Dale Thomson
Mont Blanc 2024
for the Perthes Kids Foundation
In the Spring of 2024, I plan to climb Mont Blanc and then ski down it. At the height of 4,800 meters, Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Europe and still the deadliest in the world. As a former Perthes Kid myself, I will be raising funds for the Perthes Kids Foundation.
![Photo607176123657_inner_23-11-976-11-23-741-976-741[13].JPG](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/497c70_4c269131f37d497d98228edba0cec0db~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_418,h_546,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Photo607176123657_inner_23-11-976-11-23-741-976-741%5B13%5D_JPG.jpg)
In September 2021, as a long-term effect of having Perthes as a child, I had a full knee replacement. This followed a total hip replacement five years before that - having suffered almost a decade of ever-increasing arthritic pain. This will be one hell of a challenge but my training effectively started the day I left the hospital and has been progressing, albeit slowly, since then! I will be doing it with four old friends, Simon Clark, Rory MacGregor, Damian Bell and Matt Harris, led by a hugely experienced mountain guide from Chamonix, Tom Grant. It will take two days but a week of preparation climbs to acclimatise to the altitude.
By then, I will be 58 years old and had a total of six operations on my right hip and leg.
Here and now, I still feel every step I take but every week I can do a bit more and my knee complains just that wee bit less.
Completing this challenge would be a huge achievement and draw a line under a lifetime of having to cope with Perthes and its impact in later years. However, as much as I am doing it for me, I am also doing it to show all of those kids with Perthes, and their parents, that you can beat it and not let it limit what you can ultimately achieve in life.
As I prepare to go on this journey to the summit, I will blog and post in the hope that you can spare a few quid to motivate me but more importantly to help provide something that my mum or I never had when I was young. The Perthes Kids Foundation UK provides relief to children suffering from Perthes Disease by holding annual camps. They also support them and their families by providing information, advice and support. With a condition so rare (it is estimated to have a prevalence of 6 per 100,000) it’s really important for the kids and their parents to know they are not alone.
I am starting my fund raising a long way in advance of the climb, so I am hoping to raise a decent amount! If it goes over £5,000, I will also donate some of your sponsorship to Arthritis Research and St Albans City Hospital (via The West Hertfordshire Hospital Charity), where I got my new hip and knee. Mr Tim Waters and his team at St Albans City Hospital are nothing short of miracle workers and I would like to acknowledge what they have done for me and countless others. I am seeking corporate sponsorship or if you are a mountain gear company, product endorsement (yes, I am paying for myself but a wee bit of help wouldn’t go amiss!). Please use the contact form to get in touch.
I am delighted to announce my first corporate sponsor, Pansanity Fitness, one of the best gyms in North London. Great gym, range of new machines and free weights, open 24/7, with a lovely bunch of guys and girls - who can cater for any health and fitness need. Please please hit up logo for more...
My story.....
When I was around seven, I was diagnosed with Perthes Disease or Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, to give it its full name. It involves avascular necrosis of the femoral head or, in straight forward terms, the blood supply to the hip bone stops for a couple of years and the head of the femur crumbles. Once the blood supply resumes you are either left with a hip bone outside of the socket or a deformed femoral head. There are various ways of dealing with it, the most common these days being an osteotomy, which is basically a hip pinning procedure to ensure the femur reforms within the socket. I believe that I was one of the first in the country to have this done. However, before we got to that stage, I spent a year in traction and a year in callipers, which were brutal contraptions for keeping weight off the bad leg.
After so much time with my legs being non-weight bearing, I had to learn how to walk again. I remember my first steps after the operation. Miss Penny was the physio at the princess Margaret Rose Hospital in Edinburgh (since redeveloped for housing). All the kids were a bit scared of her, she was a bit fierce but we all respected her. She was great at her job. First day standing between parallel bars I walked about four steps - which Miss Penny said was about two too many. She was right, the next day I couldn’t take a single step! However, I continued to improve and was eventually fully mobile and had no pain. Then, after a year or so, I had the pins removed. Recovery was going well until my femur decided to pop out of the socket! The fix was to put both legs in plaster, attached a clamp between then and slowing turning my feet inwards. A few degrees every day, until it popped back in. As you can imagine, near the end of the procedure it was agony, my toes were almost facing each other. However, it worked and I made a full recovery.
However, I was warned that I may develop early onset arthritis. I am now aware that nearly 100% of Perthes kids do in later life.
Almost on cue, in my mid 40’s my hip started to deteriorate, eventually I had almost no cartilage left and after seven years of suffering and being told by various doctors that I was too young, I eventually found Mr Tim Waters at St Albans City Hospital. Those that know me will attest that there were days I could hardly walk and would be in constant pain. Those that know me best, my family, will remember how it changed me as a person. I was anti-social and depressed. I was short tempered and constantly tired. The impact of the new hip was immediate and meant that after several years not skiing, only six months later, I was back on the hill.
This hiatus lasted for about three seasons but as I had to wait so long to get my hip done, my knee had likewise started to go. It was useless trying to push myself further. So, it was back to Mr Waters, who once again, following Covid, put me under the knife. However, he was clear that the hip was a breeze compared to the knee, a much more complex and sensitive joint. He was spot on and the first three weeks were without doubt the hardest of my life. The pain was constant and even with pain management, sleep was more of a concept than an actual thing. Then you have to come off the heavy meds and you suffer withdrawal and all the fun that entails! Having said that, it eventually eased and although here and now, although I still have some mild discomfort, my life is once again free of arthritis. The pain of the immediate aftermath of the operation, is now just a fuzzy memory. I’m back in the gym, with the legend that is George Fereos of Trainwise, who clearly understands how rehab works and is totally committed to helping me achieve my goals.
What it’s meant to me is complex. If I had to do it again, I am not actually sure that I would have it any other way. As a kid, I missed three years schooling but have had a pretty good professional career. In terms of physical achievement, I have played for Saracens Under 21’s, Old Ashmolian’s for 12 years, skied for a living and had a shedload of fun.
Being in hospital also taught me compassion and how to treat those with disability in later life. It’s all about perspective. Given that I have an autistic daughter, that perspective has been immensely valuable. At the end of the day there are so many in this world who are worse off than me and sharing my story often means that others share back and you bond over that kind of thing – everyone has a story. I also think that it’s probably made me a better person. My career has been all about making a positive difference to the lives of other, I have a strong social conscience. I want to make a difference. Hopefully, your kids will also be able to take the some of the positive things about their disability into their later life and be better people for it.
The thing about Perthes is that you don’t go through it on your own. My mother was a rock. She never missed one day visiting me in hospital in almost three years, despite being a single mum and keeping down two jobs at the time. There are so many doctors, physios and nursing staff to whom I also owe a huge debt of gratitude (I just wish our government actually valued them as much as I do). There are so many friends who have stood with me through the tough times. Finally, there is my wife, Des, who has put up with my arthritis for nearly a decade and my daughter Jo, who is an inspiration and drives everything I do. Words are inadequate.
So that’s my story and if you’ve read this far, thanks for doing so. If you donate to this challenge, 100% of your donation will go to these charities (minus Go Fund Me commission). I am open to corporate sponsorship or if you are a mountain gear company, product endorsement (yes, I am paying for myself but a wee bit of help wouldn’t go amiss!). Regardless, please can I ask you to share this post on whatever platform you feel might be appropriate. The wider this goes the more we can raise.
All the best and thanks again for reading.
Dale 2022
So, whilst I had a long interlude from its impact, from my teens to mid 40’s, my Perthes journey has essentially lasted all of my life.
