Military ‘American Ninja Warrior’: A Sailor Celebrates Life as a Gift From God

Military ‘American Ninja Warrior’: A Sailor Celebrates Life as a Gift From God July 6, 2015

Dustin-McKinney-American-Ninja-Warrior-P

Tonight (Monday, July 6) on NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior,” veterans and active-duty military compete on a new iteration of the reality-competition show’s challenging obstacle courses, against the backdrop of the USS Iowa museum ship at the Port of Los Angeles.

On June 6, I spent a long night at the finals of the military tryout, braving the cold (which is 65 degrees here in L.A.) to stick it out well past midnight to see the first competitor actually finish the course.

I can’t tell you who that was — you’ll have to tune in tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT, on your local NBC affiliate (the show also airs Tuesday nights on NBC’s sister cablenet, Esquire). Those who make it through the military tryout will join athletes from all the other regional tryouts on the path to the ultimate obstacle course, called Mount Midoriyama, in Las Vegas.

Among the competitors was 5’2″ Dustin McKinney, a lieutenant, junior grade, in the United States Navy, currently stationed in Georgia, awaiting his next deployment. Last year, when he was just an ensign, he competed in the Miami, Fla., tryouts, in front of his wife, Tish, and his dog, Java (toddler son Mason was with grandma). The run ended in heartbreak. Have a look:

Although he made it almost to the end, just to fail, McKinney, a husband, father and devout Christian, wasn’t discouraged.

“Oh, man,” he said, calling in from home on Sunday, “to even be on that show, I was so excited. Getting far was never my objective. My objective was to go and do as well as I could and give it my all, and to train as hard as I could.

“I got to that last obstacle, the spider climb, and my feet slipped. I didn’t have the right shoes. I’d never competed before, so I didn’t know about a specific type of show I should use. So, that lack of experience really hurt me. But I was OK with it, because it wasn’t something I hadn’t prepared for, it was something my lack of experience didn’t let American-Ninja-Warrior-Military-USS Iowame be ready for.”

McKinney also hadn’t trained specifically for “American Ninja Warrior.” Some competitors build courses with the show’s signature elements — like the quad steps at the beginning, and the warped wall — but McKinney drew on all the athletic endeavors of his life, such as break dancing, wrestling, inline skating and gymnastics.

But he learned an important lesson that night — to take each obstacle one at a time, and don’t discount any.

“I told my wife,” he said, “‘I’m scared of everything. But if I get to that last obstacle, there’s no way I’m not going to finish.’ The one I’m not scared of, I get to it, and that’s the one I go out on.

“Number one, never overlook an obstacle; always do the obstacle right in front of you. Number two is: shoes are very important.”

McKinney also leans on his faith and a motivation born in loss and sorrow.

“I really count everything that I do in my life as a gift from God,” he said. “This year, they might talk about it, one of the things I’m running for — and it’s one of the things that motivates me in my entire life — when I was 18, my best friend passed away. We wrestled together. I told you about the halfpipe I had in my backyard — he helped me get it back there.

“He passed away when he was 19, and it hit me so hard. Ever since then, I realize that this life I have is an absolute blessing from God. I want to take advantage of every second of it. I want to give it everything I’ve got.

“I want to use the blessings of life that God has given to me to have fun, to spread His word, to talk to people, grow a good family — I want to use the life that I have and enjoy it. That’s one of the things that pushes me to be my best, not just on ‘Ninja Warrior,’ but in life in general.”

You can follow McKinney — a k a “NavyMcNinja” on Facebook here; and on Instagram here.

Images: Courtesy NBC; Kate O’Hare

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