‘Ottawa’ Disability Not Stopping This Spartan Race Runner
Jeffrey Beausoleil felt a mix of excitement and anxiety as he waited to start the Spartan Race in Wakefield on Saturday.
After all, the 17-year-old competitor was about to scurry up Edelweiss’ steep slopes, and crawl through mud and scale eight-foot walls like everyone else, but he had two fewer limbs to work with.
Beausoleil was born without a right hand and forearm, and a right leg from just below the knee. Despite the limitations, the tenacious teenager said that they’ve never prevented him from doing what he sets his mind to.
“I don’t feel like my disability is something that is going to stop me because I don’t feel different,” Beausoleil said moments before his start time. “I feel like I’m normal and that’s just the way I am.”
Saturday’s race was about eight kilometres of running up and down hills, climbing rope nets, hoisting propane tanks up in the air and crawling under barbed wire.
The Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., resident, however was no stranger to the challenges, having competed in four separate races last summer.
“I feel the biggest challenge every year are the hills but after that it is the burpees and the obstacles that are too hard to do — like the ones you really need two hands to do,” he said.
Spartan Race rules require participants do 30 burpees — a jumping Jack followed by a pushup — every time an obstacle is skipped or not completed. While Beausoleil wears prosthesis for his leg, he chooses not to use one for his arm, making some of the obstacles physically impossible to do. Others are completed with the help of his father and other relatives, making the race a family affair.
Patrick Beausoleil was motivated to participate after watching his son do the races last summer.
“Last year when I saw him running and doing all that, I said, ‘OK, I have to do something.’ I was 50 pounds heavier and I decided to start running.
“And my dad, who is 59 years old, is going to be running with us. He lost 60 pounds, used to be diabetic — I used to be diabetic. Now we don’t need any more pills. We’re ready for another 40 years.”
There were times when Patrick said he used to wonder whether his son would be able to lead a normal life. That was before Jeffrey began surpassing physical expectations at a young age by playing soccer and other sports, he said.
“Jeffrey doesn’t realize how much of an inspiration he is.”
Apart from the personal accomplishment, part of Beausoleil’s motivation for doing the Spartan Race is to raise money for Shriners Hospital for Children in Montréal.
“The Shriners Hospital helped me a lot because I started going when I was five months old, and they helped me to do everyday things and they taught me how to walk,” Beausoleil said.
Shriners Hospital treats children with orthopedic and neuromuscular problems, and Beausoleil’s goal this summer is to raise $10,000 for the hospital that he said has helped him cope with his disability.
Beausoleil is set to run in two more Spartan Race challenges in Mansonville, Que., on July 16 and July 31.