Bay Area engineer quits job to run across the country
CUPERTINO, Calif. (KTVU) - Long-distance running is a lonely sport, and Santa Clara’s Matty Gregg is running a long way!
“Oh you're crazy! That’s what I get,” said Gregg.
The 40 year old Apple Engineer will leave his job of 13 years on election day in Cupertino and embark on a 5,000 plus mile run across America. 275 days on his feet! The 22 mile a day trek will take him through 25 states as he tours much of the Southern U.S. with his final stop in his home state of New Hampshire in July of 2019.
“It’s a bucket-list item for me and I just turned 40. It’s something completely out of the norm. Something very different,” said Gregg.
It’s different alright, but not for Gregg who has run over 40 ultra-marathons and pounded out nearly 4,000 road miles. The difference on this 9 month journey is that it marks the beginning of his new political career. His goal is to meet the U.S. voters head on and find out why our country is so divided. Gregg says we need change.
“It seems like we don’t lead anymore as a nation with kindness. I would just like to see us take a step back and assume positive intent a bit more, and start with that premise.”
The wisdom he gleans from town to town Gregg says will energize him along the way and ultimately mold his platform for office in New Hampshire where he hopes to create positive change.
“I think it will be very important for me to meet people in remote towns in America in general. And I think they are going to make a difference in my life as much as I hope to someday make a difference in their's.”
Gregg’s got history behind him. His 2nd cousin is Judd Gregg the former Governor, Senator and Congressman from New Hampshire. He is also running for a cause.
“Yes! We hope to raise a million dollars!”
That money will go to the Firefighter’s Cancer Support Network a non-profit that provides care and cancer prevention training to firefighters nationwide. Rick Hutchinson is a 38 year firefighting veteran and he is humbled by Matty’s million dollar pledge.
“We know that being in the industry does take years off our lives, but it’s something that we want to do. Kind of like what Matty is doing that’s our way of helping too.”
Helping is in Matty Gregg’s DNA and he’s hoping his kindness is contagious as he begins his trek to meet America - all 5,075 miles of it. And if your counting that’s 43,000 steps a day and by the end he will have run 11 million 825 thousand strides! It all starts on election day Tuesday morning.