Bean there, run that (Taylor van Wyk’s first half marathon at Two Oceans)

I am always looking for good stories to tell and recently a gem popped up in an unlikely place: In a recent Two Oceans article about an Instagram influencer who fraudulently tampered with her race number to change her seeding from Q to A, a mom posted about issues with the half marathon seedings but finished off by mentioning that her special needs son had a fantastic run and ‘was probably the most excited runner on the course this year’.

I am privileged to share the story of Taylor ‘Bean’ van Wyk (or should that be ‘spilling the beans’) about his debut half marathon at this year’s Two Oceans.

Who better to describe Taylor, aka ‘Bean’, than his mom, Andrea, “Each person with special needs is unique in their own way. Taylor has Autism, ADHD, Asperger’s Syndrome and his brain tests lower than his actual age. Social cues lack, impulsiveness, feeling left out in social aspects, he never had the self-esteem or the ability to mix with children his age that were not on the spectrum, they are far more mature and worldly wise than he is. He has sensory issues and growing up he would rather stay quietly next to us if there were many people, as it is overwhelming when unfamiliar or too many people are around him.”

Taylor has a role model in his older brother Dylan who is a natural sportsman but it took years for Taylor to master the basics which most of us just take for granted like learning to swim, ride a bike and even catch a ball.

Most families struggled during Covid but for special needs families it was even more difficult. However, the van Wyks decided to make the most of the situation and worked on actively changing their family dynamics – they specifically sought out and “wanted more family adventures”.

Taylor was not too impressed with one of these ‘adventurous changes’ – replacing the short morning drive in the car to his tutor with a daily 2km walk. There was lots of grumbling initially as he found the walk boring. However, Taylor decided that the best method to reduce the length of the boredom was to start running to his tutor so that he could get to there faster (pretty solid logic if you ask me). 

The law designates one’s 18^th birthday as the formal transition from child to adult – and this was indeed a turning point for Taylor. He was on top of his tutorials and felt less anxious about not being able to complete his schooling.

Andrea had received a new Suunto watch for her birthday and she gave her old Suunto watch to Taylor to try out, “He gets fixated on things and does a lot of research.” Taylor was sold and had just one wish for his 18th Birthday – a new Suunto watch. Exactly a year ago to the day, Taylor excitedly unwrapped his Suunto 9 Peak and “the rest as they say is history.”

This proved to be an important catalyst. His proud mother said, “Overnight he wanted to experience everyday things that kids younger than himself were doing.  A little terrifying to say the least but exhilarating at the same time.  He had this newfound confidence and needed to feel the independence to allow himself to start maturing and he went out alone and experienced his first solo run. He went for longer walks and runs.”

Five months later, Taylor insisted on joining his mom and dad for his first ever official trail event which was the Run Ride McGregor two-day stage race. Taylor excelled and even managed to finish third in the men’s category on day one. Unfortunately he injured his foot so couldn’t complete the second day.

The disappointment of not finishing the second day mattered little. Our Bean had planted his feet on the fertile soil of the trails and knew he had found his people in the running community, “The race organizers and the runners at the event made a huge impression on him, he was hooked.” 

Andrea and Alec had both run the Two Oceans half marathon in 2024 and, when entries opened for the 2025 event, asked Taylor if we wanted to join them. They warned of the magnitude of the event and that there would be thousands of people but Taylor didn’t hesitate and threw his name into the ballot.

To help Taylor on his running journey, the family joined Bellville Athletics Club. Most people join a running club to help with their running training but for Andrea it was something more, “Joining a club gives Taylor a sense of belonging and it will increase his self-esteem going forward.”

Although they had not yet joined club socials* (but plan to do so in the future), they participated in some of the club runs and combined these with solo training runs. The family also worked on mental preparation with Taylor, “Crowds are a lot to handle in general, crowds when you are on the spectrum are a whole different ball game.”

* Funnily enough, they attended their first club social last night. Bellville AC have a month end braai where they nominate and celebrate members. Taylor was one of those acknowledged and celebrated last night.

Whilst issues at the registration and expo this year have been well documented, there was one person who had no complaints. Taylor was in awe and absolutely lapped everything up. He posed for pictures, revelled in finding his name on the board listing every participant and found the entire experience “electrifying”.

The day before the event was spent in nervous excitement with detailed preparation and planning. Apart from the regular kit check and attaching his race number to his Belville AC shirt, the family had detailed discussions about different situations and scenarios – and how Taylor should handle them should they arise.

Andrea was seeded near the back, Alec near the front and Taylor in the middle. Andrea told me that Taylor is much too fast for her to keep up with so Alec moved back in the seeding batches to be with Taylor at the start. Andrea revealed, “Alec and Bean planned to run together or for as long as Alec could keep up with him as he [Alec] hadn’t trained as much as he should.” However, Alec’s lack of fitness was seen as a ‘strategic advantage’ to ensure not just that Taylor didn’t get overwhelmed with the crowds but also so that Taylor did not “get caught up in the hype and start out too fast.”

Taylor told me, “Running with my dad is pretty cool but he tells me to slow down a lot.” However, it seems that there is a hidden benefit to running with his dad, “He normally tells really bad dad jokes, like all the time, but when we run, we focus on the run.”

Race morning arrived and Taylor did his normal pre-run routine of leg swings, some stretching and getting his watch ready. He recalls, “I was nervous and a bit anxious, there were so many people but the vibe at the start made me feel less worried, people were singing and dancing and warming up.” Five minutes before the gun went off, Taylor looked at his father and said, “Dad I’m scared.”

But with his father by his side, Taylor set off on his maiden half marathon voyage and the pre-race nerves were quickly forgotten. Looking back on the excitement of the day Taylor said, “The crowd called my name a few times and people from our running club were cheering on the sidelines.  I could have run at a faster pace but ran with my dad. At 15km dad was getting tired and wanted to walk a bit, so I ran ahead.”

Taylor sped past thousands of runners over those final few kilometres and ended up putting 6 minutes on his dad with a 2h19 finish. His immensely proud father arrived home in 2h25, followed a short while later by mom, “Finishing and getting my medal was really cool. I waited for my parents at the finish line and shouted when I saw my mom come in.”

Taylor continued, “My parents are really proud of me, they always say that I am incredible and I should be proud of myself. My first 21km and first big event with so many runners and so many people on the sidelines and I did it.”

Despite taking much longer to learn to swim than other kids and still not being the best swimmer, Taylor was born into a surfing family and rose to the challenge. Alec mentioned that one of his fondest memories is, “As a family that loves to surf, Taylor had no choice really but to join us. Taylor has incredible upper body strength and is very agile. As long as I am near him in the water, he is ok.  One day the boys and I caught the same wave together, all three of us on the same wave… sublime!”

Where does lining up at the start and running most of the Two Oceans half marathon rank in Alec’s book, “I have done many events including Ironman, Warrior on Wheels pulling a buggy at Argus and being a blind athlete triathlon guide but lining up next to Taylor for Two Oceans was indescribable.  My heart in one standing next to me, facing all his fears and ready to tackle the biggest sports event he has ever done, there is no greater feeling as a father to experience. I know that his internal battle is huge. Your kid who hasn’t been able to do the majority of what others do with their eyes closed, standing ready waiting for the gun to go off.”

What are Taylor’s plans for the future? The family has already entered the ABSA Run Your City 10k and Slave Route half marathon. He also has unfinished business at the Run Ride McGregor two-day trail race and will be returning there again this September. Taylor also plans to do more club runs and other events.

Taylor explains the impact that running has had on his life, “It is a year since going for my first run by myself, I now have the confidence to try new things.  I go to Virgin Active daily and have taken up MMA, which took me a few months to build up the courage to go to my first class.”

When I first contacted Andrea about writing an article she replied, “If it helps one other kid out there, that would be fantastic!” I replied, “I think it will also help parents of special needs kids just as much.”

On that note, I thought it would be appropriate to end this article with some words of wisdom and advice from Taylor, “My parents are always worried about me, but it’s fine. The next event I will start with them in the crowd if I am nervous, but they say I have experienced it and I will be ok to run my pace, I must just not go out too fast in the beginning and I will be ok. Running has given me the freedom and confidence to be myself.”

Afterword: The Bean Backstory

Below is a lovely snippet that I just couldn’t fit into the above narrative but thought was worthwhile sharing. In response to a question asking Andrea why Taylor is called ‘Bean’, she explained:

We fetched Taylor from Preschool, he was 2 years old and all the children were outside.  His teacher called out to him  “Bean, your parents are here” and we asked why do you call him Bean?

“There is something special about Taylor, he is smaller, quieter and keeps more to himself than all the other children.  To me he is like a little bean, when I talk to him in a soft, calm voice, he lights up.  So, like a bean that is given water to grow, Taylor is my little Bean, I show him love and kindness and his smile grows”

We had no idea Taylor was special needs then, we knew something was different as he took longer with the milestones, etc. but he was only diagnosed in Grade 1.

Bean stuck with all of us, it really is a very special term of endearment and very appropriate.

Footnote

After reading the original article, Mel from Dapper Chameleon (who was an exhibitor at the Two Oceans expo), wanted to make Bean’s birthday extra special and send him some socks to recognize his “amazing achievement at The Two Oceans Marathon.”

The socks arrived and, according to Taylor’s mom Andrea, “Bean was blown away with all the messages on FB and was over the moon by everyone’s kindness and birthday wishes. Today he received a parcel from Dapper Chameleon, holy smokes Mel is too kind and went overboard, we all received a pair of socks, including Dylan, so he will have to get out there and go for a run, lol.”

What a lovely gesture by Dapper Chameleon – I’ll definitely be getting myself a pair or two the next time I see them at an expo.

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