The Mission

About Us.

Team Hoyt Denver is a nonprofit chapter built to make racing more inclusive — for athletes with disabilities, families, runners, and volunteers across the Front Range.

Team Hoyt Denver team gathering — TEAM HOYT DENVER · FRONT RANGE
MILE 01 Who we are

A team built on a stubborn idea.

Team Hoyt Denver is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the joy of running races to people with disabilities in the Denver metro area. We pair rider athletes with runner athletes who push specialized racing chairs to the finish line, ensuring that no one is left on the sidelines. Our mission is to carry on the legacy of the Hoyt family and provide an inclusive environment for all to participate in running events.

Our team is made up of amazing volunteers with a passion for equity and inclusion in sports. We are always looking to grow our team. We need runner athletes, rider athletes, race day support, cheerleaders and more.

Team Hoyt athletes racing together — THE HOYT LEGACY · SINCE 1977
MILE 02 The Hoyt legacy

A movement that started with one race.

In 1977, Rick Hoyt — born a spastic quadriplegic — told his father Dick that he wanted to participate in a 5-mile benefit run for a paralyzed lacrosse player. Dick had never competed in a running race. They finished, and after the race Rick told his father that when they were running, his disability disappeared.

When we were running, it felt like my disability disappeared. — Rick Hoyt, 1977

Over the next thirty years, Rick and Dick competed in more than 1,000 races, including 32 Boston Marathons and 6 Ironmans. In 2013 they were awarded the ESPY Jimmy V Perseverance Award. The Hoyt Foundation continues their work today — and Team Hoyt Denver carries that spirit to the Denver metro area as a separate and distinct legal entity from Team Hoyt and The Hoyt Foundation, Inc.

Team Hoyt Denver community partners on the Front Range — COMMUNITY POWERED · FRONT RANGE
MILE 03 How we operate

Volunteer-led. Community-powered.

Team Hoyt Denver is powered by volunteer leadership, community partners, runner athletes, rider athletes, and families who want adaptive racing to be visible and accessible.

MILE 04 Leadership N°13 TEAM

The board and volunteer leaders.

The people behind Team Hoyt Denver bring decades of nonprofit, athletic, and community experience to the work of growing inclusive racing in Colorado.

Board of Directors

Stacey Hicks

President

Stacey Hicks

Stacey is one of the founders of Team Hoyt Denver. She oversees the organization and it's day-to-day operations, while leading strategic planning, sponsor partnerships, fundraising, program development, volunteer leadership, and the Board of Directors. She spent more than 20 years in technology marketing before shifting to mission-driven work in 2010. She is a lifelong runner with 11 marathons and hundreds of races behind her. She is passionate about creating a community where people with disabilities are empowered, seen, celebrated and given the opportunity to experience the joy, connection and sense of accomplishment that comes from participating in the running community.

Allie DaCar

Vice President · Race Director

Allie DaCar

Allie is a California native who moved to Denver in 2022. She became involved in adaptive sports as an Achilles Denver guide and has since guided at events including the New York City Marathon. She joined Team Hoyt Denver in May 2025 and now serves as Vice President and Race Director, helping with race logistics and strategic planning. An endurance sports enthusiast since graduating from D1 athletics, Allie has completed 3 marathons, an Ironman 70.3, and numerous other running and triathlon races. She is passionate about creating opportunities for people of all abilities to experience the community and accomplishment of endurance sports. Outside of THD, she works as a tech Product Manager.

Lori Deacon

Treasurer

Lori Deacon

Lori has been involved with nonprofits and school development for thirty years. Her team manages financial activities for 22 charter schools, and she has worked with more than 50 charter and nonprofit organizations since leaving the school she opened in 2006.

Cara Frangipane

Board Member At Large · Event Director

Cara Frangipane

Cara is a passionate athlete who believes everyone should have the opportunity to be active outdoors. As VP of Transaction Management, she oversees complex financial transactions and brings those skills to nonprofit operations. The Hoyt brothers are her cousins, and the family's example has long inspired her to help build a Team Hoyt chapter on the Front Range.

Ricardo Adame

Board Member At Large

Ricardo Adame

Ricardo joined the board in September 2025 after more than thirty years of leadership and strategic communications experience. He has held senior roles at Microsoft, Newmont Mining, and AVG Technologies, and he brings a deep commitment to inclusion, social responsibility, and volunteerism.

Chuck Talley

Board Member At Large · IT Director · Trailer Manager

Chuck Talley

Chuck is the proud dad of Jack, a Team Hoyt athlete with quadriplegic cerebral palsy. As IT Director, he supports the community behind the scenes while also pushing Jack in races. Chuck has completed a half and full marathon, shares winter sit-skiing with Jack, and brings years of leadership delivering cybersecurity services.

Volunteer Leadership

Erik Carrera

Racing Chair Director

Erik Carrera

Erik studied Mechanical Engineering at Baylor University and earned an MS in Biomedical Engineering at CU Denver - Anschutz Medical Campus. His love of fitness, CrossFit, distance running, Spartan Races, and biomedical engineering all inform his commitment to helping athletes with extra challenges be part of a fitness community.

Sarah Holt

Social Media Specialist

Sarah Holt

Sarah is a 21-year-old Team Hoyt Denver athlete who brings heart, resilience, and joy to every race. Living with cerebral palsy, involuntary movements, extreme muscle tightness, and visual impairment, she loves being part of a group where she belongs without having to explain herself.

Kristen Adcock

Volunteer Relations Manager

Kristen Adcock

I discovered Team Hoyt while volunteering at the Donor Dash. I saw the joy on the faces of all those involved in that day and knew I needed to be a part of this team. I strive every day to make the day better for anyone around me. A simple "hello, how are you" goes a long way to make a person feel seen.

Matt Baron

Trailer Manager

Matt Baron

I’m deeply committed to my family and strive every day to make them proud. Bringing joy to others energizes me, and I’m grateful for every opportunity to support and uplift the people around me. It’s an honor to be part of Team Hoyt Denver and to help carry forward a mission that celebrates inclusion, strength, and community.

Ashley Charbonneau

Team Operations Manager

Ashley Charbonneau

Ashley Charbonneau is a Colorado-based therapist, consultant, and author of two books on therapist resilience and sexual trauma. Passionate about philanthropy, she led her family's foundation for 10 years, volunteered with Alpha Phi in Colorado and California for 10 years, and fostered rescue dogs through Scroungy Dogs & Pretty Pets for several years. An avid (but slow!) runner and traveler, Ashley completed Boulder 70.3 Ironman - a proud "one and done" accomplishment (she even sold her bike!). She is excited to bring her passion for community, inclusion, and connection to Team Hoyt Denver, helping create opportunities for everyone to experience the joy of crossing a finish line.

Mia Finlay

Race Manager

Mia Finlay

My name is Mia Finlay and I am a School Psychology graduate student and a behavior specialist at an elementary school! I love every aspect of Team Hoyt and the community it brings! I have loved watching this team grow and I cannot wait to see where it continues to go!

Brendan Shook

Racing Chair Manager

Brendan Shook

Working and racing with Team Hoyt Denver is the honor of a lifetime. This team brings an extraordinary energy to races (and life in general). For me, it's impossible not to find inspiration in the legacy of Rick and Dick Hoyt. What they accomplished together challenges everything I think about my own comfort in life. I am grateful for the opportunity to steward even a small portion of that legacy.

FINISH Join the team

Be part of what's next.

Runner athlete, rider athlete, family, sponsor, volunteer — the team is built from people who decided to show up. There's a place for you.