Rapid City native says cycling and a positive attitude saved his life

BY MICHELLE PAWELSKI

In 2005, Mark Thompson’s life changed forever.

The Rapid Valley native, or “valley rat” as he calls himself, had been sick on and off for months. “I didn’t know what was going on. I would get really sick and then get better. It was just going up and down.”

The normally active outdoorsman grew tired walking up a flight of stairs, slept more than usual, and kept losing weight. Markdidn’t think much of his sporadic illnesses until a coworker at Fisher Beverage asked him an odd question. “My friend said, ‘Your eyes are yellow. Are you wearing contacts?’” After looking in the mirror, Mark knew his symptoms had worsened – his liver was failing.

Mark checked himself into the hospital and after a week of medications, X-rays, and tests, doctors diagnosed him with Crohn’s disease, an inflammation of the digestive tract, and a disease Mark knew nothing about. “I had never heard of Crohn’s and then to be diagnosed with it.” After asking a lot of questions and doing his own research, Mark says he likely inherited genes that made him predisposed to the disease. Mark’s diagnosis came just a year after his mother, Ida, died of Lupus, another inflammatory disease.

MARK SHARES HIS JOURNEY ON YOUTUBE YOUTUBE.COM/ELEVATERAPIDCITY

by Andy Greenman

Since that initial diagnosis, Mark has had two liver transplants, kidney failure, type 2 diabetes, and a host of other ailments from the disease.

Despite it all, the 46-year-old has no complaints.

He loves life, the Black Hills area, and cycling — three things he credits to keeping himalive. “Cycling saved my life a lot of times,” the lifelong cyclist said. “When you are sick in the hospital and your heart spikes up, cycling saves you because your heart is already conditioned for that. If I was out of shape and laying there, I think there would be a whole different outcome. I don’t think I would be here.”

Mark was born at the hospital at Ellsworth Air Force Base. Prior to his birth, the Thompson family traveled all over the world while Mark’s father, Harold, Sr., served in the Air Force. After 22 years, Harold, Sr. decided to retire and chose to raise his family in Rapid City. “My dad liked it here because he liked to hunt, fish, and ATV riding.” Mark has called the Black Hills home ever since.

THOMPSON TAKES HIS REBUILT 1958 SCHWINN THROUGH DOWNTOWN'S ART ALLEY.

by Andy Greenman

“It’s a little hidden secret,” Mark said. “A lot of people know about it, but not a lot come to find out what it’s all about. Any day you can be fishing and gravel riding on the prairie or in the hills. One day I went snowboarding in the morning and went mountain biking that afternoon.”

Mark has been biking since he can remember. “I used to ride on the back of my dad’s bike in one of those old kid’s carrier seats.” When Mark started riding on his own, he was unstoppable. Mark would do Sunday rides on the base with his dad and older siblings, Harold, Jr., and Laura. At age 8, Mark began racing BMX bikes at the local track. “I’ve been riding ever since,” Mark said citing a few hiatuses when he had his transplants and a two-year stint when he first got his driver’s license.

Now, in addition to riding, he is building bikes. “I have eight bikes that I actually ride and then probably like 20 bike projects.” His collection includes a paperboy bike with front and rear baskets, a handy one for trips to the farmer’s market, a few road bikes, an older Specialized Enduro, a gravel bike, and a mountain bike. He recently rebuilt a 1958 Schwinn decking it out with hi-rise handlebars. His favorite allaround bike is his commuter. “I can do anything on that thing. I can ride it on the road, gravel, even put a rack on it and hit the grocery store. I did my 40-mile Wall (South Dakota) ride on my commuter bike.”

A SOUTH DAKOTA LICENSE PLATE ON MARK'S SCHWINN REFERS TO HIS NICKNAME HOUDAT.

by Andy Greenman

Mark does not care where he rides. He bikes anywhere from around his Rapid Valley neighborhood to the Mickelson Trail to Iron Mountain Road. “I love getting out and enjoying the sunshine. It is beautiful here. You can just go for a ride across town and see places you’d never see in a car because you are too busy in traffic and a bike takes you on a slower pace. I can ride forever.”

Biking not only keeps Mark healthy it gives him a sense of peace. “That’s why I ride my bike all the time, because I’ve been through so much that riding takes you to another place and gets you happy.”

Mark has been on a roller coaster since his diagnosis in 2005. After two years of being treated at Rapid City Regional Hospital, now Monument Health, Mark’s doctor referred him to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. “I realized then crap was getting serious.”

In June 2007, Mark and his dad made their first trip to Mayo. “We went down there, and I would get super sick again and then get better. They told me I would eventually need a transplant.” In September of that same year, Mark’s disease worsened, and he spent two months at Mayo Clinic. The search was on for a new liver. However, it was another nine months before he would get one. “Talk about stress in your life.” After a disappointing first attempt, a liver that didn’t fit, Mark received a new liver in October 2008. At the time of the transplant, he was 5’11 and 97 pounds.

The first week after his transplant, Mark started to feel better. His energy level improved, and his complexion brightened. However, in the years following that first transplant, Mark’s Crohn’s continued to attack his body. With a weakened immune system, Mark battled several other infections, his kidney began to fail, and he got type 2 diabetes, twice. He again began to deteriorate and after additional medications, treatments, and ultrasounds, doctors told him it was time for another liver. On March 23, 2020, in the beginning of the pandemic, Mark received his second liver transplant. While he feels much better, he continues to struggle with infections. Last fall, he was hospitalized for C. diff; (Clostridiodes difficile) a bacterium that causes an infection of the large intestine. On September 11, 2021, while Mark was in the hospital, his dad, who had spent years helping to care for him, died. “It was a rough time,” he said.

MARK BEGINS TO CLIMB THE LOWER HALF OF M HILL ON HIS MASI GRAVEL BIKE.

by Andy Greenman

His brother Harold, Jr., who lives in Colorado, and his sister Laura, a healthcare worker whom he lives with, continue to do everything they can for their little brother. Aside from Harold and Laura, Mark has his doctors, nurses, and a community of friends that stretches from Rapid City to Rochester.

“A lot of people ask me how I can be so positive when I have been through so much,” Mark said. “When I first got diagnosed, I went into a slump. I was playing video games, staying up late, and moping around. Then I finally realized that these people are taking the time to help me, so I better straighten up and do something. All the stuff you go through, you just have to forget about it and move on. If you complain about everything you will be miserable.”

Instead of complaining, he says, go for a bike ride.

Mark’s Mercedes emblem- shaped scar on his abdomen is from the nearly 150 staples he received during his transplants and is a constant reminder of what he has been through. Now on his third liver, Mark is doing everything he can to keep this one healthy for as long as possible. Aside from eating right, exercising, and thinking positive, Mark doesn’t worry about much. He never stresses about the future. Nor does he set long-term goals. He lives in the moment, never taking for granted life’s small gifts such as exploring the Black Hills on two wheels.

“It’s freedom. It’s therapy. You have a bad day and get on your bike and get to go and ride for a little bit. You clear your mind and just like that, life is good.” ▤