Dick Beardsley: A Short Biography

As a professional runner, Dick Beardsley is best known for his incredible race in the 1982 Boston Marathon. That race, on a very hot day, was dubbed the "Duel in the Sun" as Beardsley battled world record holder Alberto Salazar down to the finish line. Both broke the American record: Salazar winning in a record time of 2:08:51, Beardsley two seconds back in 2:08:53!

After a successful running career, tragedy struck in November 1989. Beardsley was using an auger on his farm to lift corn into a bin when somehow he became entangled in the auger and it began to tear him apart.

That was just the beginning. Over the next few years, Dick was involved a severe car accident, then later was hit by a truck while running, still later he rolled his vehicle in a snowstorm, and finally while hiking one day, the ground gave out and he fell off a cliff! He ended up in the hospital each time and had multiple surgeries to try and put him back together.

Due to all the pain medication he was on, he became addicted—and that's when his life really started to spiral out of control.

Dick has since completely turned his life back around and has enjoyed his sobriety since 1997.

Today, he enjoys life and running more than ever. He is living in Austin, Texas and is a competitive Masters runner, still completing marathons across the U.S. and beyond.

In 2002, he authored a book called "Staying the Course: A Runner’s Toughest Race."

Dick is a captivating motivational/inspirational speaker who visits schools, corporations, and races around the world.

The Dick Beardsley Foundation was recently established to help individuals who cannot afford treatment for chemical dependency. The work of the Foundation will allow Dick to travel to schools around the country, talking to children about positive, active lifestyles and being chemically free.

For more information, go to: dickbeardsley.com