A Father's Love--Team Hoyt

      Since it is almost Father's Day, I wanted to share this video with those of you who haven't seen it before and maybe those of you who have will want to see it again, too.  I know that every time I watch it, I am touched deeply and re-inspired to know that all things are possible with God.

      I heard a rumor a couple of years ago that Dick Hoyt had passed away so I looked Team Hoyt up on Wikipedia.   It seems the two of them are still racing.
      Here is the info from Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Team_Hoyt)--some of it was included in the video--if you are interested in knowing more about their lives. What an incredible family!

"Rick Hoyt was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth after his umbilical cord became twisted around his neck, which caused the blockage of oxygen flow.^[3] As a result, his brain is unable to send the correct messages to his muscles.^[4] Many doctors encouraged the Hoyts to institutionalize Rick, informing them that he would be nothing more than a "vegetable."^[4] His parents held on to the fact that Rick’s eyes would follow them around the room, giving them hope that he would somehow be able to communicate someday.^[4] The Hoyts took Rick every week to Children’s Hospital in Boston, where they met a doctor who encouraged the Hoyts to treat Rick like any other child. Rick's mother Judy spent hours each day teaching Rick the alphabet with sandpaper letters and posting signs on every object in the house. In a short amount of time, Rick learned the alphabet.^[3]

At the age of 11, after some persistence from his parents, Rick was fitted with a computer that enabled him to communicate and it became clear that Rick was intelligent.^[5] With this communication device, Rick was also able to attend public school for the first time.^[6]

Rick went on to graduate from Boston University in 1993 with a degree in special education and later worked at Boston College in a computer lab helping to develop systems to aid in communication and other tasks for disabled people.^[7]

^{Dick is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Air National Guard.}

Team Hoyt began in 1977 when Rick became inspired by an article on racing he saw in a magazine.^[8] Dick Hoyt was not a runner and was nearly 37 years old. After their first race Rick said, “Dad, when I’m running, it feels like I’m not handicapped.” After their initial five mile run, Dick began running every day with a bag of cement in the wheelchair because Rick was at school and studying, unable to train with him.”^[3] As of July 2010, the Hoyts had competed in 1032 endurance events, including 68 marathons and six Ironman triathlons.^[6] They had run the Boston Marathon 26 times. Also adding to their list of achievements, Dick and Rick biked and ran across the U.S. in 1992, completing a full 3,735 miles in 45 days.^[9][10]

They also compete in triathlons with Rick sitting in a boat for the swim portion, Dick pulls him in a boat with a rope attached to his body. Then he pushes Rick for the run.^[6] For the cycle portion of the triathlon, Rick rides on the front of a specially designed tandem bike.^[4][11]"