Heroes of Hope: Dick and Rick Hoyt
Monday, July 15, 2013 at 7:33PM
Dick and Rick Hoyt (Photo Credit: TeamHoyt.com)The Story:
Rick Hoyt was born in 1962 to his parents Dick and Judy. Due to complications during his birth, Rick’s brain was deprived of oxygen and he became a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. According to one medical specialist, Rick should be sent to an institution since he would never lead a “normal” life in society. Dick and Judy refused to believe this. The way that Rick’s eyes would follow them around, they knew that there was an intelligent person hidden by his inability to walk or speak. Dick and Judy treated Rick just like any other child; they took him sledding and swimming, taught him the alphabet, and fought administrators to accept him into the public school system. When Rick was 10, a team of engineers at Tufts University built him a specialized computer that allowed him tap a head piece to choose a letter and carefully spell out his words. With his new ability to communicate, Dick and Judy’s belief in their son’s intelligence was confirmed.
The Inspiration:
Dick and Rick Competing in their First Boston Marathon in 1981 (Photo Credit: TeamHoyt.com)In the Spring of 1977, when Rick was only 15, he told his father that he wanted to participate in a 5-mile run to benefit a college student recently paralyzed in a lacrosse match. Through the Race for Doogie, Rick wanted to prove that life goes on after a disability. With Rick secured in a rudimentary wheelchair, Dick pushed his son all 5-miles to complete the race. Although they finished second to last, their accomplishment was life changing; as Rick carefully typed out, “Dad, when I am running, I don’t even feel like I am handicapped.” So began the journey of Team Hoyt.
Now, nearly four decades later, Team Hoyt has completed over 1,100 races including not only 5Ks and 10Ks, but also half marathons, marathons, triathlons, and Ironmans. In 1992, Rick and Dick biked and ran 3,770 miles across the U.S. in only 45 days. Together, they have given hope to those living with disabilities and have inspired millions of people across the world.
Neither Rick, now 51, nor Dick, now 73, show signs of slowing down. In fact, according to Rick, “Stopping now is not an option, I’m not ready to throw in the towel and I pray to God every day that Dad is not ready either. Birds are free to fly anywhere they want at anytime, which is how I feel when we race. There are so many people who want to see us out there. I love the spotlight…I have shown disabled people that they don’t have to sit back and watch the world go by…To this day, I don’t know what kind of vegetable I’m supposed to be.”
Learn More:
To learn more about Team Hoyt and the Hoyt Foundation, check out the video below to see them in action and browse these links.
Gary Smith, Sports Illustrated Vault: “The Wheels of Life.”
Also, for even more, check out these books:
“One Letter at a Time,” by Rick Hoyt with Todd Civin
“Devoted—The Story of a Father’s Love for his Son,” by Dick Hoyt with Don Yaeger