Run Rudolph Run: Running, walking, skipping to raise awareness and funds for arthritis research

When it came to walking and general mobility, Colin Dowse was a late bloomer. He was 3, nearly 4, when he learned to walk, having scooted around until then, on his behind. By the time he was 6 years old, he walked with an obvious limp. He didn’t run around and play tag or participate in sports. He complained of aches and pains in his joints. All of which was alienating for the child and tormenting for his parents.

“My family took me out of school quite a bit,” said Dowse, 19. “I’d see specialist after specialist, but we got no information about what was going on.”

The Carmel Valley native was 13 when a pediatric rheumatologist did an MRI and diagnosed him with Ankylosing Spondylitis — a form of arthritis localized to his lower spine and pelvis — reportedly one of the most painful forms of arthritis there is.

Carmel Valley native Colin Dowse. (Courtesy photo)

“The idea of arthritis in a kid seemed absurd, but it’s actually not super rare. I began taking Humera injections, and in the course of one week, I went from a lifetime experience of not being able to walk without pain, plus a noticeable limp and sleepless nights, to having it almost vanish,” said Dowse, who is currently a film major at Boston’s Emerson College.

Raising a child unable to run around with other kids, who struggled to climb up into the school bus and who could not play sports in middle school had been heartbreaking for his mom, Loree Dowse, who wanted her son to experience a typical, active, engaged childhood.

“We were so relieved to get a diagnosis for Colin,” she said, “because now we had a name for it and a protocol — a way forward. While there are risks to taking biologic drugs like Humera, cancer being one of them, we decided in favor of giving Colin a quality of life. His mobility went from being almost none to being able to run, ride a bike, be active and engaged in the world.”

Nearly four years ago, Colin Dowse’s grandmother, Karen Curtis, mindful of her grandson and others like him, cofounded the Arthritis Research Coalition. Since then, the Coalition has raised more than $1 million, says the Salinas resident, which has been donated to the Stanford Immunology and Rheumatology Research Labs and The Russell/Engleman Rheumatology Research Center at UCSF.

“Our Scientific Advisory Committee, consisting of leading local orthopedists and rheumatologists,” said Curtis, “approves and monitors funding for research that sheds new light on how the disease develops, so they can identify remedies that can impact its progress. There are many different forms of arthritis; it takes a village to address this. That we have two world-class research labs in our back yard drives us to support them, knowing we can make a difference.”

Running for those who can’t

On Dec. 14, the Arthritis Research Coalition will host its fourth-annual “Run Rudolph Run” walk/run to raise funds and awareness via an active-outdoors celebration of the season. Starting at Lovers Point Park in Pacific Grove, the event will progress on a 3.1-mile “approved-distance” out-and-back course along the Recreation Trail flanking the Monterey Bay.

The Arthritis Research Coalition (ARC), was established by Jim Fuqua, Karen Curtis, and Janeen Tuitupou after the National Arthritis Foundation removed its local presence. Before that, the organization had been sponsoring the annual Jingle Bell Run in the same location.

“Once we established the ARC, we brought back the community fundraising event as ‘Run Rudolph Run,’ a fun family event that hosts, in addition to the 5K, a 1K Elf Run for little kids to run their own race, escorted by elves,” said Fuqua, whose daughter was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in her 20s.

“The only treatment back then was to inject gold into veins to help mitigate pain and foster joint mobility,” Fuqua said. “It sounds like quackery, but it was the standard treatment at the time. Today, biologic drugs like Humera have made a huge difference for people with arthritis, which is precisely why we need to continue to fund research.”

Run Rudolph, Run, typically attracts more than 1,000 participants, most clad in holiday attire. The Shinsho-Mugen Daiko Taiko Drummers and Pat DuVal, the legendary “Singing Sheriff,” add rhythm and song to the run. Register for the family- and dog-friendly event at https://arthritisresearchcoalition.org/rrr .  Folks also may register on-site on race day.

If you go
What: Run Rudolph, Run 5k run/walk for the Arthritis Research Coalition

Where: Lovers Point Park, 631 Ocean View Blvd., Pacific Grove

When: Saturday, Dec. 14, from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m.

To participate visit https://arthritisresearchcoalition.or...