Power of friendship helps return injured runner to marathon form
Simi Valley man beats near-fatal injuries from bike accident, regains strength to finish L.A. Marathon
By Darleen Principe darleen@theacorn.com

Courtesy Beverly Staples RUNNER'S BOND- Rich Ringwald and Harry Staples show off the medals they earned from finishing the 2008 Los Angeles Marathon. Below, Staples poses with his wife, Beverly, shortly after the race. Staples had run the marathon 19 consecutive years before being badly injured in a biking accident in 2006. He has since recovered with the loving support of his family and friends- especially Ringwald.

After Harry Staples ran his first Los Angeles Marathon in 1987, he was hooked.

For the next 19 consecutive years, 60-year-old Staples of Simi Valley would run the marathon alongside his longtime friend, 64-year-old Rich Ringwald, also of Simi, and finish the 26.2-mile trek through L.A. in just about five hours.

But over Memorial Day weekend in 2006, when Staples suffered a nearfatal bicycle accident that left him in critical condition for three months, his prospects of running the 2007 L.A. Marathon grew dim.

"When I saw him for the first time in the hospital, it was really bad," Ringwald said. "I didn't think he'd ever walk again."

Staples, who had been an avid runner, bicyclist and a professional engineer for most of his life, was left with severe brain damage, impaired vision and a myriad of other complications that made even walking around the block extremely difficult.

Still, he didn't let his physical problems get in the way of his spirit.

By March 2007, Staples was determined to set foot onto the streets of L.A., even if he couldn't run the whole marathon.

"He met me at mile 18 and we finished those last eight miles together," Ringwald said. "He accompanied me while I completed the marathon. When he finished he was just totally exhausted, but there was that feeling of satisfaction that he had done it."

This March, after six months of steady training, Staples was able to complete the whole marathon with the caring help of his friend.

Ringwald said it took them just as long to finish the last seven miles as it did to get through the first 19, because Staples began to experience back pain. They finished in 10 hours.

"He's happiest when he's out there running," said Beverly Staples, Harry's wife of 33 years. "He had to lean a little on (Rich) to make the last few miles, but for him to come back was really neat. We were all there at the finish line rooting him on."

Last September, Staples and Ringwald began training on Sunday mornings at Rancho Tapo Community Park. They started off jogging and walking for an hour, and increased their time by 10 minutes every week until they were at just over five hours.

Eventually, the two moved their training onto the bike path of the Arroyo Simi. By the end of January, Staples was able to comfortably train for five consecutive hours, Ringwald said.

"It was his desire to do it," he said. "And I said, 'Okay, Harry, I'll help you.' His determination really showed this time when it became real important for him to finish. I think it really helped as part of his recovery."

Ringwald stayed with Harry the entire time, and made sure he was fully hydrated throughout the course of the marathon.

At about mile 15, Ringwald said, he sent Harry ahead of him while he stopped at a McDonald's to get a couple of vanilla milkshakes.

"I found him and handed off the milkshake," Ringwald said. "It was a nice boost of energy there when we really needed it."

Staples said he's grateful for Ringwald's help, and feels "wonderful" about being able to finish the marathon again.

His wife, Beverly, too, has been his inspiration and "salvation," he said.

"I just didn't think I could do anything ever again," Staples said. "But (finishing the marathon) gives me a feeling nowadays that I can do something. I would like to do anything above average, and it gives me a feeling that life is worthwhile to keep going."