Once an avid runner, Bud Pharris says he will never forget the date of his last run, June 8, 2000, after his doctor warned his knee issues would get worse if he kept going.
For many athletes, the news would be devastating. But Pharris took it as an opportunity to find a new sport: cycling.
Pharris hopped on an old Schwinn road bike before meeting a group of cyclists on a ride. He then joined the group for more rides before training for distance races.
Now senior managing director of the West region for Link Logistics, a company that investment giant Blackstone launched in 2019, Pharris applies the same vigor and perseverance he depends on while cycling to his job overseeing more than 150 million square feet of industrial properties.
It's a stressful job, especially in the competitive industrial real estate world of Southern California where Pharris is based in Irvine, California. The region's 2 billion-square-foot industrial market generates some of the highest rents in the nation, in part because of its proximity to 20 million people and the busy ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
Cycling and real estate share many common trails for Pharris, a self-described highly motivated, type-A executive. Pharris said he never loses his desire to compete regardless of whether it's real estate deals or being first to the next stop sign on a ride.
"I'm the classic example of a guy who couldn't stop," Pharris said in an interview. "I couldn't run anymore so I found another outlet."
At one cycling event years ago, Pharris shouldered up alongside legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong in Austin, Texas. That day, he also bumped into comedian Robin Williams, and they bonded because both were alumni of Redwood High School in Larkspur, California. Williams was on the soccer team, while Pharris ran track and cross country.
Pharris got into triathlons in the 1980s and 1990s before the doctor told him to stop running competitively because of its effect on his knees.
As senior managing director at Link, Pharris oversees the firm's massive West region portfolio that spans more than 1,100 properties and contains 153 million square feet, according to Link's website.
Pharris' work ethic, vision and an ability to gain trust from brokers and colleagues have helped him move up in commercial real estate, said Jeff Phelan, a friend of Pharris who's known him for more than 30 years and worked with him at a previous real estate company.
"Honesty, loyalty, and above all, Bud has a tremendous sense of urgency that has played to his advantage while in the battlefields of the industrial real estate world," Phelan, who serves as CEO and owner of Newport Beach-based developer Phelan Development, said in an email. "Last but not least, he has the best sense of humor of any person I know. He is literally the funniest person in the industry!"
Pharris, who has more than 25 years of experience in commercial real estate joined Link in 2020 from CRG Real Estate, where he served as senior vice president and partner and had oversight of its West region. Before that he was managing director of DCT Industrial Trust's West region. Prior to joining DCT in 2011, Pharris served as a senior development manager at Panattoni Development.
He balances his cycling hobby with work, waking up at 4 a.m. on some days to squeeze a ride in before heading to the office. He'll also ride on weekends with friends for up to three hours at a time. Occasionally, work has been known to follow him on rides when he gets text and email alerts on his Wahoo bike computer.
"I've been known to stop and say, 'Hold on guys,' to take an email or call," Pharris said.
The real estate executive now finds himself riding on a Cannondale bike, mostly on mountain trails around Newport Beach and Laguna Beach, California. Pharris enjoys the smell of the sage brush and the feeling of catching air while pedaling over rocks. He said these rides give him confidence and mental clarity, which helps him at work.
"I can't really explain but that endorphin rush, that feeling of being by yourself with your thoughts, is something I've always enjoyed," Pharris said. "I still get out there and ride for hours. It's something I don't mind at all."