On multiple occasions, they had to drop bombs on enemy combatants at close range. He also got his ears rang by lots of bombs. “I called myself the lawn dart,” he said, adding that once during a training exercise, “I landed on the tarmac and smashed my head.” Faster yet since he was a saw gunner loaded down with heavy weaponry. At 6 feet, 4 inches and 200 pounds, Watts dropped like a lead balloon. The Rangers are known for parachuting into danger zones and airfield seizures. By the end, he was among a small number to make it into the 75th Ranger Regiment.Īfter five tours of duty, the physicality of the job took a toll on his body. After the first day, that number went down to 150. He went through the Ranger indoctrination program that Watts described as a “month of hell.” Intense physical training combined with ridiculous time hacks and lots of pushups designed to push you to the limits. Watts had a cousin who was an Army Ranger, so he thought he’d check that out. Initially, they wanted to go into the Marines to go to Camp Pendleton, but after seeing a couple guys they didn’t care for in the recruiting line in front of them, they switched course and went over to the Army. Joining the military had been his buddy’s idea.
“I needed to straighten myself out first,” he said.
He’d initially attended Casper College after graduating from high school, but found himself partying and “letting the college lifestyle” put his scholarships in jeopardy. As a boy, the Casper native had wanted to be in the military, but the desire waned in his teens. Michael Watts, left, with other Army Rangers serving in one of his five tours of duty in Afghanistan. Swallowing your pride and admitting you have problems is much tougher.” “I’m not ashamed to cry on a public platform because I want people to see that it’s more courageous to actually make yourself vulnerable and say, ‘Hey, I need help,’” Watts said. He recently dropped his seventh episode and continues to be surprised by the degree of which this once guarded, and intensely private, special ops Ranger can now speak openly and with raw honesty, often finding himself on the verge of tears as he talks about his own struggles with substance abuse and suicide. Watts told Cowboy State Daily he wasn’t sure what to expect, but realized he struck a nerve with himself and others. In September, he launched the first episode of his new podcast, “My Life and the Start of the Shadow War,” that has since been downloaded more than 100 times. When his spiraling drinking problem got serious enough to cost him his marriage and subsequent relationship with a woman he deeply loved, Watts realized it was time to be honest with himself – and others – about what’s really going on. Inside, however, he’s wrestling with his own demons. On the outside, Watts is a successful guy with a good job and stellar military history. Now he’s 34 and a field engineer for a directional drilling company in Casper.
He left the military and returned to Casper in 2014 after five years of service. ***For All Things Wyoming, Sign-Up For Our Daily Newsletter***Īdmitting he had problems was the hardest thing for Michael Watts.Īfter five tours in Afghanistan as an Army Rangers Special Op, Watts tamped down his battle scars with alcohol and denial.
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