David Green ’86

David Green ’86 wasn’t much of a runner growing up. In fact, he hated it. Which is why his younger self might be surprised to learn that he recently completed a 2,858-mile run across Europe — for fun.

“I look at it as one big scavenger hunt,” Green says. “You try to find this, then you solve that; it’s just a big game.” This kind of feat isn’t out of the ordinary for Green.

He is an ultrarunner, meaning he regularly runs distances longer than a marathon (26.2 miles). Green graduated from the College with a degree in computer science and became an entrepreneur. When he wasn’t building companies, he was increasing his running distances — from marathons, to 100-milers, to multi-month treks.

“One of the great things about my education at Columbia was that it gave me a way to think about solving problems. If I do my best to prepare for something, when it ends, it leads to a stable structure to help dream something bigger,” he says. “I can always wrap my mind around going just a little bigger.”

In addition to crossing Europe on foot last summer, Green’s year was marked by another accomplishment: publishing a book. In Lucky: A True Story, he details how his once-stray dog, Lucky, chose to follow him through the jungles of Brazil during a race. After Green adopted Lucky, he continued to run with him, whether across Florida or across the continental United States.

“This dog and I, at that moment in time in the wilderness, it was just a perfect connection,” he says. “He would be running by my side on main highways across the country, and truckers would be looking back at us like, ‘What did I just see?’ He was so special.”

Those kinds of moments are exactly why Green advocates for taking advantage of every opportunity for adventure.

“Nothing ever happens if you’re sitting at home behind a computer screen. But when you go outside of your comfort zone, crazy, magical things can happen,” he says.

— Emily Driehaus