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**Bob**

Carrying His Daughter With Cerebral Palsy Across The Finish Line

One father, Rick van Beek, completed a triathlon while carrying his 13-year-old daughter, Madison, who has cerebral palsy. Maddy cannot walk or talk, so he carried her across land and through water so that she could complete the event, too.

“She functions like a three-month-old, and one of the very few things that we know she enjoys is being outside, being in the water, feeling the breeze in her hair and in her face.” van Beek told the Midland Daily News.

Maddy was diagnosed at the age of two with cerebral palsy, and shortly thereafter, van Beek quit smoking (he was consuming two packs a day) and started working out.

According to van Beek, The Daily Mail reports that ”Team Maddy” has participated in more than 70 events, including half-marathons, and triathlons.

pics and video http://thebertshow.com/one-amazing-fathe...nish-line/

**LoP Guest** lop guest User ID: 115826 08-21-2012 04:29 PM

Meh....Together they completed the 0.3-mile swim, 12.4-mile bike ride and 3.1-mile run........Not exactly a long distance. My 9 year old daughter and 11 year old son race in short races like that. "Training wheels triathlon".....Lets see him do a full ironman carrying his crippled kid.

**LoP Guest** lop guest User ID: 106826 08-21-2012 04:31 PM

LoP Guest Wrote:

Meh....Together they completed the 0.3-mile swim, 12.4-mile bike ride and 3.1-mile run........Not exactly a long distance. My 9 year old daughter and 11 year old son race in short races like that. "Training wheels triathlon".....Lets see him do a full ironman carrying his crippled kid.

You are a class act, huh?

**pie** · **pie** Just a pie User ID: 84937 08-21-2012 05:08 PM **Posts: 3,780**

Maybe there's hope for us humans yet ...