Colonel runs 1,000 miles on deployment

  • Published
  • By Maj. Bob Thompson
  • Operation Northern Watch Combined Information Bureau
INCIRLIK AIR BASE, TURKEY (AFPN) --  After completing his goal of running 500 miles during a 90-day tour here, Lt. Col. Rod Matte upped his goal to 1,000 miles when his tour was extended to 150 days.

Running about the equivalent of a marathon -- 25 miles -- every two days for the last three weeks, Matte has pushed himself hard to complete his goal of another 500 miles in two months.

“For the first 500 miles, I was running 4.5 miles per day, sometimes twice a day,” said Matte who is deployed from the Air Warfare Center at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.

“I was not able to run as often during the war, so I had to run 10 to 15 miles per day for the last three weeks.”

Matte was deployed along with more than 1,400 British, Turkish and U.S. troops who made up Operation Northern Watch. They enforced the northern no-fly zone and monitored Iraqi forces to determine compliance with U.N. Security Council resolutions.

“I was here for both the beginning and the end,” said Matte. “Twelve years ago I was here for Operation Provide Comfort. I am proud to have been part of that first deployment and now the last Operation Northern Watch deployment.”

As the executive officer to the co-commanding general, the 25-year Air Force veteran led the administrative and scheduling support for the Combined Task Force Operation Northern Watch headquarters, which formally inactivates May 1.

After achieving his personal 90-day running goal of 500 miles, Matte volunteered to extend his tour here to support Operation Iraqi Freedom. He said completing the first 500 miles got him hooked and that running 1,000 miles seemed like a worthy goal.

“I have deployed several times during my 25 years in the service, and I know it is important to stay busy,” he said. “Running gives me time to mentally plan and organize before and after work. It’s a great stress reliever -- controlling weight, blood pressure and building muscle tone.” (Courtesy of U.S. Air Forces in Europe News Service)