Brian Doyle wore bib No. 1 and a University of Texas-El Paso racing singlet, in honor of his father’s alma mater, at the inaugural Bobby Doyle 5-Mile Summer Classic run last Saturday in Narragansett.

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Brian Doyle was 8 years old when he expressed an interest in running a one-mile fun run in Fall River.

Bobby Doyle gladly helped his young son prepare for the big day.

“He put me on a six-week training program,” recalls Brian, now 16.

Doyle won the race, but he wouldn’t start to take running seriously until much later.

“He didn’t push me at all unless I told him I wanted to do it,” Brian Doyle said of his father, a seven-time winner of the Ocean State Marathon. “He always said, ‘Do what you want.’ ”

Bobby Doyle never pressured any of his five children into pursuing running careers, Lori Doyle says of her husband. The late great marathoner, who died of an apparent heart attack last December, simply insisted that when they made the decision to do something, running or otherwise, that they give it their best effort.

“Bob’s theory was take a day off if you need it, but you have to work hard,” she said. “Every run, every workout should have a purpose.”

Bobby Doyle’s approach no doubt contributed to each of his children ultimately following in his footsteps, with each enjoying their own degree of success.

“When I saw my dad, he was the toughest guy I knew,” said Brian Doyle, who next week will be starting his junior year at Hendricken, where he runs track and cross country for his uncle –– Bobby’s older brother Jim Doyle. “I just wanted to be like him. Pretty much everything I learned was from him. I would go home every day and talk to him about what was going on. He would know what I was feeling because he had experienced every situation I did.”

Given all of that, it seems only fitting that Brian Doyle became the first to be crowned the “King of the Road,” an honor bestowed upon the top high-school runner at the inaugural Bobby Doyle 5-Mile Summer Classic, run last Saturday in Narragansett.

Wearing bib No. 1 and a University of Texas-El Paso racing singlet, in honor of his father’s alma mater, Doyle finished first among high-school boys, eighth overall among the field of nearly 600 with a time of 27 minutes, 4 seconds.

Given the gutsy work ethic that his father had become known for, it seems all the more fitting that Doyle ran the race just days after having his wisdom teeth extracted.

“I was in the lead car and they radioed to say that Brian was in eighth place and what his pace was, and I’ve got to tell you, I was kind of surprised,” Lori Doyle said. “He had a dry socket [where one of his teeth had been extracted] and he hadn’t been able to run very much last week. So I didn’t know if he could run well enough to win it. I said, ‘Can you believe this kid?’ It was really emotional. I know it would have been an honor for Bob that Brian won the first one.”

While Doyle was winning the boys’ title, Bay View junior Stephanie Beaudette was on her way to top honors among the high school girls. Placing seventh overall among the women, the two-time cross-country All-Stater was named the “Queen of the Road” after clocking a time of 33:57.

“Stephanie ran a great race on Saturday,” said Carol Beaudette, Stephanie’s mother, as well as her cross-country coach at Bay View. “It was a goal she worked toward all summer. She and Bobby became close friends because he would always talk to her about her training and goals for running. That was just the kind of person he was, always friendly and ready to give advice when you asked for it. She feels that Bobby is proud of her accomplishment and was there pushing her all the way through the race.”

Carol Beaudette ran the 5-miler, as well. A three-time All-Stater when she attended Central Falls in the mid-1970s, the former Carol Skalak followed in Bobby Doyle’s footsteps, also going to the University of Texas-El Paso, where she ran track and was an NCAA qualifier in cross country.

“I got to know Bobby when I was in high school and by going to his family store to buy running shoes,” she said. “I remember going to see him run in the Rhode Island Marathon. It was just so exciting to see him run and win because I knew him. It was Bobby who got me interested in running for UTEP and introduced me to his former coach, Ted McLaughlin.”

If Lori Doyle has her way, her husband will continue to inspire others through his legacy. Proceeds from the inaugural race, which in addition to the runners’ entry fees included generous donations from local businesses, totaled more than $20,000, according to Jim Doyle. That money will be used to support initiatives that have been established in his brother’s memory, including a scholarship fund, the Bobby Doyle Youth Running Fund and the Bobby Doyle Cardiac Awareness Endowment Fund.

“As it goes on through the years, hopefully this will be a good race for the kids to gear up for the cross-country season,” Lori Doyle said. “This will be a good way for the kids to get the ball rolling and say, ‘Let’s see how hard I worked over the summer.’ ”

And that, she says, couldn’t be a more fitting role for a race held in Bobby Doyle’s memory.

cthorn@projo.com