Not only is Dick an international best selling author, but he is one of the world's most extraordinary, respected, and compelling motivational / inspirational speakers. He is also the subject of a feature film, entitled Against the Wind. Dick has been the keynote speaker at corporate events and fundraisers, non-profits, schools, races, prisons and drug treatment centers, to name a few. Anywhere motivation and inspiration is needed.

Dick has spoken to countless number of groups all over the world, ranging in size from 5 people to 15,000 people! Dick is also an accomplished TV commentator and radio announcer. He has a gift of making people laugh, cry and most importantly, think and appreciate life to the fullest, despite any ups and downs that may come along. Dick's talks are directly from his heart and are highly inspirational.

For a brief moment in the early ‘80s Dick Beardsley became the most famous runner / athlete in the world - by losing a race. In the 1982 Boston Marathon, Beardsley, foiled by a motorcycle that cut him off near the end, finished two seconds behind Alberto Salazar in a contest often called one of the most memorable in marathon history. It was the closest finish ever at the world's premier marathon, and both runners broke the course and the American records.

The story of Dick's running career alone is the stuff of legends, but it is the story that comes after that draws people in and keeps them listening. Dick is a true survivor. Dick's life is a story of hope and redemption.

After retiring from running, Dick had a series of near fatal accidents that left him addicted to painkillers. On September 30, 1996, when he was taking a cocktail of Valium, Percocet, and Demerol, all very highly addictive narcotics, 80 - 90 pills a day - he was caught. Dick spent hours with federal DEA agents, convincing them that he was taking them all, every last one of them and not selling them, as they has suspected, given the high number of prescriptions.

His story of overcoming extreme obstacles speaks to anyone who loves competition, who has survived catastrophe, or who has pursued a seemingly impossible goal.