#3 Kevin Starr -First to Surf Mavericks, AND Climb El Cap, Running a Foundation that Combats Worldwide Poverty
Rare privilege of meeting with Dr Kevin Starr, accomplished rock climber, big wave surfer and social enterprise CEO. Growing up in San Diego, Kevin fell in love with both the mountains and the ocean, started hiking and climbing around California, and went on to accomplish daring alpine ascents in the Karakorams, Peru and beyond. Moving to San Francisco, Kevin found a good mentor and also started learning how to tackle big waves like the Mavericks outside Half Moon Bay. Along the way he left a perfectly good medical career to grow the Mulago foundation that helps global social entrepreneurs design for impact at scale. Read on for how Kevin juggles a career as the CEO of Mulago, along with continuing to excel in the outdoors, all while keeping his mind and body in great shape.
Kevin's Early Days Outdoors ☀️
Growing up in San Diego, Kevin fell in love with both the mountains and ocean from an early age. His dad took him hiking and climbing around California, sparking his passion for alpine adventures. Though living inland without a car limited his beach trips, Kevin soaked up the surf scene when he could by bodysurfing and messing around on reefs.
In college at UC Santa Cruz, Kevin started kneeboarding, drawn to the tight lines and friendly vibe of winding point breaks. He now calls sticking with kneeboarding his "biggest regret" since it delayed truly learning how to surf - but I think many of us have been there!
Kevin's Proudest Climbing Accomplishments 🧗♂️
When I asked Kevin about some of his proudest moments in the mountains, he didn't hesitate to highlight his first ascent of the North Face of Triangle Tower in 1994. Joined by climbing partners Willie Benegas and Eric Brand, they completed the first route up this massive granite wall in Pakistan's Karakoram range.
The multi-week expedition took 18 days to climb up and 3 more to descend, in what Kevin described as an "utterly extraordinary experience" and "like being in space for three weeks." He went on to call Triangle Tower the "high point" of his climbing career. At over 3,000 meters (10,000 ft) high, it towers above the Mustagh glacier and everything around like "a coffee cup sat atop Mont Blanc."
Closer to home but no less monumental in my mind, Kevin fondly recalled an epic multi-day mission in Yosemite Valley climbing: The East Buttress of El Cap, East Buttress of El Cap with the Higher Cathedral Spire, and Half Dome's Regular Northwest Face all in a 3-day span with friend Willie Benegas. By today's standards, Kevin says that was "baby steps," but an immense personal achievement at the time.
Major Surfing Accomplishments 🏄♂️
While Kevin had numerous early mentors who helped shape his surfing ability, like Doc Renneker teaching him the ways of Ocean Beach, he's incredibly proud of the big wave prowess he's honed over the decades. Though he never won contests, Kevin battled to progress as a charger capable of taking off into solid 12-15 ft+ open ocean lines.
Simply sticking with surfing Ocean Beach for 30+ years is impressive in itself. Kevin has made countless deep paddle outs, endured slam after slam into that frigid Northern California brine, yet keeps coming back. He told me about regaining confidence after a bad shoulder dislocation to push back out into bigger stuff. Kevin sees that dogged persistence as maybe his strongest "talent" in the surf.
I was enthralled hearing Kevin insist the last several years have seen him improving and aiming to surf better than ever before. So many of us fall into a rut, claiming diminishing abilities with age - not Kevin. His constructive delusions ☺️ propel him to keep tweaking his technique, analyzing every aspect of his surfing game.
First to surf Mavericks AND climb El Capitan in Yosemite!
Kevin was likely the first to have surfed Mavericks AND climbed its counterpart in climbing, El Capitan! 🙌🏽
Transition From Medicine to Social Enterprise 🩺👔
Kevin ended up at UCSF for medical school, having no idea there were quality waves in San Francisco. There he met Dr. Mark Renneker (who I cannot wait to have on the podcast!), a surfer-physician known as "Doc" who helped teach Kevin the craft of riding Ocean Beach.
During a medical mission in Peru, Kevin suffered the devastating loss of his mentor, Dr. Reiner Arnhold, a renowned pediatrician who suddenly died of a stroke while trekking in the Andes. In the aftermath, Kevin grew close with Reiner's family, who had run banks for generations. To continue Reiner's work, they started the Mulago Foundation and tapped passionate young Kevin to lead it.
Over the years, juggling this new calling with medicine, Kevin realized his true passion lay in global health and development. Though he took a slower path building Mulago in the early years, Kevin is now fully devoted as its CEO, directing $25 million annually to fund healthcare ventures across poor regions of the world.
Lessons on Life Balance 🧘♂️
With so much going on professionally, how does Kevin make time for athletics he clearly loves? His perspective stuck with me:
"There is no work-life balance, there's only choice."
Rather than seeking some mythical equilibrium between realms, Kevin makes deliberate day-to-day and seasonal choices to surf, climb, and adventure. And because work is a passion too, he fully leans into that when it demands his all. But come summertime, you can bet Kevin has blocked out swaths of time for Sierra climbs.
I used to think I wanted perfect balance, but in truth I crave intensity in all areas of life during different windows of time. Blocking out designated periods for relationships, sports, and career focus makes so much more sense than expecting each day to give equal weight.
Surf Training Breakthroughs 🏄♂️
Even after surfing challenging breaks like Ocean Beach for decades (and yes, it lives up to its reputation!), Kevin maintains a growth mindset, always working to refine his technique.
For example, he's recently unlearned bad habits with his paddling and adopted a narrower, forward-leaning stance to better utilize the board's rocker. Kevin's also rebuilding his notoriously sketchy pop up takeoff from the sand up after discovering online video coaching on explosive movements (and plan to ask him for the source!).
His point that Ocean Beach does not lend itself to high volumes of wave time really hit home. I beat myself up plenty for blowing takeoffs or missing sets whenever I luck into an epic session there. Maintaining perspective is key - any wave is a gift, not a given.
Global Adventures ✈️ 🚴♂️ 🧗♀️
With constant worldwide travel for Mulago, sometimes up to 200,000 miles a year, Kevin makes it a priority to exercise daily, even if just 30 minutes. Whether it's sneaking in workouts at the crack of dawn before meetings abroad or dollar sessioning out his doorstep waves during quick trips home, Kevin does what he can to bank time moving.
And though based in San Francisco, he'll stash a shortboard in Liberia for impromptu surfaris or research new climbing zones like he just did for Malawi (granite domes intrigue him for future trips!). Kevin tries to fold outdoor time into work schedules whenever possible, but isn't afraid to pass up some adventures if it means finding more impactful entrepreneurs.
Delusional Optimism 😜
Despite his long list of alpine achievements and status as an OB legend, Kevin maintains humility about his athletic talents and insists plenty of room for improvement remains. He calls his annual ritual of declaring "this will be the best season ever!" delusional optimism, but I think it's healthy goal-setting! No matter what setbacks the last winter or waves brought, he resets in spring with dreams of new first ascents or sliding into the tube. Why not nurture grand hopes, regardless of age or past plateauing? As the poet John Greenleaf Whittier said:
"For of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these: 'It might have been!'"
Rather than lamenting lost moments, Kevin harnesses his vibrant inner optimist (okay, with a dose of delusion he admits!) to craft adventures beyond what his past self may have imagined. We all need a little more of that relentless positivity. 😎
3 KEY TAKEAWAYS If reading this has you itching for new horizons and fired up to tackle goals despite life chaos, here are my top highlights to take with you:
1️⃣ Balance Is a Myth; Choice Is Real – Forget seeking equal time for everything always. Make intentional choices day-to-day and season-by-season where you want to direct energy.
2️⃣ Coaching Ups Your Game – No matter your skill or experience level, mentors provide an immense shortcut to improving technique and boosting performance. Seek them out.
3️⃣ Optimism Over Reality Lets You Level Up – Even in the face of plateauing progress, nurture an optimistic (or slightly delusional) vision for your future capabilities. And go make it happen!
What resonated most with you from Kevin's wisdom? Let me know in the comments! If you dug this essay, please like, share with outdoorsy friends, and subscribe to stay tuned for more Ageless Athlete breakdowns. Now off to start scheming that ultimate surf trip and training plan... 😉
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