Runner2life Virtual Races : Motivational Video Kayla Montgomery History

0:00 [Music] March 14th 2014 the New Balance Indoor Track Nationals Tayla Montgomery there in gold is running the girls 5,000 m with her coach Patrick Cromwell looking on Kayla go around sub 1 you can do it Kayla is one of the best young distance runners in the country but that's not why we're telling your story for that you need to begin where the race [Music] ends help I got you I so hot my legs oh my God my legs where'

0:48 they go where' they go please please please help me please help me please help me by my leg help me growing up the older of Keith and Alicia Montgomery's two daughters Kayla hardly seemed destined to be an athlete as a little girl she was uh artsy and uh just loved to play by herself a lot dress up was her big thing she loved to color she loved to just play with her dolls or her teddy bears since Kayla was really really shy we

1:34 pushed her to do a lot of sports ultimately she loved soccer was very aggressive and would kind of get warnings from the refs occasionally but uh it it it was fun at 14 Caleb was playing on a select travel team in Winston Salem North Carolina and was about to begin her freshman year at Mount tabber High School when she first noticed something was wrong I'd fallen in a soccer game and um that evening I started to like notice a tingling sensation in my toes like Mom I can't feel my feet there's this weird shock going on I don't know what's up doctor visits an MR soon followed in October 2010 the doctor called with the

2:21 diagnosis and when he said that he when he said that Kayla had MS I um I honestly lost my breath it made me literally sick to my stomach multiple sclerosis or Ms is a disease where the body's immune system attacks its own nerve cells essentially the brain's communication with the spinal cord and other parts of the body short circuits there is no cure I was a home care Aid and I had multiple patients that had Ms so my knowledge of Ms was

3:07 not a pretty picture I mean it was Wheelchairs and hospital beds and paralysis and Tube feedings and it was not what I had pictured for my child I just cried a lot and um can't let anybody in my room I was just wanted to be alone and I was mad I was uh really mad I couldn't see why something like this would happen to me I I didn't I couldn't think of anything I've done wrong like why should I be punished why was this happening for eight agonizing months Kayla lacked all feeling in her legs with the help of medication slowly the feeling began to

3:52 return she had to give up soccer a contact sport and instead turned to running and to a coach who believed she could still compete even with Ms she said I want to run I want to run fast and I don't want you to hold back I told him I wasn't really guaranteed the next uh couple years of running and I wanted to make the most out of every day I could and I wanted somebody to hold me accountable what kind of Runner were you I was uh I was kind of the average at best I mean Varsity hopeful by her senior year that's the way I would label

4:37 her on your mark But Kayla's experience wall running defies any label what do you feel nothing it usually starts like in my toes and works its way up to my waist it just stays like that throughout the rest of the r race for Caleb as with many Ms patients he is a trigger that causes her symptoms to return temporarily as her body temperature rises during a run the feeling in her legs begins to deaden it's just a a very strange feeling um or lack thereof to know that your legs are moving but not be able to tell how fast or tell where or I guess

5:25 anything about you don't know what's going on you just know what's happening and no feeling often means no pain some people think it's an unfair advantage to not be able to feel my legs while I'm running but um I guess although I can't feel the pain in my legs I can feel all the other discomforts that accompany running 800 come and although I can't feel my legs I can't determine how fast I'm going so that's a major setback in running you have to be a little patient yourself with time Kayla learned to Pace herself and gradually that slow Runner grew faster first making

6:11 varsity then becoming its fastest member then training fulltime with the boys team then becoming one of the fastest girls in all of North Carolina the whole time she had one voice pushing her you got to get on the train go to the arms Kayla go to the arms he pushes her just the right amount and she responds go up to the front Put Your Shoulder on hers he's like a dad um a goofy dorky Dad good job kiddo photo bomb and he he pushes me and um I trust him with my life and nowhere is that

6:58 trust more evident than when kayb crosses the Finish Line because she has lost the sensation in her legs she's unable to come to a coordinated stop help me I got you oh my God I got you that was beautiful that was beautiful girl help me good job please that was beautiful please help me she needs help because she's somewhat helpess there for a few minutes please water water please I want to get cool fast as possible so I can feel my [Music] legs I try not to make a big scene but I think I do anyway and uh I I try to I guess get it over with as soon as

7:45 possible as time goes on I'll just get back up as her body temperature returns to normal her MS symptoms gradually subside the episode causes no permanent damage for Kayla this is the cost of competing and she's willing to pay it I got oh I got you oh my God I got you please I need okay I need got I need water so badly come on bud some please help me I got you right here they got water for you just need some water where's the ice please I need I I need give her a

8:32 Gatorade whatever it is I need everything I need to get cold I have a hard time watching it every time she she kind of crashes like that it just it's a reminder that she has m m are you boring it yep we're pouring it are you sure yep we got it you know what my want I don't know what it was but why do [Music] it because iidea because it it it makes me happy it it makes me feel normal and whole it's difficult to live with a disease where your own body is fighting against yourself um so when I'm running I feel like I'm battling that I feel like I'm I'm safe for myself as long as

9:20 I'm running everything's fine the final challenge came in May at the North Carolina state championships for outdoor track the final race of Kayla's High School career the last time she'd run with coach at the Finish Line I champ you've given me all you got for 4 years what happened I fell in the first lap about um a little over 100 m in hey y good job Kayla I guess I got squished then I fell backwards and I did like a little flip oh come on Fell I'm a f get back in it I kind of

10:10 chuckled to myself like this would happen like how ironic it was was also a little hard if you don't expect it then you're on the ground you have to get back up but everybody else is B ahead it's hard so hey you got to get up was catch back up with the group gradually worked her way up sat with the leaders brushed it off nothing ever happened I sat on a couple girls for about three laps and uh I wanted to I guess Pi up the pace what the hammer you got to go now Kor that is Montgomery going to the

10:58 lead as you come around the final turn what's going through you um well Bianca Bishop was in second place and she's got a really great kick and I knew it come on hold her off I I knew she was going to catch me if I didn't go that inside I just I gave him my all and I sprinted fastest I've ever sprinted in my whole life come on come on that is Kayla mcgomery of Mount Taber she will be your girl's 3200 met run champion again we'll take yeah yeah yeah got I crossed that line and I was so happy help me help me please please help

11:45 me I couldn't have asked for a better finish or a better end of my senior [Music] year in the final race of her High School career Kayla Montgomery finished fin the way she had so many times before into her coach's arms and in first place from M NE Montgomery to beat it to outrun it to know you got every movement on of those legs while you still can that's why she's running friends now okay I just hope to run as long as I can and to make the most out of it as long as I

12:32 can when or if I'm not able to run at some point down the road then at least I can look back and know that when I could I gave it my [Music] all