I’ve no fear, says deaf and blind wing walker

A DEAF and blind man completed a wing walk at 6,000ft for charity.

Tony Lawton, 74, from Caversham, has been taking on “crazy” challenges over the past nine years since his wife Chrissie passed away.

He said he wanted to push himself to the limit and raise money for the Reading Association for the Blind.

He completed the 130mph wing walk on a Forties Boeing Stearman biplane at RFC Rendcomb Airfield, near Cirencester.

“It went really well,” said Mr Lawton. “It was scary and wild at times but amazing.

“The plane obviously jerks and shakes and I almost thought it would fall apart. After a couple of minutes I realised that was normal as it was very windy up there. It was also noisy, especially with my hearing aid.

“I started to relax and tried to put one of my arms out and it was fantastic. The whole experience lasted 10 minutes and was amazing.” He completed the challenge with his friend Bob Bristow, who is chairman of trustees for the charity.

Mr Lawton, who used to work for the Environment Agency collecting data, raised more than £2,015. He said: “I’m really pleased.”

Over the years, he has sailed across the Southern Indian Ocean with the Jubilee Sailing Trust, cycled across the UK from coast to coast on a tandem bike, experienced driving up to 100mph, completed a 13,000ft skydive, abseiled down a bridge and had an “exhilarating” zip wire experience.

He said: “I have no fear at all. All my life I’ve been taking risks and it’s something I do all the time.

“When Chrissie died I decided to do something crazy the year after and then thought I would carry on. The skydive was amazing. I wasn’t happy about being pushed off the plane and free falling for five minutes but it was a magical moment when the parachute opened and we were gliding around like a bird.”

Mr Lawton, who suffers from usher syndrome, is now planning his next challenge which he thinks will be “something to do with water”.

He said: “My condition does not stop me and I refuse to be different. Some days I struggle but I’m only human.”

Meanwhile, a book about Mr Lawson’s life is being written by John Moore, who is a friend.

The book is called Silent Pigeons Coo and subtitled “One man’s story of overcoming progressive sensory loss”.

Mr Moore, a former advertising copywriter, interviewed Mr Lawson over four years to gather all the material.

He said: “I knew his family wanted his story written up and as I heard more and more about his life, I thought it was a story worth telling — he really is remarkable and this is a memoir telling exactly how he is.

“For example, in the Fifties it was mandatory for blind children to go to special schools but Tony insisted on going to a regular school in Caversham.

“He went on to earn a degree in engineering and built a career for himself. He is so adventurous and has done so many things.

“Writing the book was a challenge as Tony could not make any notes and I had to read most of it back to him — sometimes he was in tears as some of it is very emotional.”

Mr Moore is planning to launch the book during the Henley Literary Festival in October.

Mr Lawson, who has two daughters and three grandchildren, said: “It has taken John a couple of years to get a sense of it, so I said, ‘I’ll believe it when I see it’.”

To donate to the Reading Association for the Blind, visit https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/
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