BRACE FOR IOWA: Clubfoot as a baby failed to thwart Clay Curts' need for speed

Editor's Note: Clay Curts' last name was misspelled in a previous version of this article. It has been corrected to reflect the proper spelling.

As any mom would be, Clay Curts’ mother was distressed 22 years ago to learn her newborn baby had clubfoot deformity in both legs.

Kelly Lawler still gets emotional when she recalls what was her worst fear − that her tiny son might have to undergo invasive surgery so early in life.

“I panicked,” she said. “But we were so blessed to have a doctor in the room who had delivered a clubfoot baby a few weeks earlier and knew what to do.”

She was in an Indiana hospital at the time, but the doctor told her to reach out to the University of Iowa and speak with Dr. Ignacio Ponseti. His incredible Ponseti Method for treatment of the clubfoot deformity, which he developed nearly 80 years ago, is still generally considered the “gold standard.”

Curts was dealt a crippling blow merely a week into his life.

“Clay was just seven days old when he got his first set of casts,” said Kelly. “Dr. Ponseti himself saw him through all his treatments.”

The doctor's method consists of gentle manipulation of the feet followed by the application of a new plaster cast weekly, each advancing the feet slightly closer to normal alignment. Once aligned, the casts come off and special shoes with a connecting bar – what is now called the “Iowa Brace” – is worn at night to keep the feet straight.

The meticulous methods had a life-changing impact.

At age two, he was running around like any other kid on the block.

“It was a miracle,” his mother said.

FROM DEBILITATING CASTS TO RACING

Flash to the present and you can find Curts whipping around the regional stock car circuit at speeds of up to 90 MPH, bumper-to-bumper with other talented drivers.

Curts is considered a rising star in the Mid-Am Racing Series, where stock cars compete at nine oval track speedways in nearby states. He is building an impressive career record and was named Rookie of the Year in 2022.

And now, even though he has no recollection of his struggles with clubfoot, Curts has partnered with Clubfoot Solutions. This non-profit organization, spun off from the University of Iowa, works to help children born with clubfoot deformities around the world. Curts will promote clubfoot awareness for a full year under a sponsorship agreement that includes a flashy new wrap for his car.

In fact, Friday night, May 5, racing fans at Hawkeye Downs Speedway and Expo Center in Cedar Rapids get their first glimpse of Curts’ #88 Clubfoot Solutions car design. The wrap features distinctive green and black colors with Iowa Brace lettering on the hood and the outline of baby feet and toes on the sides. It also calls attention to World Clubfoot Day June 3.

More: New book tells amazing story of Ponseti and his miraculous method

Curts said he partnered with Clubfoot Solutions to support the non-profit’s continuing quest to provide access to treatment for children worldwide.

“Being born with clubfoot deformity does not limit a child’s ability if they can get treatment,” he said.

Curts is proof of that.

“We’re calling him Clubfoot Fast Clay Curts,” said Todd Becker, managing director for Clubfoot Solutions. “We’re delighted to bring him on as an ambassador.”

Becker pointed out that the non-profit now has two prominent race car drivers working to promote clubfoot awareness.

LOCAL NASCAR STAR SUPPORTS CAUSE AS WELL

Local professional NASCAR driver Joey Gase has been supportive for several years and is scheduled to race at Hawkeye Downs Friday as well. In fact, he and Curts are friendly competitors who finished in the first and second positions of the same race a year ago.

Gase will drive his #35 car displaying a similar Clubfoot Solutions design for the first time in a special race in Chicago on July 1. It’s said to be the first-ever NASCAR Cup Series street race in the heart of downtown Chicago, circling through Grant Park.

“Joey will also take his car to Luries Children’s Hospital there where kids being treated for clubfoot will be able to sign it before the race,” Becker said.

A Cedar Rapids native, Gase broke into the NASCAR level at age 18 in 2011. He made his first Daytona 500 start in 2017, finishing 23rd and earning him top finishing rookie honors. He has compiled multiple awards for his hard work supporting various charities over the years.

“This Chicago race will be interesting,” he told me. “There’s never been a NASCAR race on a street course.” He said he will be glad to show off the Clubfoot Solutions car at Luries Hospital to the young patients and doctors there.

BORN TO RACE

Curts lives in Monee, Illinois, as do his mother and stepfather. He is employed in railroad construction, and was raised in a family of race car drivers and track managers on both sides. He started racing at age 16 in four-cylinder cars, then moved up to the Mid-Am eight-cylinder type. He'd love to get a whack at NASCAR if funding materializes.

Becker says about 200,000 children worldwide are born with a clubfoot deformity each year, including roughly 5,000 in the United States. Virtually all of those born in this country get treatment, but only about 25 percent do so in poorer countries.

More: 'Just to help the kids': Iowa nonprofit keeps special clubfoot braces flowing to Ukraine

Clubfoot Solutions has assisted in the training of doctors worldwide in the Ponseti Method under the direction of Dr. Jose Morcuende, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at the university. It also ships thousands of Iowa Braces to foreign locations at cost, or in many cases, no cost. Sales of the braces at market prices in the U.S. help fund this activity.

The organization recently expanded its scope by adding Wishbone Medical, a distributor which is also helping to sponsor its current fund-raising campaign titled “Footprints of Hope.”

Kelly notes that Dr. Ponseti was a weathered 86 years of age at the time he treated Curtis at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Tom Cook of Iowa City, who recently authored a book on the UI legend, said Dr. Ponseti was still seeing patients when he died at age 95.

The Illinois racing mom, who was applying decals to her son’s race car this week, says she is still filled with gratitude over Curts' treatment as a baby.

More: Canadian mother finds hope here for son with clubfoot

“It has a 96 percent success rate with a non-invasive treatment,” Kelly Lawler said. “What mother would not want that for her child?”

FOR MORE INFORMATION:  https://clubfootsolutions.org, https://joeygaseracing.com and search Clay Curts Racing on Facebook.

Richard Hakes is a regular contributor to the Iowa City Press-Citizen.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Clubfoot doesn't derail Clay Curts' need for speed