Father and Son Team Beat the Odds

At the Boston Marathon in April, father and son team Dick and Rick Hoyt will complete their 1,000th race – a considerable feat given the challenges Rick faces. He was diagnosed with spastic quadriplegia, a severe form of cerebral palsy that has left him confined to a wheelchair and unable to speak.

A Significant Decision
During birth, Rick suffered oxygen deprivation due to a prolapsed umbilical cord (when the cord is wrapped around the neck). Specialists told Rick’s parents that his situation was hopeless and that “he should be institutionalized.”

Dick and Jane Hoyt chose instead to raise their son at home with their other two children, a choice that had significant results. Rick graduated from high school and went on to earn a degree in special education from Boston University.

Wanting to Make a Difference
In 1977, Rick heard about a 5-mile race to raise funds for a local athlete who became paraplegic after a car accident. He wanted to prove to the athlete that life goes on after disability, so his father pushed him the five miles in a standard wheel chair and that was the beginning of Team Hoyt.

The father and son team have competed continuously since, though they now use a more streamlined wheelchair. In triathlons, Rick sits in a seat above the front wheel of the bike and in a dingy behind his father, who pulls him while swimming.

To learn more about the duo, visit their website at TeamHoyt.com