Brad Kearns

Last updated
Brad Kearns
Personal information
Born (1965-02-04) February 4, 1965 (age 58)
Los Angeles, California
Sport
CountryFlag of the United States.svg  United States
Sport Triathlon (1986-1995)
Speed golf (2014-present)
High jump (2005-present)

Brad Kearns (born February 4, 1965 in Los Angeles, California) is an American author, podcast host, professional speed golfer, masters high jumper, and former professional triathlete. Kearns performed on the international triathlon circuit from 1986 to 1995 and won 31 events worldwide. He is currently a top-20 world-ranked professional speed golfer, and 2020 top-3 world-ranked masters age 55-59 high jumper. In 2018, Kearns broke the Guinness world record for the fastest single hole of golf ever played (minimum length, 500 yards).

Contents

Athletic career

Kearns on his way to winning the Eilat international triathlon, 1991 Kearns at the Eilat international triathlon, 1991.jpg
Kearns on his way to winning the Eilat international triathlon, 1991

Kearns' start in endurance sports was at Taft High School in Woodland Hills, California, where he ran cross country and track from 1980 to 1982. He was 17th in the 1981 National Junior Olympics Cross Country meet at age 15, and a finalist at the National Junior Olympics Track & Field Championships 1500 meters at age 16, winning his semi-final heat in 4:06, and achieving a national ranking of 12th in his age division. He placed 5th in the Los Angeles City Cross Country Championships in 1981, setting a school record of 15:24 on the Pierce College course that held for nearly 20 years, and still ranks in the top 60 all-time LA City section performances as of 2015. In track and field, he set a Los Angeles City Cee Division (i.e. - Frosh/Soph) record, winning the 1600 meter title in 1981 in 4.26.05. As a senior in 1982, Kearns placed 4th in the Los Angeles City section 1600 meters in 4:23, coming from 50 meters behind the pack on the final lap to take the final qualifying spot for the California state high school championships. At the state meet at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, Kearns was seeded 24th out of 27th qualifiers, but was a surprise qualifier for the finals. He set a personal record of 4:19.30 to place fifth in his qualifying heat, again passing several runners with a final lap split of 59 seconds. He placed 9th in the state final 1600 meter race in a time of 4:20. [1]

Kearns graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a B.A., cum laude, in business/economics in 1985. In 1982, as a freshman on the varsity cross country team, he placed 37th in the Pacific Coast Athletic Association cross country championships at Woodward Park in Fresno. The meet was held in conjunction with the Pac-10 cross country championships, and Kearns placed 93rd overall in the 10k race in a time of 32:44. [2] His running career at UCSB was riddled with injuries and illness, leading him to embark on triathlon efforts. In his first year of cycling on the UCSB club team, Kearns was California Collegiate Cycling Association state champion in the Novice B division in the 10-mile time trial with a time of 24:27.

After an 11-week stint at the KPMG accounting firm in downtown Los Angeles, Kearns decided to pursue a career on the professional triathlon circuit. Over nine years on the professional circuit, career highlights include wins at the 1991 National Bud Light USTS Series/Coke Grand Prix Championship, the 1991 USA Triathlon National Sprint Championship, the 1991 International Triathlon Union Pan-American Championship, [3] a streak of seven consecutive wins in 1991-1992 and a year-end #3 world-ranking in 1991. [4]

Kearns en route to November, 1986 Desert Princess victory; some multisport experts call it the greatest upset of all time Desertprincess.jpg
Kearns en route to November, 1986 Desert Princess victory; some multisport experts call it the greatest upset of all time

In November, 1986, as an unranked rookie professional, Kearns upset world's #1 duathlete Kenny Souza and world #1 ranked triathlete Scott Molina [5] at the inaugural Desert Princess World Championship Series Run-Bike-Run event (10k-62k-10k), with a time of 2:44. Six weeks later, under pressure to legitimize his fluke victory against the two world leaders and many other top professionals from both the duathlon and triathlon circuits, Kearns shattered the course record and beat his nearest competitor by five minutes, in a time of 2:38:47. At the final race in the series in February, 1987, Kearns placed 4th to easily claim the first Duathlon World Championship Series title. At this event he became the first athlete in history to use aerodynamic handlebars in a multisport event, debuting a handcrafted Scott DH handlebar [6] from inventor Boone Lennon. In moving from 27th place to 4th place during the 62k bike segment, many competitors were availed a glimpse at the aerodynamic advantage provided by the DH bars, and they soon became popular on the circuit.

Over the seasons of 1990 and 1991, Kearns had 15 first-place finishes at major races and 33 top-5 finishes. In world championship competition, he placed 5th at the long course championships in Nice, France (1988), 6th at the Olympic distance world championship in Kelowna, B.C. (1988) and 5th at the ITU Olympic distance world championships in Muskoka, Ontario (1992). [7] Over the ensuing 28 years, Kearns has been the last USA athlete to place top-5 at ITU Olympic distance worlds. In 1991, Kearns won the ITU World Cup/Pan American Championship event at Olympic distance (1.5k-40k-10k) in Ixtapa, Mexico by a record margin of five minutes. In 1993, Kearns won the richest sprint distance triathlon in the history of triathlon, the DCA Atlanta event (1k-20k-5k), earning $11,750 in the 51-minute race.

Later athletic career

Kearns playing Speedgolf at the world championships at Bandon Dunes Brad Kearns at Brandon Dunes playing speedgolf, 2014.jpg
Kearns playing Speedgolf at the world championships at Bandon Dunes

Kearns' current competitive focus is the unique sport of Speedgolf, and he is a four-time top-20 finisher in the World Professional Speedgolf Championships. In Speedgolf tournaments, competitors run through the round at high speed, carrying only a handful of clubs. Both minutes and strokes are added together to achieve a Speedgolf total score. Kearns was a professional competitor in the late 1990s, placing 8th in the 1996 World "Extreme Golf" Championships in San Diego. In 2014, he returned to professional competition for the first time in 18 years. He placed 20th in the 2014 World Speedgolf Championships at Bandon Dunes, Oregon, shooting 83 in 51 minutes for a Speedgolf score of 134.12. [8] In 2015, Kearns repeated his 20th-place finish in the professional division of the World Speedgolf Championships on Oct 19-20 at the Glen Club in Chicago, IL. His 36-hole score was 289. In 2016, Kearns placed 19th in the professional division of the World Speedgolf Championships on Oct 17-18 at the Glen Club in Chicago, IL.

Kearns practicing for the Speedgolf single-hole Guinness World Record, where he carries only a 3-wood for all shots Brad highknees.jpg
Kearns practicing for the Speedgolf single-hole Guinness World Record, where he carries only a 3-wood for all shots

In 2018, Kearns twice broke the Guinness World Record for the fastest single hole of golf ever played by an individual (minimum hole length of 500 yards.) On May 8, 2018, at the Bing Maloney Golf Course in Sacramento, CA, Kearns played the 503-yard ninth hole in one minute, 40.24 seconds, taking ten seconds off of the previous record held by Steve Jeffs of England. On June 1, 2018, at the Woodley Lakes Golf Course in Van Nuys, CA, Kearns played the 503-yard fourth hole in one minute, 38.75 seconds. Using only a single club, a 3-wood, Kearns scored a birdie four on the par-5 hole, sprinting full speed between shots.

Kearns clearing the high jump bar at 5'4" (1.62m) in 2016 at age 51 BestHighJumpPhoto.png
Kearns clearing the high jump bar at 5'4" (1.62m) in 2016 at age 51

Kearns is also an avid high jumper and sprinter. In February 2020, competing in the high jump in the masters age 55-59 division in Santa Monica, CA, he cleared 5'0" (1.52m), which ranked him #1 in the USA and #3 in the world as of May, 2020. [9] In 2016 at age 51, Kearns cleared 1.65m (5'5"), in the high jump at a practice session, matching the All-American standard for the 50-54 age group. [10] At Placer High School track practice, Kearns clocked times of 13.0 for 100 meters and 59.6 for 400 meters at age 48. At age 49, he delivered a 59.6 in the 400 meters. Kearns ran in the 50s at age 50 with another 400 meter time trial.

Publishing and coaching

Kearns has self-published several books [11] and written three published by McGraw-Hill: Breakthrough Triathlon Training (2005) ISBN   0071462791, How Lance Does It (2006) ISBN   0071477403, and How Tiger Does It ISBN   0071545646. Kearns created and produced the Auburn Triathlon in Auburn, [12] for 11 years. He was the founder and executive director of a kids fitness program called Running School, [13] delivering fitness and healthy lifestyle programming to students at partner elementary schools in Northern California and Nevada.

Kearns doing his daily chest freezer cold water therapy Brad in ice Closeup.jpg
Kearns doing his daily chest freezer cold water therapy

Since 2008, Kearns has worked with Mark Sisson to create the Primal Blueprint books and evolutionary-based diet, exercise and lifestyle movement. In 2012, Kearns did a 22-city tour across America deliver the Primal Blueprint Transformation Seminar. [14] From 2010-2014, Kearns was the director of 9 PrimalCon healthy lifestyle retreats in cities across North America. [15] He and Sisson co-authored the book Primal Endurance in 2016, The Keto Reset Diet in 2017, Keto For Life in 2020, and Two Meals A Day in 2021. The Keto Reset Diet became a New York Times bestseller in October 2017, reached #4 in its non-fiction category, and briefly ranked as the #1 bestselling book overall on amazon.com.

Kearns hosts the B.rad Podcast, covering health, fitness, peak performance, happiness, and longevity, with an emphasis on toning down the overly intense and self-important competitive disposition in favor of cultivating a pure motivation and releasing the attachment of self-esteem to the outcome of your peak performance pursuits. He has interviewed numerous high profile guests, including: NY Times bestselling authors Mark Manson ( The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck ), John Gray ( Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus ), Melissa Urban (Whole30), Gretchen Rubin (The 4 Tendencies) Seth Godin (This Is Marketing), Dan Millman (The Way Of The Peaceful Warrior), and John Assaraf (The Answer); top podcasters Ben Greenfield, Abel James, Drew Manning, and Luke Storey; ancestral health leaders Mark Sisson, Dr. Peter Attia, Dr. Cate Shanahan, Robb Wolf, Dr. Shawn Baker, and Dr. Paul Saladino; fitness icons Laird Hamilton, Gabby Reece, Dr. Kelly Starrett, Dr. Phil Maffetone, and Brian MacKenzie; triathlon legends Mark Allen and Dave Scott; Olympic 800-meter runner Nick Symmonds; and Time magazine 2017 Co-Person of the Year Dr. Wendy Walsh.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris McCormack (triathlete)</span> Australian triathlete

Chris McCormack, also known as Macca, is an Australian triathlete. McCormack is a two-time winner of the Ironman World Championship, winning the titles in 2007 and 2010. He is also the winner of the 1997 International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Cup Series, the 1997 Triathlon World Championships, and the 2012 Long Distance World Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kris Gemmell</span> New Zealand triathlete

Kris Gemmell is a New Zealand triathlete, and 2002 World Aquathon Champion in Cancún, Mexico. He has also competed in the 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games finishing 6th and 5th respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alistair Brownlee</span> British triathlete

Alistair Edward Brownlee MBE is a British triathlete. He is the only male athlete to hold two Olympic titles in the individual triathlon event, winning gold medals in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games. He is also a four-time World Champion in triathlon being Triathlon World Champion twice and World Team Champion twice, a four-time European Champion, and the 2014 Commonwealth champion. Brownlee is the only athlete, male or female, to have completed a grand slam of Olympic, World, continental and Commonwealth championships. Brownlee is also a one-time world champion in aquathlon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrea Hewitt</span> New Zealand triathlete

Andrea Hansen is a New Zealand triathlete who placed third at the 2009 ITU Triathlon World Championships and competed at the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francisco Javier Gómez Noya</span> Spanish triathlete

Francisco Javier Gómez Noya is a Spanish triathlete. He is the winner of five ITU Triathlon World Championships, he holds three ITU Triathlon World Cup titles, and won the Silver medal for Spain at the 2012 Summer Olympics in men's triathlon. He has also won world titles for Ironman 70.3 and XTERRA Triathlon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Bennett (triathlete)</span> American triathlete

Laura Marie Bennett is an American professional triathlete. She placed fourth in the women's triathlon at the 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2012, she finished 17th at the London Olympic Games. She earned a silver medal at the World Triathlon Championships in 2003 and bronze medals in 2004, 2005, and 2007. She has also raced at the Half-Ironman distance, placing 5th at the 2009 Ironman 70.3 World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonny Brownlee</span> British triathlete

Jonathan Callum Brownlee is a British professional duathlete and triathlete. He is a six-time World champion, and one-time Olympic champion in triathlon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Klamer</span> Dutch triathlete

Rachel Klamer is a Dutch professional triathlete and member of the National team. She placed third at the Junior World Championships in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dmitry Polyanski</span> Russian triathlete

Dmitry Andreyevich Polyanski, is a Russian professional triathlete, 2009 U23 European Champion and permanent member of the National Elite Team. Polyanski is, together with Alexander Bryukhankov and Ivan Vasiliev, qualified for the London Olympics 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emma Jackson (triathlete)</span> Australian triathlete

Emma Jackson is an Australian professional triathlete, U23 World Champion of the year 2010, and 2009 Junior World Championships silver medalist.

Mark Sisson is an American fitness author, food blogger, and a former distance runner, triathlete and Ironman competitor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Bryukhankov</span> Russian triathlete

Alexander Alexandrovich Bryukhankov is a Russian professional triathlete, Russian Elite Champion of the year 2011, 2008 and 2012 Olympian, and a member of the Russian National Team. Alexander Brykhankov is the elder brother of Andrey Bryukhankov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Hauss</span> French triathlete

David Hauss is a French professional triathlete and bronze medalist at the European Championships 2010. Thanks to his 7th position at the World Championship Series triathlon in London, together with Laurent Vidal, he qualified for the Olympic Games 2012, where he finished in 4th place, eighteen seconds behind bronze medalist Jonathan Brownlee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurent Vidal</span> French triathlete

Laurent Vidal was a French professional triathlete, three time French Champion and two time Olympian. In Beijing 2008 he placed 36th while he took the 5th place in London 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mario Mola</span> Spanish triathlete

Mario Mola, is a Spanish professional triathlete. He is the 2016, 2017 and 2018 ITU World Triathlon Series World Champion. He has placed 19th at the London Olympic Games 2012, 8th at the Rio Olympic Games 2016 and 10th at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020. In addition to his World Triathlon Series wins, he has placed second and third in 2014 and 2015 ITU World Triathlon Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">João Pedro Silva (triathlete)</span> Portuguese triathlete

João Pedro Lopes da Silva is a Portuguese professional triathlete. He was European U-23 Champion in 2008, 2010 and 2011, National Junior Champion in 2006 and 2007 and the National U-23 Champion in 2008. At the 2012 Summer Olympics Silva placed 9th thus becoming the most decorated male triathlete in Portuguese history. On 23 January 2013, Silva joined S.L. Benfica's triathlon team. He won the silver medal at the 2015 European Games in Baku.

Triathlon Australia is the governing body responsible for the management of sports such as duathlon, aquathlon and triathlon within Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashleigh Gentle</span> Australian triathlete

Ashleigh Gentle is an Australian triathlete who was selected as part of the team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She took second overall in the 2017 ITU World Triathlon Series, her career best to date.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Smith (duathlete)</span> Australian duathlete (b.1996)

Matt Smith is an Australian duathlete from Perth, Western Australia. He is the 2015 Sprint (16-19) and 2016 Standard (20-24) Age Group Duathlon World Champion. He was also the Australian Duathlon Champion in 2014 and 2015 (16-19), and 4th place elite in 2016. He is currently ranked number 15 in the Powerman Duathlon world rankings.

Bence Bicsák is a Hungarian professional triathlete. He is a member of the Hungarian 2020 Olympic Triathlon team. He competed in the men's individual event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Summer Games. He placed 7th out of 51 Olympians that started the race.

References

  1. Kearns, Brad. "Biography". bradkearns.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  2. "Brad Kearns - Cross Country Athlete Profile". Athletic.net.
  3. "1991 Ixtapa ITU Triathlon World Cup : Nov 16 1991 : Elite Men : Results". triathlon: International Triathlon Union. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  4. Pajak, Steve (November 11, 2014). "Making the Rounds: Auburn golfer wastes no time at Speedgolf World Championships". The Sacramento Bee . Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  5. Kearns, Brad. "Triathlon Results". bradkearns.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  6. "Was the First Aerobar Really Not the First?". Archived from the original on 2015-06-18. Retrieved 2015-06-18.
  7. "Triathlon - 1992 World Championships - Results Men". the-sports.org. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  8. Pajak, Steve (November 11, 2014). "Making the Rounds: Auburn golfer wastes no time at Speedgolf World Championships". The Sacramento Bee . Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  9. "Masters Track & Field Rankings: 2020 Outdoor Rankings". Archived from the original on September 29, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  10. "Masters Track & Field Rankings: 2015 Outdoor Rankings". Archived from the original on March 20, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  11. "Brad Kearns Profile". Staying Alive. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  12. Mordhost, Todd (May 30, 2009). "Triathletes mourn loss of Larsen". The Folsom Telegraph. Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  13. Neuffer, Scott (August 24, 2007). "Jacks Valley students inspired to run". Record-Courier (Nevada) . Retrieved July 13, 2010.
  14. "About". Primal Blueprint Publishing. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  15. Kearns, Brad. "Biography". bradkearns.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2015.