• Born in Concord, New Hampshire.

• Describes himself as big, loud, honest and an action junkie who can't deal with a normal, boring day-to-day job.

• Enjoys racing motorcycles, bungee jumping, racing cars and jumping out of airplanes.

• Can't live without his speed wrench, multimeter and a hammer.

Early Years

I became interested in the utility industry through the U.S. Army, which I joined in 1997. I got into this trade by accident. I wanted to be a pilot, but I was too tall at 6 feet, 11 inches. I then picked the Army's highest bonus rating, which was line work.

The Army stationed me as an apprentice at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Texas. One of my first jobs was to install 2 miles of lights on the border. It was an eye-opening experience for me to leave New England and go to work in Texas.

Day in the Life

I now work as a troubleman for National Grid out of Texbury, Massachusetts. I am responsible for handling all the emergency calls for my area. We are the first responders to all police calls, power calls and motor vehicle accidents.

At times, the incidents are severe, and as a result, people lose their lives. I've seen cars wrapped around poles and houses on fire. As a former police officer with experience in the military, however, I'm prepared to handle any situation.

Army Adventures

Along with working as a troubleman for National Grid, I'm also a sergeant in the Army. Once a month, we report for Army training, which most of the guys on the civilian side use almost as a vacation from their day-to-day lives. Linemen are hard workers, but we enjoy hanging out with one another, doing a good day's work and then having fun together at the end of the day.

Along with serving at home, we also work abroad. I'll never forget I was in Egypt during September 11. I was the most scared I've been at any time. We were working on Operation Bright Start, and we were building a distribution grid for a training facility. About 50 to 60 of us were there, and for the first time, none of us had any weapons. We left a friendly place to sleep, and when we woke up, the Egyptian tanks were facing us. It was scary couple of days. We packed up our line tools and trucks, and we barely got on the airplane. In fact, we left without our passports. We just wanted to get home.

Safety Lesson

When I began as an apprentice at Hudson Light and Power, a friend of mine had an accident. That day stuck in my mind from then on out. I know I have to pay attention to safety all the time, and I always follow all the rules.

In 2002, however, I had a piece of equipment fall apart on me. I had all my safety equipment on, but my body was burned from my head to my chest down to my knees. I was in an induced coma for a week and in the hospital for four months.

Memorable Storm

The longest storm I ever worked on was Hurricane Katrina. We sent 28 crews down to Mississippi, and we spent a month in that region restoring power and repairing damage.

Another storm I'll never forget is an ice storm that happened two years ago. Because the roads were so slick, police cars kept getting stuck beneath the wire. The other troublemen and I had to chase after the police cars to help them. The ice was so severe that as soon as we put the wire back up, it would fall down again. It was a challenge, to say the least.

Challenges and Rewards

On the civilian side, the most significant challenge is trying to come together with safety rules and regulations. Sometimes these rules make it harder to get the lights back on time. If you follow them to a tee every time, people are out of power on major storms for weeks.

Working in this industry, however, has many rewards. I love taking a victory lap after we turn the power on in an entire neighborhood. Everyone waves and says thank you. It's instant gratification that you actually helped someone.

Plans for the Future

I would definitely go into the power industry again. It's a very rewarding job. I have been doing it for 14 years, but I can't do this for another 30. My body won't last. Right now, I'm planning to keep working but retiring earlier than normal.