Dave Cummings looked older, so much older than an hour before, as he stared at the gym floor. His wife, Heather, massaged his aching back. A supporter applied a compression wrap to his right wrist.

He was a race car come into pit row.

And then he was up, stepping toward the free-throw line. He was clearly exhausted, but his eyes were blazing. Up and at 'em. Up and at 'em. His crew, including his old buddy Tom Radford, took slower steps toward the key. And then it all began again: The counting game to 21,000 foul shots.

That's 21,000 foul shots ... made.

Cummings, a father of three from Epsom, is founder of Hoops for Heroes. His stubborn beauty of a project is to make One Million Foul Shots to benefit the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. As of Sept. 7, he had made 934,007 hoops and his tenacity resulted in $53,643 donations made. He aims to make One Million by Veterans Day.

But on Sept. 2, he was doing something special. Something else special. Cummings set out to make 21,000 foul shots on what would have been Army Spc. Marc P. Decoteau's 21st birthday. Decoteau, a New Hampshire native, died in Afghanistan. He is one of an estimated 32 New Hampshire servicemen who have died in the war on terror.

His parents, Mark and Nancy Decoteau, first threw out the idea of 21,000 foul shots while Cummings was early in his mission to One Million.

What's 21,000 more?

In one day? OK, Cummings said. One after another, occasionally with Decoteau's family rebounding for him, he made 21,000 foul shots within 24 hours (with a few hours to spare) and made a world record in the process.

It was an emotional day for Cummings, friends and the Decoteau family. Every shot he took, he could see Marc Decoteau's No. 40 high school football jersey. The soldier's boots and sneakers were on the floor, just beyond the hoop.

And so he set, focused, and then unfocused -- letting the ball fly to the basket. He shoots. He shoots. He scored.