Father-son team is an inspiration.(THE GOODNESS OF AMERICA)

When Rick Hoyt was born in 1962, the umbilical cord became tangled around his neck, cutting off oxygen to his brain. At birth, he was a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy, and he was unable to learn to speak. Doctors suggested that Rick's parents, Dick and Judy, place him in an institution, but the Hoyts refused to listen. They, instead, chose to raise Rick as any other child, schooling him and including him in all of their activities.

In 1972, engineers at Tufts University in Boston developed an interactive computer that allowed Rick to communicate by using slight head movements to select letters with which he could form words that would appear on a computer screen. The very first words Rick typed on his communicator were "Go Bruins" (the Boston NHL hockey team), which signaled his love of sports.

Twenty-five years ago, Rick learned about a five-mile run to benefit a lacrosse player paralyzed in an accident. He suggested to his Dad that the two enter as a team, with the elder Hoyt pushing him in a wheelchair. But Dick had never participated in a long-distance race and had doubts. The duo finished next to last, but they nevertheless experienced a sense of satisfaction and triumph over adversity.

Since that first run, Dick and Rick have participated in 64 marathons, 20 duathlons, 206 triathlons, and six punishing Ironman events, each of which features a 26.2-mile marathon, 112 miles of cycling, and 2.4 miles of swimming. They competed in the famous Boston Marathon 24 times. When the two men compete as runners, Dick pushes Rick in a wheelchair; when ...