New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health (NYCAMH) Safety & Education Coordinator James “Jim” Carrabba was deployed to Iraq earlier this year. He left May 4 and is expected to return Oct. 13.

One of the many things Jim misses about being at home is his annual participation in the Utica Boilermaker road race. So he organized one at his air base in Baghdad, Iraq.

“We thought it would be really fun to have an event like this right on Sather [Air Base], Carrabba said via e-mail after the race. “It was a lot of work, much more than I expected. We threw all of this together in just two weeks while also fulfilling our regular duties.” On July 13 in Baghdad, 316 people ran the Boilermaker.

“It was incredible to have so many runners,” he said. “We had quite a few people tell us how much they enjoyed the race. That was very rewarding. I saw smiles on a lot of people’s faces this morning and that definitely made it all worthwhile.” Running in Baghdad, Carrabba beat his fastest Utica time. “My time was 67 minutes,” he said. “I don't think I have finished that fast in Utica.”

“It has definitely been the highlight of my deployment here,” Carrabba concluded. “I will always remember this event. It was such a great experience to run in it and to work with everybody that volunteered to help out.”