In 1999, Rod resigned from Digital Equipment Corporation and moved to the Salish Mountains in northwest Montana. When not pitching flies at reluctant cutthroat, or stalking mule deer and elk, he spends most evenings and weekends forming and fashioning plots for science and historical fiction novels. In previous lives, he raced grand prix motorcycles at Daytona, Road America and Loudon. His Soverel 33, Assassin, terrorized the Great Lakes racing circuits. "The new owners are much better." Rod is an accomplished rifleman, archer and scuba diver. He also plays the bagpipes. He has published both short stories and poetry, but long fiction is the driving force in his writing career.

Since moving to Montana, he founded Serengeti Trading Co., maker of custom rifles and gunstocks. Serengeti also books safaris to South Africa and antelope hunts to Eastern Montana. He also plies the waters of beautiful Flathead Lake in his Serenity Crestliner boat for lake trout and whitefish, which Olivia cooks up into mouth-watering dishes.