Summer Highlight: World Records, Wheelchairs, And Running Shoes.

We are extremely proud of the work that happens on our job sites but it’s no secret that we are just as proud of the work and accomplishments that happen outside of hours.

While people were on vacation and enjoying the beach weather, one of our close partners, Sean McQuaid was in Duluth, Minnesota pushing his teammate Riley Pathman across the finish line at the Grandma’s Marathon, smashing the world record for the fastest marathon pushing a wheelchair!

Sean runs McQuaid Flooring, the craftspeople behind the custom flooring on many of West Coast GBC’s recent construction projects. Outside of work, Sean can also be found running in a very different capacity; often behind a wheelchair for Team Hoyt, a national foundation that was started by Dick Hoyt and his son Rick, a quadriplegic, in Boston in 1977.

The non-profit champions the inclusion of disabled young Americans in running and marathon events and Sean has been an enthusiastic supporter since first meeting Riley and his father, Jim during a marathon in 2017.

It was the Disney music that Riley and his father were playing while they ran that first caught Sean’s attention. After asking to run alongside the father-son duo for the remainder of the race, Sean realized that he had not only found a new friend but also a passion that only six years later would land them both in the records books.

Riley and his father

Riley is now 24 but he and his father started running together when he was four. Over the last 20 years, they have participated in 30 full marathons, 150 half-marathons, and 100 triathlons. When Jim wasn’t running with Riley, Sean would offer to continue training with him. It was during this time that their bond grew along with their ambitions; they decided to attempt to tackle the 26.2 mile Grandma’s Marathon in two hours and 37 minutes. Their goal was high with the previous world record set at two hours, 49 minutes, and 26 seconds.

Parker Piner with Sean after the race

We believe it is a great life lesson that when you surround yourself with people who are doing good things, you will find yourself wanting to do good things with them. For Parker and Beth Piner flying to Duluth to champion Sean’s effort at the race was the natural thing to do. Being in Duluth was also a return to where Parker grew up on rural subsistence farmlands, riding a horse to school. Parker himself had done a handful of training rides with Sean but when asked if they had run marathons together, Parker responded “No! Sean can run laps around me! I was there to provide constant emotional support during the training process because there was no way I could keep up with him!”.

It was an emotional moment for everyone who was there when the duo crossed the finish line in a blistering two hours and 35 minutes, outdoing the world record and their original goal. The achievement was momentous for them both personally but for Sean it was also about bringing greater awareness to the inclusion and empowerment of people with disabilities in sports.

Please support Sean and Team Hoyt here

Read more about their World Record achievement on bbc.com, runnersworld.com, and sandiegouniontribune.com