Out-of-context thoughts from the National Finals: Explained

The time has come to reveal the sources of our last out-of-context thoughts! Over the course of taping American Ninja Warrior season 13, I dropped a few hints about what I was seeing out there.

The National Finals are over and I can finally spill the beans!

1.) Is... that Ninja going to puke on the course? They look like they might actually puke.

You can probably guess this one. I was deeply worried that Joe Moravsky was going to have a little spill on the course. (Joe had food poisoning during his Stage One runs.)

2.) F.I.N.A.L.L.Y.

This is also an easy one. JESSE LABRECK. The Stage One buzzer. Enough said!

3.) This.

This could be used as my reaction to a LOT of things that happened at the National Finals. But in this context, I was thinking about Meagan Martin. She’s a great person and a great Ninja. Seeing her end her season on the first obstacle of Stage One, and with a nasty fall... It was a hard pill to swallow.

4.) Well, THAT ended quickly.

And we’re back to Joe Moravsky. This time on Stage Two. He fell on the first obstacle. At first, I didn’t even realize what happened because I was already looking down the course, expecting to see him run by.

5.) ....I am very bad at predictions.

Ugh. This one. When I first saw Stage Two, I thought the Ninjas had this in the bag. I thought we’d see 7-10 Ninjas on Stage Three. That was before I realized the last move on the Falling Shelves was a blind grab. Only four would clear Stage Two.

6.) I would have never thought that obstacle would take out so many competitors.

Looking back, I could apply this thought to a few of the Stage Two obstacles. I was thinking about the Double Salmon Ladder and the Falling Shelves. Both looked like familiar obstacles that we’ve seen the Ninjas master before. But the small tweaks to both obstacles made them sneaky hard.

7.) Also this.

On the night of the competition, things looked pretty dismal on Stage Two for a long while. We had seen Vance Walker fall on his first attempt. We all know that he used his Safety Pass and came back to clear the course. But in the meantime, Austin Gray ran the course. He was runner number 17 out of 27. And he gave us hope. Austin cleared the course and assured us Stage Three would happen. He was then joined by Vance, Kaden Lebsack, and Kyle Soderman. (The order of runs sometimes shifts when the show airs.)

8.) HA. Of course (redacted) pulled that off. I shouldn’t have imagined anything less.

This is a little out of order, but that thought was about Jake Murray on Stage One. He flippin’ fell on the Dipping Birds and STILL made it to The High Road ring in time. Oh, Jake.

9.) Everyone is going to expect me to say something about squirrels again, but I’m not going to do it.

Ha! Those teens and their endless ability to bounce through the courses like squirrels in the trees.

10.) It wouldn’t be the National Finals if I didn’t leave with emotional whiplash.

Everything! I’m sure I’m not the only one who felt elated and exhausted after all those nights of the National Finals. And I was only watching from the sidelines.

That’s a wrap on the out-of-context thoughts from season 13! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!