He competed in track and field in Santa Rosa High School, and was given a scholarship to Brigham Young University.
[1] He met his wife Lynne Tanner at the finish line of the Dipsea Race.
In July 2022, he walked ten kilometers of the Deseret News Marathon with a walker.
In 2013, Amby Burfoot calculated that Beardall ran about 280,000 miles in his lifetime, the most he could find.
[1] Beardall died of bladder cancer on November 6, 2023, in Santa Rosa, California, aged 87.