst of her own recovery, an injured Austin athlete was able to use fitness to fundraise, while finding passion and strength to give back.
“Today is the best day ever!” Without a doubt, the furthest thing from my mind when my MRI results showed a significant tear in my left hip. This meant surgery was imminent and I’d be sidelined from running for an undetermined period.
I remember my doctor saying to me, “Magrum, don’t even ask when you can run. Just plan on spending a lot of time in the water this summer and forget about racing the trail series or the tri season.” Certainly not what I wanted to hear.
So, I crammed in one last trail run on March 28th and had surgery the following morning. I was lying on the couch for about four hours post-surgery when it hit me. I remembered what my doctor had said: “Spend a lot of time in the water. Just pick yourself up and focus on what you can actually do.” Well, If I was going to be swimming for awhile, then I needed a training goal!
I thought back to about a year ago when J.B. Hager accomplished an amazing feat, swimming 4.1 miles from Lake Austin’s 360 Bridge to the Tom Miller Dam. That seemed like a pretty tough challenge. I’m sure I could do it, too.
The furthest I’d ever swam previously was 1.2 miles in a half-Ironman, which seemed more or less irrelevant given my situation. I saw a light at the end of the rehab tunnel. I could train all summer and all I had to do was just jump in the water and swim. This was an opportunity to rest my legs, change up my training routine and improve my swimming. The hip would heal faster and I’d be back on the bike and running in no time. Instantly a fresh mindset and new determination set in.
So the next step was to start planning my swim. If I was going to endure four grueling miles, I needed to focus on a goal loftier than my own rehab, larger than myself. Immediately, Colin’s Hope came to mind.
Colin’s Hope was started two years ago after 4-year-old Austinite Colin Holst drowned in a public pool. He and my daughter, Ella, went to the same preschool and his drowning happened just two weeks after my 7-year-old nephew, Zachary, died unexpectedly. In fact, I’d been volunteering with Colin’s Hope during the last year to process my grief surrounding my nephew’s death.
Now that I’d settled on the distance and the beneficiary, the fundraising goal and the date of the swim were next. $10,000 for Colin’s Hope seemed like a solid objective and I knew I wanted to make an impression before everyone headed to the lakes and pools for one last summer weekend of swimming. So, I chose Thursday, September 2nd as the date of the swim, just before Labor Day weekend. Little did I know how meaningful and significant this date really was.
In pure Alissa style, I began telling people about “my swim” and of course they wanted to swim, too (including Colin’s Aunt Karen). What began as a solo journey back from injury quickly turned into “an event.” Suddenly sponsors wanted to help and even more swimmers were coming out of the woodwork. I had to cap the swim at 25, so each could have a personal kayak “water guardian” to support them. We quickly became a team of 25 swimmers and all the logistics that went with it — 25 kayakers, several stand-up paddle boarders, a medical team and a few boats.
Before we knew it, we were swimming in Barton Springs at 6 a.m. two times a week. We were doing long training swims in Lake Travis and Lake Austin. We were eating a lot of Clif Bloks and post-swim Maudie’s breakfast tacos. We were blogging and Twittering and Facebooking about our swims. Most of all, we were raising money for Colin’s Hope. We were now a community of swimmers connected by this 4-mile swim…and I was not even missing running…okay, not very much.
Team Got2Swim gathered for dinner at Jason’s Deli in early June. I invited Jeff Holst (Colin’s Dad) to talk to us about his son, the non-profit he founded and its mission. He told us that drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury-related death in children under age 4 and that drowning can occur even if you know how to swim. He said that drowning is quick and silent and that children who drown do not scream, splash or struggle. He thanked us for swimming for Colin’s Hope and then told us that the day we would swim (Sept. 2nd) was Colin’s birthday. He would have been 7 years old had he not drowned.
After hearing this, I was even more motivated to make a difference with the swim. And I knew if I wanted to have any chance of raising $10,000, I needed to get creative. I started selling advertising space on my body for donations of $500 and up.
What began as my personal, physical and charitable goal has now truly become a team effort. At 9 a.m. on Colin’s birthday — Thursday, Sept. 2 — Team Got2Swim will get into Lake Austin at the 360 Bridge and swim towards the Tom Miller Dam. We need all the support we can get, so if you’re reading this, we hope you’ll come out on your lunch break and cheer us on at the finish. There will be a huge party on the roof at Abel’s on the Lake, so come join in the fun. And if you can’t make it to the swim, you can always show your support by making a donation of any amount at www.colinshope.org/got2swim.
In the words of Colin Holst (and what has now become our team mantra), “it will be the best day ever!”
List of Sponsors
TYR, Got2Give, The Expedition School, Clif Bar, Fox 7 News, Austin Fit Magazine, Lauren Lesley Photography, Austin Sports Therapy, Jack & Adam’s Bicycles, 1379, Elite Fitness, Sports Center Physical Therapy, Zico Coconut Water, Fusion Church, Capitol Pain Institute, Train 4 the Game, Abel’s on the Lake and Jason’s Deli. In fact, Magrum’s hip surgeon, Dr. Heinrich from Orthopaedic Specialists of Austin, sponsored an ad on the hip he fixed!
Event Details
When: Thursday, Sept. 2nd at 9 a.m.
Start: 360 Bridge on Lake Austin
Finish: Abel’s on the Lake
More Information
For more information about Colin’s Hope, to make a donation or to commit to being a “water guardian” yourself (a pledge that you will not be distracted when around water with children), visit
www.colinshope.org/got2swim.
Read this fascinating first-person account of how, in the midst of her own recovery, an injured Austin athlete was able to use fitness to fundraise, while finding passion and strength to give back.
“Today is the best day ever!” Without a doubt, the furthest thing from my mind when my MRI results showed a significant tear in my left hip. This meant surgery was imminent and I’d be sidelined from running for an undetermined period.
I remember my doctor saying to me, “Magrum, don’t even ask when you can run. Just plan on spending a lot of time in the water this summer and forget about racing the trail series or the tri season.” Certainly not what I wanted to hear.
So, I crammed in one last trail run on March 28th and had surgery the following morning. I was lying on the couch for about four hours post-surgery when it hit me. I remembered what my doctor had said: “Spend a lot of time in the water. Just pick yourself up and focus on what you can actually do.” Well, If I was going to be swimming for awhile, then I needed a training goal!
I thought back to about a year ago when J.B. Hager accomplished an amazing feat, swimming 4.1 miles from Lake Austin’s 360 Bridge to the Tom Miller Dam. That seemed like a pretty tough challenge. I’m sure I could do it, too.
The furthest I’d ever swam previously was 1.2 miles in a half-Ironman, which seemed more or less irrelevant given my situation. I saw a light at the end of the rehab tunnel. I could train all summer and all I had to do was just jump in the water and swim. This was an opportunity to rest my legs, change up my training routine and improve my swimming. The hip would heal faster and I’d be back on the bike and running in no time. Instantly a fresh mindset and new determination set in.
So the next step was to start planning my swim. If I was going to endure four grueling miles, I needed to focus on a goal loftier than my own rehab, larger than myself. Immediately, Colin’s Hope came to mind.
Colin’s Hope was started two years ago after 4-year-old Austinite Colin Holst drowned in a public pool. He and my daughter, Ella, went to the same preschool and his drowning happened just two weeks after my 7-year-old nephew, Zachary, died unexpectedly. In fact, I’d been volunteering with Colin’s Hope during the last year to process my grief surrounding my nephew’s death.
Now that I’d settled on the distance and the beneficiary, the fundraising goal and the date of the swim were next. $10,000 for Colin’s Hope seemed like a solid objective and I knew I wanted to make an impression before everyone headed to the lakes and pools for one last summer weekend of swimming. So, I chose Thursday, September 2nd as the date of the swim, just before Labor Day weekend. Little did I know how meaningful and significant this date really was.
In pure Alissa style, I began telling people about “my swim” and of course they wanted to swim, too (including Colin’s Aunt Karen). What began as a solo journey back from injury quickly turned into “an event.” Suddenly sponsors wanted to help and even more swimmers were coming out of the woodwork. I had to cap the swim at 25, so each could have a personal kayak “water guardian” to support them. We quickly became a team of 25 swimmers and all the logistics that went with it — 25 kayakers, several stand-up paddle boarders, a medical team and a few boats.
Before we knew it, we were swimming in Barton Springs at 6 a.m. two times a week. We were doing long training swims in Lake Travis and Lake Austin. We were eating a lot of Clif Bloks and post-swim Maudie’s breakfast tacos. We were blogging and Twittering and Facebooking about our swims. Most of all, we were raising money for Colin’s Hope. We were now a community of swimmers connected by this 4-mile swim…and I was not even missing running…okay, not very much.
Team Got2Swim gathered for dinner at Jason’s Deli in early June. I invited Jeff Holst (Colin’s Dad) to talk to us about his son, the non-profit he founded and its mission. He told us that drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury-related death in children under age 4 and that drowning can occur even if you know how to swim. He said that drowning is quick and silent and that children who drown do not scream, splash or struggle. He thanked us for swimming for Colin’s Hope and then told us that the day we would swim (Sept. 2nd) was Colin’s birthday. He would have been 7 years old had he not drowned.
After hearing this, I was even more motivated to make a difference with the swim. And I knew if I wanted to have any chance of raising $10,000, I needed to get creative. I started selling advertising space on my body for donations of $500 and up.
What began as my personal, physical and charitable goal has now truly become a team effort. At 9 a.m. on Colin’s birthday — Thursday, Sept. 2 — Team Got2Swim will get into Lake Austin at the 360 Bridge and swim towards the Tom Miller Dam. We need all the support we can get, so if you’re reading this, we hope you’ll come out on your lunch break and cheer us on at the finish. There will be a huge party on the roof at Abel’s on the Lake, so come join in the fun. And if you can’t make it to the swim, you can always show your support by making a donation of any amount at www.colinshope.org/got2swim.
In the words of Colin Holst (and what has now become our team mantra), “it will be the best day ever!”
List of Sponsors
TYR, Got2Give, The Expedition School, Clif Bar, Fox 7 News, Austin Fit Magazine, Lauren Lesley Photography, Austin Sports Therapy, Jack & Adam’s Bicycles, 1379, Elite Fitness, Sports Center Physical Therapy, Zico Coconut Water, Fusion Church, Capitol Pain Institute, Train 4 the Game, Abel’s on the Lake and Jason’s Deli. In fact, Magrum’s hip surgeon, Dr. Heinrich from Orthopaedic Specialists of Austin, sponsored an ad on the hip he fixed!
Event Details
When: Thursday, Sept. 2nd at 9 a.m.
Start: 360 Bridge on Lake Austin
Finish: Abel’s on the Lake
More Information
For more information about Colin’s Hope, to make a donation or to commit to being a “water guardian” yourself (a pledge that you will not be distracted when around water with children), visit
www.colinshope.org/got2swim.
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