13 WTHR - Indianapolis News |Boy gets a "leg up" with help from a friend

Boy gets a "leg up" with help from a friend

Kris Kirschner/Eyewitness News

Martinsville - An Indiana boy with a birth defect saw his dream of riding a bike come true after a year-long effort and a new invention.

Sometimes, the measure of true friendship isn't what you have in common, but what sets you apart.

"Many kids would have been bitter with an issue he's had all his life," said Ron Schoolcraft.

From birth, Bryce Duncan was different.

"When he was first born, when they measured him, they said it appeared to be one leg was shorter than the other," said his mother, Nissa White.

By age 2, Bryce lived with a wooden leg. But to friend Ben Schoolcraft, he was just another kid who liked the same things he did.

"He's my third brother, pretty much," he said.

Inseparable, they did what boys do. That included things Bryce was told he couldn't' do.

"A specialist came in and told us our son wouldn't play sports, wouldn't be a runner," said Bryce's dad, Bruce. "I see our son now, he's played every sport, he's been active."

"His old leg didn't slow him down at all, it didn't bother him. You couldn't tell," said Brian Schoolcraft.

Bryce's determination inspired those around him.

"He's just so bright, exuberant, the smile - he's always got a smile on his face," said Ron Schoolcraft.

"It's his smile, yeah," said Brian Schoolcraft.

But there was still something Bryce couldn't do, something no matter how hard he tried, or how determined he was, his physical limitations were just that.

"I missed it a lot, because sometimes I was at his house and we'd ride bikes around the woods, the trails and I would have to run after them," said Duncan.

"See him limping and whatever and wish he had something better," said Brian Schoolcraft.

Bryce's limitation on a bike got his friend's brother thinking.

"Why is it a problem? What can we do to fix it?" Brian Schoolcraft said.

An engineering student at Purdue, Schoolcraft not only noticed Bryce's problem, he studied it.

"You want to straighten both your legs at the same time and bend them," Brian told Bryce.

He spent hours researching the problem.

"It was really getting his knee where it was supposed to be," Schoolcraft said.

When he saw there was no other option, he invented one. As part of a senior project, Schoolcraft put together a team of students who sought a way to help Bryce by building a new, more flexible leg.

"Puts his pivots in the right spot, so he can ride a bike and his leg will behave like normal," Schoolcraft said.

While the concept is simple, the process was something out of the space program - literally.

In less than a year, Bryce went from limping on the basketball court, to moving like a pro.

"It made me really happy and excited, because it made me walk better. When I sit down, I can actually bend my knees now," Bryce said.

But the true test is when his feet hit the pedals and the rubber met the road. At the age of 13, Bryce did something even he never thought he could - he rode a bike for the very first time.

"Words can't explain. It's extraordinary," said Bruce Duncan. "Things are a lot better for Bryce, because of what Brian did. He's a genius."

The story doesn't end there. The project that allows Bryce to better keep up with his friends won first place at an engineering contest at Purdue. Schoolcraft and his team donated the $1,500 top prize to Bryce and his family.

"We're not surprised so much that Brian would think of something like this or do this, because as parents, we've always tried to raise our kids to look at how we might make a difference," said Ron Schoolcraft.

"Bryce deserves it. He's a great little kid," said Brian Schoolcraft.

With his new abilities, Bryce rides his bike every day.

Bryce also inspired another member of the Schoolcraft family. Ben and Brian's younger sister, Amanda, is a freshman at Purdue, majoring in Biomedical Engineering, following in her brother's footsteps to help Bryce.

Meanwhile, Brian Schoolcraft has set up a fund to help pay for the maintenance to Bryce's leg as he grows.

Get more information