Last Note & Ninjas

As a reminder mainly to myself, I wanted to post all the Stage 1 finishers because there was a record, and I want to remember everyone so I know who to cheer for. 

Eric Middleton
Dave Cavanagh
Grant Clinton
Tyler Yamauchi
Karson Voiles
Hunter Guerard
Travis Rosen
Jody Avila
Adam Rayl
Sean Bryan
Nick Hanson
Josh Levin
David Campbell
Drew Knapp

Kevin Bull
Flip Rodriguez
Allyssa Beird 
Mike Bernardo
Jamie Rahn
Jon Alexis Jr.
Matthew Ilgenfritz
Michael Silenzi
Lance Pekus
Nick Kostreski
Najee Richardson
Joe Moravsky
Ian Dory
Brian Arnold
Abel Gonzalez
Nicholas Coolridge
Brent Steffensen
Cass Clawson
Andrew Lowes
Josh Salinas
Daniel Gil
Tyler Gillet
JJ Woods
Sean Darling-Hammond
Thomas Stillings
Ryan Stratis
Drew Drechsel

I also wanted to talk a little about my Dream Team. I've mentioned it before. I think of my Dream Team as 5 members like in Team USA. I've already said Joe, Drew, and Ian would be on it, but the final 2 slots are interesting. There are plenty of great candidates like Sean Bryan, Najee Richardson, Daniel Gil, Nicholas Coolridge, Brian Arnold, Kevin Bull, Geoff Britten, Jamie Rahn, Josh Levin, and Adam Rayl. I think Daniel would be the closest to being the 4th member, but the 5th one, I really don't know. Najee is looking really good after this season, but Jamie Rahn is a but underrated, and Josh Levin has great potential. Honestly, I still don't know, but maybe next year will reveal a diamond in the rough. 

I was also thinking about my Top 10 because WatchMojo, a top 10 YouTube channel, recently posted a video about the Top 10 American Ninja Warriors. You can go watch the video but I think these were the ones who made it. (I'm just going off memory, because I'm too lazy to actually check, sorry) Also, the order may not be exact, but the names should be.

10. Kacy Catanzaro

9. Joe Moravsky

8. David Campbell

7. Jessie Graff

6. Brent Steffesen

5. James McGrath

4. Flip Rodriguez

3. Isaac Caldiero

2. Drew Drechsel

1. Geoff Britten

Travis Rosen, Michael Stanger and a couple others were Honorable Mentions.

I would definitely disagree with this list. First, I would take Kacy, David, Brent, Flip, and probably James off, even though I like him. 

Geoff, I can't really argue with as #1 considering he not only won everything, but had a perfect season. Similarly, Isaac I also cannot argue with being on the list because he did win the million dollars, even though he doesn't compete anymore. I will take Isaac off, and even Geoff for my current list simply because they did not compete this year. 

Also, how could Joe only be #9? That's ridiculous; he's amazing. 

My Tope 10 would go roughly like this based mainly off of this year and personal preference:

10. Adam Rayl

9. Kevin Bull

8. Jamie Rahn

7. Josh Levin

6. Najee Richardson

5. Jessie Graff

4. Ian Dory

3. Daniel Gil

2. Drew Drechsel

1. Joe Moravsky

*Honorable Mentions: Sean Bryan, Nicholas Coolridge, Travis Rosen, James McGrath, Tyler Yamauchi, Brian Arnold, Jake Murray, and Lance Pekus. Jesse LaBreck, Allyssa Beird, Meagan Marin, and  Barclay Stockett. (I realize there are a lot of HM, but there are a lot of great ninjas out there. These are pretty much people I considered for my list, but just didn't make the cut)

I put Kevin in because he is a great competitor; he made a huge impression his rookie year, and he is a walk-on, but also, he seems like a genuinely great guy, so there is personal preference bias there. Adam has shown fantastic potential and I look forward to seeing how he can grow. Joe is an obvious first especially after Season 9. He also gives me the impression of being a great guy to know, and his strength is inhuman. Drew is a close second considering he is still on the of the Top Dogs in ANW, even after his fall on Stage 2. Daniel Gil is also a little personal bias over the facts. He was a break-out rookie, and he has always delivered a great performance like in San Antonio this year. In fact, my Top 4 are all City Finishers which is a major factor. Actually, 7 of my 10 were City Finishers, which I actually didn't realize until now. Jessie is the only woman who made my list, despite Jesse and Allyssa. I think they both did phenomenal, and Allyssa was the only one to attempt Stage 2; however, Jessie put up a better run in her city finals, and was super close to finishing Stage 1, not to mention she did complete it the previous year. I also think she might have done better on Stage 2. Not necessarily finish it, but probably could have attempted the Wing Nut Alley. The Top 5 women are easy to pick out, as I think I've mentioned in a previous post, and Jesse and Allyssa would clearly be on that, but against pros like Drew, Joe, and Ian, I can't put them on my overall Top 10. A Top 10 is hard because of the 6-10 spots. My Top 5 would be hard, but I would say it's easier because I definitely have clear favorites in the show. I absolutely love Joe, Drew, and Daniel and even Ian and Jessie. Najee and Josh have a little more they need to show me before they pose a threat to my Top 5, though. They have already shown so much, but I need a bigger statement or more consistency. Had Najee also finished his City Finals or gotten to the 9th or 10th obstacle, that would have changed things; however, he only reached the 8th one, and in terms of the City Finals, was average. He did pass the Nail Clipper on Stage 3, though, which is also something to consider. Between Najee and Josh, I would have to give it to Najee due to this year, but both have attractive ANW qualities. One is a rock climber and one a gymnast. This year showed the strength of gymnasts more than rock climbers which seems to take the cake. Joe and Najee both had gymnastics backgrounds, so I figured a rock-climbing gymnast would be a great combination for ANW. Josh did drop early, but he may have had better luck on Stage 3, as we saw in USA vs. The World. That is why the decision between these two is difficult. Najee did come in before Josh because of this season though. Lastly, I also put Jamie Rahn on my list because he gets slightly overshadowed, but is actually a really great competitor. He was a City Finisher this year, and he has some tremendous strength. I wouldn't say it's to the extent of Joe or even Drew, but he has more grip and upper body strength than he's given credit for, in my opinion. For me, I think this is a pretty solid list. I could attempt a Top 20 and I probably have enough names, too. Let's just day dream about it.

20. Nicholas Coolridge (did you see this coming?)

19. Jake Murray

18. Tyler Yamauchi ?

17. Lance Pekus

16. Brian Arnold

15. Allyssa Beird

14. James McGrath

13. Travis Rosen

12. Jesse LaBreck

11. Sean Bryan

 

10 to 1 is as above.

This list doesn't mean that Allyssa could beat/do better than 20-16. I didn't pit the people against each other, so their standing against the other ninjas don't necessarily mean anything. I know Jake Murray didn't make it to Vegas or even Finals, but I know he is pretty good, plus he is very light hearted and humorous. Pekus has actually shown to be a greater athlete than I realized, and he is definitely someone who is growing stronger each year. Travis Rosen I placed as 13 because he is the oldest competitor who can actually compete with the younger guys. Lots of older men try, but Rosen is still the only one who can go toe-to-toe with the 20 year olds. He made it to the 9th obstacle in Daytona, finished Stage 1, and reached the Wing Nut Alley. He has more years of experience under his belt compared to the rookies who just turned 21, but he still is extremely impressive for his age and ability. 

James McGrath I put on my Top 20 list because of his City Finals Run. He was recovering from surgery, and on the Cleveland City Finals, he looked wiped after the 4th obstacle. He was struggling and looked like he was in pain, and he didn't make it to Vegas, but his Finals run was impressive. He still almost beat the Nail Clipper, doing better than a lot of those who did reach Vegas, plus, he was in pain. I didn't think he could do anything after the Giant Ring thing. After that was when they said he looked tired. He still put up one of the best runs of that night, and he does have the nickname "The Beast", as well as member of Team USA to put on his ninja resume. Tyler was a hard choice. He did great this year, becoming the shortest person to beat Stage 1, and his Finals run was the second best. He also beat out his training partners The Towers of Power and daredevil Ethan Swanson. Brian Arnold is someone who is not my personal favorite, but he is consistent, and still going strong. There are some rookies/early faces I would love to see again and eventually put on a list. Tyler Gillet and Drew Knapp are a couple names.

Lastly, there are a couple names like Ryan Stratis, Thomas Stillings, and JJ Woods who are fan favorites and good ninjas. I didn't not forget about them or skip them, I just decided they didn't beat out my other choices. 

Some people don't get recognition they deserve, and I think everyone should get treated fairly as far as attention and screen time goes. Obviously, they don't, but I'm more okay with some people like Joe and Drew and Daniel receiving attention because they are my favorites, too. I'm looking forward to new faces next year. Maybe someone will show up to give Joe a run for his money as #1.