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- theplucker, on 10/12/2007, -7/+372Here is the whole story.
Strongest Dad in the World
[From Sports Illustrated, By Rick Reilly]
I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay
for their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots.
But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.
Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in
marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a
wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and
pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same
day.
Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back
mountain climbing. Makes taking your son bowling look a little lame,
right?
And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life.
This love story began in Winchester, Mass., 43 years ago, when Rick
was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him
brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs.
``He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;'' Dick says doctors told
him and his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. ``Put him in an
institution.''
But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes
followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the
engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was
anything to help the boy communicate. ``No way,'' Dick says he was
told. "There's nothing going on in his brain.''
"Tell him a joke,'' Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out
a lot was going on in his brain. Rigged up with a computer that allowed
him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his
head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? "Go Bruins!''
And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the
school organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, ``Dad, I want
to do that.''
Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described ``porker'' who never ran
more than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still,
he tried. "Then it was me who was handicapped,'' Dick says. "I was sore for
two weeks.''
That day changed Rick's life. ``Dad,'' he typed, ``when we were
running, it felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!''
And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving
Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly
shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.
"No way,'' Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite
a single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a
few years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then
they found a way to get into the race officially: In 1983 they ran
another marathon so fast they made the qualifying time for Boston the
following year.
Then somebody said, "Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?''
How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since
he was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still,
Dick tried.
Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour
Ironmans in Hawaii. It must be a buzzkill to be a 25-year-old stud
getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you
think?
Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? ``No way,'' he says.
Dick does it purely for ``the awesome feeling'' he gets seeing Rick
with a cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.
This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston
Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their
best time'? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world
record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens
to be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at
the time.
``No question about it,'' Rick types. ``My dad is the Father of the Century.''
And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had
a mild heart attack arteries was 95% clogged. ``If you hadn't been in
such great shape,'' one doctor told him, ``you probably would've died 15
years ago.''
So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.
Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in
Boston, and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland, Mass.,
always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and
compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this
Father's Day.
That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really
wants to give him is a gift he can never buy. `The thing I'd most like,''
Rick types, ``is that my dad sit in the chair and I push him once.'' - becominglumberg, on 10/12/2007, -4/+320I had to read it due to proxy at my work, but that story is the first time this grown man has cried in a year or two.
- dclowd9901, on 10/12/2007, -9/+134Cheney, sometimes it just doesn't pay to be "the dick." Not even for diggs.
- timmyboywonder, on 10/12/2007, -3/+116Wow Ive never actually shed a tear over a video on digg. that was an amazing video !!
- def1, on 10/12/2007, -5/+90Say what you want, but that dude's one bad ass *****. No one song could grow him a vagina. I'm guessing you were already on the verge.
- bigredgpk, on 10/12/2007, -4/+80i wish could digg this story more then once...
- neoknight, on 10/12/2007, -7/+81thank you, for making me cry today.
- nerdofnerds, on 10/12/2007, -10/+80thenativeraver:
I hope you don't have any paralyzed kids. In fact, if i ever meet you i'm going to kick you in the balls to save the world from a bunch if Jr.thenativeravers running round being dicks, making fun of nerds, and wasting money on high school sports.
You sir, can eat *****. - LiThiuMElectro, on 10/12/2007, -5/+73Wow... best video/article i red on digg ever, shed a tear very inspiring and beautiful
- deuceace, on 10/12/2007, -2/+65Everyone from Boston knows about this guy... an inspiration for us all...
- becominglumberg, on 10/12/2007, -5/+65@yttrx-
Indoctrination is a bit much, don't you think? Nobody force you to listen to it 1984 style.
People with other beliefs are allowed to make and distribute media as much as you are allowed to watch or not watch. Get over it and surf away. - bigredgpk, on 10/12/2007, -2/+58I love seeing them run the Boston Marathon! It's always amazing. Never gets old. I cannot even run the Marathon and this man runs it for two. makes me miss my dad
- andy101, on 10/12/2007, -7/+60mfratt, you're a ***** idiot. This is such an inspiring story, & means so much to so many people, & all you could comment was "I turned it off because of the music" ? I pity you.
- Cynic66, on 10/12/2007, -2/+52Awesome.
One thing's for sure, Rick's done way more in life than I ever will. - arraz, on 10/12/2007, -6/+55that's not country music...
that would be the genre of "Christian Inspirational" or "Praise and Worship"
I Can Only Imagine, by MercyMe - theplucker, on 10/12/2007, -26/+68Same video on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjPrL3n63yg
another great one:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=D52rJd9GX10
and yet another one on by the 2 remarkable people:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=YuRPxDgzU58 - anagoge, on 10/12/2007, -5/+40Without the music, it wouldn't have as much impact as a voiceover or indeed no sound at all.
The music compliments the video, the four minute video gives us a chance to feel what it's like to have that much love for someone. It does not cheapen or belittle it. - n00bvin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+38This offsets all the terrible things that people do in the world and once again gives me faith in humanity.
These are the sacrifices that we should be making for our children... whether it's running a marathon with them or simply reading them a book.
I understand where he's coming from too. Seeing the happiness on my daughter's face would make me climb mountains. As he inspires us, our children inspire us all. - picklepete, on 10/12/2007, -2/+34I was outside of Boston this year to watch my dad run in the marathon and I saw this man run by pushing his son. I can't believe how good of a time they were making. Absolutely incredible.
Here's a photo I snapped of them as they were running by:
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/3384/dsc02489mx0.jpg - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+34It really makes you feel kind of worthless by comparison heh.
- anagoge, on 10/12/2007, -3/+32That was beautiful.
- GrendelT, on 10/12/2007, -3/+32Thanks for your viewpoint, but you must see this video.
- boonesfarm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+30Rick Reilly got it right. "I Suck" is the first thing that came to my mind after learning this story. People are climbing fences to take pictures of Tom Cruise's baby, and this is the first I've heard of Dick Hoyt? Unbelievable.
- BlindIrishman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+30I wish the bond between my father and I was that strong.
- Dinosaurus, on 10/12/2007, -1/+27Their website...
http://www.teamhoyt.com/ - voldak, on 10/12/2007, -2/+27That was an excellent post. I read about Rick a while back. It is a very touching story, one of true love. That man is one of the best
Also, I'm glad that the totally ridiculous and immature comments are being marked down. +Digg for the human spirit - hunterd1972, on 10/12/2007, -2/+27nyrol1 your an ass. trying living life from a wheelchair (and yes I do live life from a wheelchair). if you had to spend ten minutes in a chair you would change your tune.
very inspirational indeed. we can all learn from this. keep this in mind....we are all handicapped in some form or fashion, some are just more visible that others... - AZNundercover, on 10/12/2007, -3/+24Oh man... Didn't expect to be teary eyed at work. They should have disclaimers for stories like this.
" Warning: You may be emotionally moved from this story and may cause eye and nasal leakage. It is advised that you are in a comfortable environment for this story and that you obtain any form of saliva disposals prior."
Thanks for posting this story! - tekeech, on 10/12/2007, -5/+26Great story, I have this on DVD
- zbotic, on 10/12/2007, -2/+22wow. moving. my new hero.
- NSMike, on 10/12/2007, -1/+21@priceless721
It's not the music comments. It's the general, "I liked the story, but I'm such an insensitive prick and so superficial that I have to make some moronic comment about how the music offended me" attitude that's being dugg down. Get over yourselves. Diversity includes Christianity, even if it tends to be a homogenizing force. - cmw72, on 10/12/2007, -3/+22I'm not religious in any way (quite the opposite), but just because I don't agree with somebody else's beliefe structure doesn't mean I can't appreciate what it means to them.
That video was bad-ass, and thanks to theplucker for providing the backstory. It made it 100 times more inspirational. - albel65, on 10/12/2007, -7/+26@ thenativeraver
Oh you're very mature.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarcasm - andy101, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20Why is this being dugg down? The GVideo link was being jerky for me, so I checked out the YouTube.
Thanks for the links bro. - jstroot, on 10/12/2007, -3/+20@All the people who can't get over the song.
Toughen up! But here is a suggestion, mute the video and insert your own inspirational song.
This man has a trait that a lot of people could learn from. It's called selflessness. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19That's some very heavy stuff...It made me tingle. That man is great.
And who cares if someone put that it is a "Must See". It's a great story. - krasi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19this is amazing. i have a kid at home and it just touched my heart. its good to see such a caring parent. thats pure love right there.
- totorototoro, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19great story.
- Philodox, on 10/12/2007, -2/+18wow, that's an incredible story. Thanks for posting it.
- TheLastGnu, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1821 less 10 is eleven...
- toastgodsupreme, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15These guys need a spot on Wikipedia
- rastaz, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16This story definitely made me shed a tear. Thanks to Diggers for making the net interesting again.
- becominglumberg, on 10/12/2007, -6/+20@nerdofnerds:
I may not be the premier expert on ravers, but I have a feeling that a VIN diagram between ravers and jocks wouldn't have much between them.
'wasting money on high school sports.'
Last time I checked, we had an obesity problem in America, that is only getting worse in younger generations. This is further supported by the fact that the subject of the article 'would have died 15 years ago if he had not gotten in the shape he is'. I would argue that high school sports are one of the best things going in America.
thenativeraver is a jerk, to be sure. But don't cast such a wide net that you rope everyone that plays sports in high school in with that scum - we deserve better. - danielhoerr, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17This is when I wish you could Digg a story multiple times...
- becominglumberg, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17@BigGeek-
That advice is some of the best I have seen on digg this month. The same should be said to those who say 'I wish i could be more like Dick Hoyt'.
Not everyone will be a marathon man, but anybody can change a child's life for the better.
Now, I have to give a shameless plug to CASA, or else Joyelle will kill me:
http://www.nationalcasa.org/
The powerful voice for a powerless child. - ig33k010011, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15..About that song that you all are saying sucks so bad because it's Christian-- the writer of that song wrote it 10 minutes after his dad died. just thought you all should know that before you bash it any further...
- iAmGeek, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15Absolutely amazing, I could only hope to to be even half the man Dick Hoyt is.
- jchri09, on 10/12/2007, -1/+14This is a little better quality on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjPrL3n63yg
enjoy... - gwalbridge, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16Wow, it's been a long time since I've shed a tear. Totally inspirational... I'm only 21, so I don't have any kids, but I do weight train and martial arts train, and now I feel like a total pussy. Time to man-up.
Awesome. - iomegaboy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15I am amazed at the polarity of the comments here. To those of you that are making incredibly ignorant comments about the music: You must not have children, you must not have disabled children, you must be agnostic or even atheistic, you are so comfortable with your Godless lives that when you are presented with an "inspirational" or as I would call it "spiritual" lesson, you are made so uncomfortable by it, you feel that you have to attack it. The words of the music perfectly match the MESSAGE in the video. That is to LOVE each other, even if it means GREAT person sacrifice to do so. I have to healthy children, thank God, and I can't imagine the personal adversity and sacrifices I would have to go through if I had handicapped children. Please try to be less selfish and prideful.
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