Fleet Feet Sports, Gaithersburg Fun Run/Walk with Brian Boyle

Meet Brian Boyle, a young aspiring athlete. Just one month after graduating from J. McDonough High School in Maryland, Brian became the victim of a horrific car crash that would change his life forever. With his car demolished, Brian was pried from the wreckage and air-lifted to a shock-trauma hospital clinging to life. In his shocking and inspiring memoir, Iron Heart: The True Story of How I Came Back from the Dead, Brian tells the story of his miraculous revival and how he overcame three years of intense rehabilitation and seemingly insurmountable odds to compete in the Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. For Brian, a former competitive swimmer and bodybuilder, the facts were startling. In the accident, he had broken his clavicle, several ribs, and his pelvis. He suffered severe nerve damage, lost an alarming 60 percent of his blood, and had his heart knocked across his chest. He was placed on life-support for two months, was pronounced dead eight times by doctors, and when he finally woke, found himself in a state of paralysis where he could not move or talk, let alone compete in a triathlon. Among other experiences, Brian shares: • Undergoing fourteen surgeries • Coming to terms with the fact that he would never walk again • Morphing from excellent physical shape to a mere skeleton and back again to bodybuilding condition • Crossing the finish line at Ironman in Kona, Hawaii Iron Heart is the remarkable story of a seemingly impossible inch-by-inch comeback that would leave even famed cyclist and cancer-survivor Lance Armstrong in disbelief. It is a testament to BrianÂÂ's own resolute will and to the regenerative qualities of the human spirit as a whole. BrianÂÂ's fight for survival encourages readers to follow their dreams to whatever end. Come to our Fun Run/Walk for a chance to meet Brian and get a signed copy of his book. You'll be inspired and amazed by his story.