An avid sportsman who once completed an Ironman triathlon, UC Davis Athletics Director Kevin Blue has been running around since he assumed his leadership role last spring. Of course, hustling to meet donors, campus partners, fans and student-athletes is not quite the exercise he’s used to getting, but for now it’ll have to do. Blue, 33, comes from Stanford, where he was the senior associate athletics director for external relations. As a student there, he played on the men’s golf team and later showed prowess by winning the Stanford Golf Club Men’s Championship from 2013-15. For now, his outdoor pursuits are on hold while he gets his feet wet at UC Davis, but he said they inform his work leading the Aggies.
Is recreational golf on your radar at all right now?
No. I enjoy going to El Macero Country Club. Most often, I’m there to interact with our community, but practicing or focusing on it is not really a top priority. It’s more for fun.
What lessons have you learned from golf that you bring to your job?
Golf is a sport where consistency of effort over time pays results. Being prepared and having a plan for improvement and being diligent about executing that plan on a daily basis over a long period of time is really how you improve in the sport of golf. That’s how we will work to improve our organization here. So there are a lot of parallels in the process of achievement in that sport and how that corresponds to the process of organizational improvement here.
Why do you enjoy doing triathlons?
The Ironman triathlon was more of a bucket list item. Everything was kind of building toward the Ironman. It’s the same thing [with golf] — I enjoy the process of training to achieve. The sense of accomplishment from doing it is fun, but it’s really the preparation process that’s satisfying.
What do you do for relaxation when you’re away from work?
I joined CrossFit Davis several weeks ago, and I go every morning at 5:45. It’s a good group of people, it’s fun and it allows me to stay fit and fresh for the day. I’ve also been out to a few workouts with the running club Golden Valley Harriers.
What other hobbies do you enjoy?
I read a lot. I’m interested in a lot of different subjects. I find that it helps me think laterally and think in the ways that are different from my day-to-day perspective, which is important. But, otherwise, I really don’t have a lot of extra time at the moment.
How often did you hear about UC Davis’ football upset of Stanford in 2005 while you were there?
It was not brought up at Stanford. I think it was something that people tried to move beyond as quickly as possible. It’s obviously a point of pride here and it should be. It’s hopefully something we can point to proudly in the past as we continue to build toward the future.