Jamie Rahn put adaptability on display with his shoeless run

Jamie Rahn just snagged his fourth finish on Stage One of the American Ninja Warrior National Finals. And he did it in style. While Jamie is known as a Ninja who can definitely handle the obstacles, he was thrown an extra curve ball when the trampoline of the Propeller Bar, just the second obstacle, yanked off his shoe.

Floating in the air with the breeze between his toes, Jamie had to make sure he stayed focused or this season was over. But he did tell us earlier in the year that adaptability is something he works on:

“I want to go all the way. It’s that mental game that’s all that’s left. Can you do it the first time, every time? You get the one shot, it’s something brand new that you’ve never touched before. You don’t know how it’s going to react until you get on it. Getting your brain ready to be adaptable in the moment.”

There were a lot of shocks on Stage One. When we saw Jamie’s shoe fly off, we groaned. We totally thought we were about to lose another competitor.

Jamie just looks at his foot like, “Huh, that’s weird.”

His adaptability was on full display as he yanked off his sock before the Double Dipper.

Looks like he had a nice pedicure before competition.

Honestly, we didn’t think the Jumping Spider would be possible like this. How would he match up the two different traction levels?

But this is Jamie Rahn. Don’t wonder. Just watch.

After eyeing Jeep Run, he took off the other shoe and sock. We now had a fully shoeless Jamie.

The Warped Wall was another one where we worried about crunched toes.

With time slipping away, Jamie bolted from the Razor Beams to Twist and Fly. He transferred to the cargo net with about 18 seconds left.

The course started flashing red, indicating time was almost up, just as Jamie pulled himself over the ledge. He hit the buzzer with seven seconds left and he was just as baffled as the rest of us.

Even with the extra obstacle, Jamie never counted himself out. He never assumed the course was impossible in no shoes. He just decided to work with what he had.

The Ninjas on the sidelines were losing it with laugher and awe.

While it was thrilling, we’re hoping Jamie ties his laces a little tighter for Stage Two. We want to see his first trip to Stage Three!