Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: We are so excited because we're joined in studio right now by American Ninja Warrior from right here in Rustburg, Colt the Bolt. Elder Colt, thanks for being with us this morning.
[00:00:09] Speaker B: Thank you. I'm excited to be here.
[00:00:11] Speaker A: So tell me about yourself, how old you are, where you're from, all that good stuff.
[00:00:15] Speaker B: So I'm 17. I'm going into my senior year at Onward Christian Academy over at near altavista area.
[00:00:24] Speaker A: Very cool. And how did you get the nickname Colt the Bolt?
[00:00:27] Speaker B: So I got that from playing flag football when I was younger. Actually.
[00:00:30] Speaker A: No way.
[00:00:31] Speaker B: When I would play flag football, I was like the running back. So I would take the ball and I would bolt.
And one of the parents I was watching was like, yeah, we should start calling him Colt the Bolt.
[00:00:41] Speaker C: That's hilarious.
[00:00:42] Speaker B: So that stuck somehow.
[00:00:43] Speaker A: I love it. That's awesome. So what made you want to become a ninja warrior?
[00:00:48] Speaker B: Well, I watched the show for the first time when I was six and I was on the TV and I saw like American Ninja Warrior. I was like, oh, ninja fighting stuff, that's gonna be awesome.
And I watched and I was like, who? I want to try that. And so I started making these little courses at my house and like putting like random stuff like shoes or weights on the ground and running across it and then like doing pull ups. And eventually I found a gym when I was about 10. It was called Elite Athletics and I started training there. I started going multiple days a week and then from there it's just progressed into where I am now.
[00:01:22] Speaker C: That's so cool.
[00:01:23] Speaker A: That's awesome. So how has working on a farm helped you prepare for being a ninja warrior?
[00:01:28] Speaker B: So working on the farm is awesome.
We have about like 50 chickens and a couple goats and like ducks and stuff. So we have all kinds of things and like lifting all the feed and. Oh yeah, everything like that.
[00:01:42] Speaker C: Yeah. Cause those bags aren't like light. I think people don't think about it. Like, those are like big heavy bags that you're lifting and carrying around.
[00:01:48] Speaker B: I kind of challenge myself every time where I'm like, all right, how many of these can I actually carry going over there? Like, I don't really want to make more than like one or two trips here.
[00:01:57] Speaker A: Right, right. That's how I am with groceries. I'm like, one trip.
[00:01:59] Speaker B: One trip.
Oh, me too. You should see.
[00:02:03] Speaker A: So what was the process like then? Getting on the televised part of the show.
[00:02:07] Speaker B: So getting on the televised, basically your goal is to be more of yourself than you are okay.
In your video. So for me Like, I have like the 50 chickens and everything, but, like, for the show, it's like I'm like, I'm even more country than country. Yeah.
So it's. Yeah, it's awesome.
[00:02:28] Speaker C: It's almost like playing a character. Then they want you to be like a Persona.
[00:02:32] Speaker B: You're playing onto who you are.
[00:02:34] Speaker C: Okay.
[00:02:35] Speaker B: You don't want to, like, completely be someone who you're not, which I've seen people who've tried to do that.
But you want to be a little bit more of yourself than you are now.
[00:02:43] Speaker A: Very, very cool. So we've been talking about American Ninja Warrior and your training for it. What was it like competing in the semifinals? I watched your run and it was like.
[00:02:52] Speaker C: It was perfect. It was perfect.
[00:02:54] Speaker A: It was amazing. It was perfect to us. What did you feel and what was it like seeing the course for the first time?
[00:03:00] Speaker B: So that run I was actually, like, really happy with, which is not super common with me in my run. Normally I'm like, alright, I could have done better there, could have done better there. But I was really happy with that run because I'd always. Most of those obstacles I had watched and I was like, oh, I want to try that, I want to try that. And so I watched that all the time when I was younger and then I finally got to compete on him and I actually completed the whole course and I was like, this is amazing.
[00:03:26] Speaker A: What are some of the things that you really think about when you see an obstacle for the first time?
[00:03:31] Speaker B: So I start planning the unpredictability. Okay, so I'll look at it and I'll be like, okay, so this one I can do pretty consistently. But then this one right here, this one might throw me off that way and it could tax my grip a little bit more than I think it's going to. So I start planning out, like, what could underlining factor be?
[00:03:52] Speaker A: Yeah, that makes sense.
[00:03:53] Speaker C: I think for those of us that watch at home too, we're probably just thinking, like, are they just, like, just how fast can I get through it? But you're having to think about a whole lot of stuff as you're running the course every time.
[00:04:03] Speaker B: It's a lot more mental than people think it is. Everyone thinks you just run through the course and just like, grab onto it. It's so beast mode. The amount of planning is crazy.
[00:04:12] Speaker C: Yeah, that's crazy.
[00:04:13] Speaker A: That is crazy to think about, like, having to plan for the obstacles. Now, what do you think is probably the most difficult obstacle that you've done?
[00:04:20] Speaker B: So in practice, it'd be really difficult to say because you can almost make however difficult of an obstacle you want to like. There's hardly any limits. But on the I'd say it was probably the last obstacle of that semifinals course with the rings and you just had to push your hand up and then push your other hand up and you do that for 30ft in the air and just pull straight with your arms.
[00:04:44] Speaker C: Well, and it's the last obstacle. So you're exhausted by the nine obstacles in doing that.
[00:04:50] Speaker B: Great.
[00:04:50] Speaker A: Is rough. But you were the first one to complete the semifinal run, so congratulations. That's awesome. And then finals are tonight at 8pm on NBC. Peacock tomorrow. We are so excited for you. We're excited to watch and to cheer you on. So thank you so much for being a part of our show this morning.
[00:05:07] Speaker B: Thank you for letting me come out here. I'm super excited.
