Marcus George ’04, M.S. ’06

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1. What inspired you to compete in triathlons?
In high school, I competed on the track and cross country teams. I lived in rural Canada, so I spent many hours training on my own. The mental strain of training combined with breaking my foot in a race while trying to qualify for nationals left me burnt out at the end of my senior year. So, I didn’t do anything particularly athletic my first year at UCLA. Then, I saw an ad for the City of Los Angeles Triathlon. The race included a 1500-meter swim around the Venice Beach pier, a 24.8 mile bike to downtown Los Angeles and a 6.2 mile run past Dodger Stadium. It looked a little crazy and mysterious – I had to do it! I wasn’t a great swimmer, but I knew I wouldn’t drown. And hey, anyone can ride a bike. Plus, I had the running down. The butterflies were beating up a storm on the morning of the race, but I finished the competition and was hooked.

2. How did you get involved with the UCLA Triathlon Team?
I was pretty gung-ho after my first triathlon and wanted to join a local club to support my new obsession. Unfortunately, UCLA didn’t have a team. One day, I was on campus and two guys noticed the race T-shirt I was wearing and came over to talk to me. They were into triathlons too! So we started going to races together. Eventually we decided to start a team on campus and get official recognition. This is not a small task when the powers that be tell you that there is already a swimming club, cycling club and running club – why does the campus need a triathlon club? That was back in 2002. I became the team president shortly afterward and since then, it has been my passion to build the triathlon program at UCLA into the top program in the nation.

3. What have you learned through your involvement on the team?
The experience of starting this program from scratch and building it to where we are today has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I’ve learned so much more than I ever could have in a classroom. The vision I had for the team was to make it into the nation’s best, on par with any of the school’s NCAA programs. So the big question was how to transform a penniless five-member club into a dominant program with a $100,000+ annual budget. One of the first issues we had to deal with was convincing enough people to join the club so we could afford to hire a coach. A lot of time was spent developing a program structure that would provide the members with something truly valuable. As the team began to grow, the workload did as well. One of the personal issues I had to deal with was learning to delegate and trust others to do a good job. I had the tendency to give someone a job but also do it myself – just in case they didn’t do a good enough job. Overcoming this issue has taught be a lot about competence and how to instill or encourage it.

Another thing I’ve learned is the importance of networking. Because I’ve been so involved in the sport, I’ve made friends and acquaintances with many coaches, race directors, team presidents, magazine owners, shop owners, national federation members and a variety of others people as well. These connections have proven invaluable in helping our program grow, especially in the area of sponsorship. Triathlons are quite expensive, and we rely on a variety of partners to help offset the costs for our members. The team has been successful at developing and maintaining these relationships because we’ve learned to give our sponsors something valuable in return for their support.

4. Describe your training regimen.
When I began training for my first triathlon, I had no idea what I was doing. I knew how to ride a bike, but had never ridden more than a few miles. I hadn’t swum since elementary school. I enrolled in a spinning class and a swimming class through the recreation department. I’ve improved a lot since then and am much more serious about my training. I now train with a coach who has worked with some of the world’s top triathlon competitors. Depending on the time of year, I spend up to 30 hours per week swimming, cycling, running, lifting weights and stretching. I’m currently preparing for the Canadian National Championships, in which I hope to qualify for the Age Group World Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland. I do a “brick” workout. If you’ve been cycling hard for an hour, it’s difficult to get off your bike and immediately start running quickly. The idea of the brick workout is to train your body to deal with this transition from cycling to running. My workout involves several intervals of a rigorous five-minute bike cycle followed by several fast laps around the track.

5. Imagine that it is now 2016. Where are you in your professional goals?
I came to UCLA to study aerospace engineering because I was excited about the exploration of space. Going to the moon or walking on Mars has been a dream of mine, and I even wrote about Star Trek in my college entrance essay. The recent emergence of the space tourism industry has been especially exciting. I witnessed the first time a manned vehicle made it to space without government funding in the flight of Burt Rutan’s SpaceShipOne. Ten years from now, tourist flights to space should be relatively routine and affordable, and I want to help make this dream a reality. As I’ve studied to become an aerospace engineer, I feel that the many hours I’ve spent training have been a benefit. I can’t think of a more constructive outlet from the stress of school, work and my daily activities. The skills and disciplines that make me a good athlete are the same that companies look for in a good employee. Focus, dedication, hard work and a commitment to excellence are just a few of the skills I’ve learned from my sport.

6. As the team president, how do you encourage others to reach their goals?
I admit that I’m a walking spokesman for triathlon. I’m always attempting to convince someone to “try a tri.” I’ve come to realize a lot of people live with a defeatist view of themselves. They’re like the flea in the glass jar. It jumps around like crazy, bashing into the lid. But eventually the flea learns to jump low enough to avoid hitting the lid. Don’t worry about the flea escaping if you take the lid off, it will never jump high enough to get out. Like the flea, many people buy into false limitations about themselves.

This is often true of athletes who focus excessively on the performances of others, getting caught up in how well they measure up. Since we all deal with these issues on some level or another, one of the biggest parts of helping others reach their goals is teaching them to set proper goals in the first place – goals that aren’t based on the performance of others. Triathlon is about challenging yourself, no matter your ability level. Dave Scott, one of the legends of triathlon, puts it best: "If you set a goal for yourself and are able to achieve it, you have won your race." Your goal can be to win first place, to improve your performance or just to finish the race – it's up to you.

7. How do the attributes of a good athlete and competent employee compare?
My dad was a nationally ranked marathon runner back in his prime, and we’ve often talked about how the skills and disciplines that lead to success in athletics also lead to success in life. I feel that athletes have an advantage because sport serves as a metaphor for life, and if you understand the lessons of the former you can intuitively apply them in the latter. Many sports teach lessons in teamwork, performing under pressure, taking risks, dealing with challenges or disappointment and a commitment to excellence. But one of the skills that is unique to triathlon is its ability to teach balance. Good triathlon competitors must excel in all aspects of the sport – swimming, cycling and running. You can’t focus on one and neglect the others. The secret of triathlon training is learning how to balance the time you spend in each sport to optimize your performance. Balance in life is required for someone to consistently perform well on a job. Neglect in one area of life will invariably affect the other areas.

8. Tell us about someone on the team who has exceeded your expectations.
It’s amazing how far some of our athletes have come in the last year. One person who joined last season could not really swim at all. When he got in the water he would sink to the bottom. Through some coaching and practice, he was at least able to move through the water, but he was slow and afraid he would not be able to complete the swim portion of the race, which usually occurs in the ocean or a lake. I think most people in this athlete’s position would have dropped out of the sport. But the way he stuck with it despite the difficulties not only attests to this athlete’s dedication, but to the support system that the team provides. We are a tight-knit group that understands each person is challenged by this sport in a unique way. We actively support each other in those challenges. The athlete who couldn’t swim has come a long way in the last year. He can now swim in the ocean for several miles without a problem and will compete in his first Ironman Triathlon in a few weeks. For someone who couldn’t swim a year ago, this is a huge accomplishment, and I’m very proud of him.

9. Throughout your competition and training, did you ever feel like giving up? If so, how did you respond to the challenge?
Several months ago, I competed in the Ford Ironman California 70.3 Triathlon in Oceanside. It was my first attempt at the half-Ironman distance, which consists of a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, and 13.1-mile run. Even good athletes take over four-and-a-half hours to complete this race, so it is important to pay attention to your nutrition to ensure an optimum performance. The human body only stores enough energy for several hours of intense exercise. If you don’t eat or drink anything to replace the energy you’ve burnt, it is only a matter of time before you begin to exhibit symptoms of low blood sugar, including general weakness, dizziness and even hallucinations. Endurance athletes affectionately call it “the bonk.” During this competition, my swim and bike felt great and I started the run feeling strong. But after several more miles, my pace began to slow significantly. I hadn’t taken in enough calories and didn’t realize I was bonking until it was too late. As I plodded through the latter miles of the race, I had tunnel vision and felt like I was wading through wet concrete. The biggest struggle was mental because I had to fight the negative self-talk that invariably begins when you are exhausted and in pain. ‘Why are you putting yourself through this? Why don’t you just quit? Or you can just stop and walk. You don’t have to tell anyone about it.’ I don’t know any magic formula for dealing with such situations. Perhaps all you can do is pray for strength and to continue on with the knowledge that each time you give up, it becomes a little easier to quit the next time. Our character is built piece by piece, by the choices we make each day, and I choose to always give my best.

10. What do you find gratifying about competing in triathlons?
Sometimes I tell people that I find other sports more fun than triathlon, but none are as fulfilling. Some people may have a hard time understanding that – especially if they have never participated in endurance sports. There is just something I find inherently satisfying about pushing the limits of what my body is capable of doing – to take this God-given talent and explore how deep it actually goes. It’s my way of knowing I’ve given all I possibly can. How many people can actually say they’ve done that? Maybe they should try it!