‘Find that Pursuit’

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Mark Allen transformed a whim into a lifelong pursuit.

Buoyed by skills and knowledge gleaned as a UC San Diego student, Allen ran his first 10K with no training, eventually going on to become one of the most decorated IRONMAN competitors of all time.

His journey began as a four-year all-American swimmer for the Tritons. Shortly after graduating in 1980 with a degree in Biology, he first saw the IRONMAN competition on television. In less than a year, he competed, jumpstarting a career that led to six IRONMAN world championships, earning a nod as “The World’s Fittest Man” in 1997 by Outside Magazine and, in 2012, being voted as “The Greatest Endurance Athlete of All Time” in a worldwide poll conducted by ESPN.

Today, Allen is an acclaimed and highly sought-after triathlon and performance coach. The author of two books, he is also an expert analyst for NBC’s annual IRONMAN coverage.

We spoke with Allen to learn his thoughts on giving the commencement speech and the wisdom he plans to impart on the Class of 2025.

What were some of your thoughts when you were first asked to be the commencement speaker?

Mark Allen (MA): I've done big things in a small sport [triathlon] and when I got the invitation, I realized that not only what I've done in triathlon, but what I've done since then has added up to something that people feel could have value and meaning for me to share with the graduates. It was a truly amazing honor to get that invitation.

Why is this such an honor for you?

MA: UC San Diego could get anybody they wanted to speak. This year, they decided that they wanted this alumni who, back in 1980, was sitting in the seats that the graduates are going to be sitting in on June 14. Everything that I've done added up to this one moment; this is a validation for everything I’ve done.

How so?

MA: UC San Diego was a real stepping stone for me. Those four years added a lot of fitness and understanding about training, integrated with biology I was learning for my degree. After I graduated, I thought, ‘that's the peak right there, it's all downhill from here.’ A year later, I ran a 10k in San Diego. Some of the other competitors who were twice my age were kicking my butt. The light bulb started to go on: maybe there is exercise after you get out of college.

A year after that, in 1982, I saw the IRONMAN on television and was just blown away by how a human body could do that. At first, I thought, ‘these people are nuts; this race can last up to 17 hours for the final finishers. Could I be a finisher of that amazing race?’ That became a pursuit.

Participating in the IRONMAN was just going to be a one-time thing. I had a degree but nothing directly related to that was calling me. But this quest to finish the IRONMAN hit a tuning fork inside of me that started humming.

In that very first IRONMAN, I was actually in the lead with the guy who was the best guy in the world at that time, but then my bike broke and I couldn't finish. To be with the best guy in the world for three or four hours of racing, that's when the real purpose of this journey that I was on became clear: maybe I can be the champion of this incredible race.

Why do you feel such a strong sense of responsibility to these graduates?

MA: Graduating college, for me, was truly an ending of everything I'd been doing in my life for 22 years. Everything had been building toward getting that degree. As I sat at my commencement, I was filled with this incredible feeling of utter excitement. For the first time in my life, I felt like I can do anything I want. I can write the script now.

But I was absolutely terrified because I had no idea what I was going to be or what I truly wanted to do. Graduation is a point of launching into what might become the thing that shapes your entire adult life. That's a big responsibility not only for the students, but for me to hopefully find words or thoughts that will stick with them. I have the opportunity to say something to them that resonates. If I affect even one person, I've succeeded.

I've watched a number of commencement speeches because I've never given one. There are some super amazing, very scripted, very thought-out speeches. Every word is perfect, every metaphor is on point, every joke is at the right spot. That's awesome, but that's not the way life is. Life is not perfect. So, I've made the decision to not have my speech written out.

I want the students to feel like I'm really talking to them and that I'm not giving them a nice package with a bow that's unrealistic. I want to give them inspiration, a reason to stand up and cheer for themselves and the courage and the confidence to not be afraid of what's next, to go for their biggest dreams. And if they do that, they might find that, as I did, going for my biggest dream turned into something even more amazing than I could have ever imagined.

What is something you hope the graduates take away from your speech?

MA: There's a difference between a job and a pursuit. A job is something that's very predictable. It doesn't have a lot of risk, and it doesn't feed your soul. However, a pursuit is something that, like me when I saw the IRONMAN, it strikes something inside of you. You may be thinking, ‘I don't even know if I'm the kind of person who can do this. But I want to try.’

A pursuit, if that gets matched with purpose, that's when your life truly becomes magical. My pursuit in the IRONMAN was going to be a 10-month thing. During that first race, as I said, I was with the best guy in the world and halfway through the bike portion, my bike breaks. But then I realized, maybe I can be the champion of this incredible race. That became the purpose.

This pursuit was matched now with a real purpose to try to see if I can be the best in the world. And that's when everything just completely exploded and took off. That's where the script of my life became something that I couldn't have ever imagined as I sat there as a UC San Diego graduate. I hope the students realize it's okay to have a job, but ultimately, find that pursuit.

Ultimately, this talk isn't about me. It's about the students. Hopefully, something will stick that gives them courage or strength or maybe just solace later when they're going through something.