This was my first trip to a WNL World Championship, and it was awesome!
2,300 competitors from 11 countries qualified and competed in Greensboro, NC, as young as 6 years old, and up to over 60. There were 107 competitors in my division, Male Masters (Masters means ages 40+). I finished 10th overall in the Discipline Circuit, and 19th overall in the Stages. Congratulations to all the athletes, especially the podium winners from the Masters squad in the various categories: Tim Lazzarevich, Scott Behrends, Rick Hinnant, Terry England, Michael Archer.
So many people are discovering obstacle fitness. If you have the smallest idea that you or your kids might enjoy ninja competition, please seek out a local gym in your area and try it out!! I’m amazed at the amount of work that goes into this event. Props to the @WorldNinjaLeague and all involved!
Music created using Apple Loops in GarageBand.
#worldninjaleague #wnl #AmericanNinjaWarrior #BootieBandwagon #obstaclefitness #ninjawarrior #ninja
Early in my guitar playing, maybe 30 years ago, I knew I wanted to one day be able to play anything by James Taylor. But I think there was a part of me that thought it might just be too difficult. Regardless, I figured I’d give it a try. So I closed the door to my room and sat with my guitar and a cassette tape of JT’s greatest hits (for you young’ns, this does not mean Justin Timberlake. Also, you can google what a cassette tape is after this is over).
I would play about a measure on the tape and then stop it, and then I’d fiddle around on the guitar until I either found it, or had to rewind the cassette a bit and listen again. After a few hours of this I sat back and realized I was doing exactly what I thought I couldn’t do before, I was playing it all the way through. It was a lesson in not doubting myself, and not giving up on something before I even tried.
I’m sure there’s plenty of debate about which Carolina is being lauded here, but I’m content to be pretty evenly divided. While South Carolina is my home, I’ve got some special connections with the North Carolina mountains, as well. I recall days of driving I-26 and I-40, windows down, listening to JT sing what I was feeling in my heart, whether it was anticipating my destination or leaving what was behind me. Or maybe a little of both.
Enjoy!
A slight tag onto Mother’s Day… This is “Always on the Run” by Lenny Kravitz. Lenny says it was about all the good advice and instruction his mother was giving him, but he was too young and crazy to appreciate it, always running.
The guitar lick at the beginning (and throughout the song) hooked me the first time I ever heard it. Throw in that bass with the funk and the beats and it gets all my musical atoms synched up and vibing in rhythm. Slash and Lenny recorded this song together in a vodka-fueled weekend, and the energy level in their version is near 11. They are singing most everything up an octave. I tried that in my version but it just wasn’t working (and I don’t do vodka) so I dropped most everything down an octave, and I thought that gave it a vibe that worked.
An acoustic re-make almost always comes out a little slower, and more relaxed than its high-energy, amps-to-eleven original, but somehow, my version is substantially faster — at 185 bpm to their 169 bpm. That’s just what seemed to sound right to me. The faster speed pretty much assured zero chance of pulling off Slash’s solo, so I just did my own thing around what he was doing as best I could.
I always enjoy trying to use random objects, like the 8-ball, that have the sound I’m looking for, and exploring the sounds of different materials. It was a perfect hi-hat type of sound. There’s a subtle wah-wah pedal effect I stumbled upon with the main guitar while I was playing with the EQ. When I narrowed in on a some particular frequencies and raised them, it created this warpy-flangy-wave sound alongside the reverb. It sounds much like the kind of frequency-collision one might typically want to remove in the mastering process, but I thought it was the perfect way to “distort” the clean sound of the guitar without going too far.
By the way, I always post these videos to have a decent-level of audio quality so that some of these nuances can be enjoyed by anyone who is into it. I hate what computer speakers and phones have done to good music. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to listen to some of these with at least some decent earbuds, headphones or speakers to appreciate the full mix. (See Victor Wooten’s “The Spirit of Music” for more on that :)) I’m sure open to any thoughts or critique on any of my mixes. My ears are getting old, too. Enjoy!
I’ve been playing guitar for 30 years but have never taken on the challenge of learning some quality Mark Knopfler licks. So I decided to go all-in and start with one of the most difficult. I wish I was able to record all the failures of learning this song and show you what it took.
I have always loved the pure, natural sound of acoustic instruments, and those MTV unplugged sets where they’d have all kinds of rock and blues artists perform more acoustic sets. It’s a more intimate setting and sound. I hadn’t really planned on doing any kind of recording at the beginning, but as I started learning the song I was so horrible at the lead guitar I needed to record some MUCH slower backing tracks to play along with, so I started with that. Then, as I was getting it up to proper speed, I decided to add in some other percussion and bass and see what kind of mix I might get. I have been really enjoying getting back into the recording process, and all the rabbit-holes of different mixes and settings. I’ve been putting together a new, simple home studio, and this was a perfect way to get to know it and create a flow (If you’re into that stuff, I’m using a Scarlett 2i2 and recording into GarageBand on a Mac, using a few different mics depending on the application, an AKG C200B, P170, and a Shure SM57).
I consider myself a wannabe bass player and percussionist, and I have to do a few takes to fix my timing errors but I enjoy trying. I pretty much copied the bass line from the recording but tried to add a bit of my own groove in there.
Thanks to Mark Knopfler and Dire Straights for their music and inspiration.
Now, if you’ve read this far, what song should I do next??
What an appropriate song to celebrate the life of my aunt Faye! My oldest brother Clark on the piano, my nephew Raleigh, my niece Christen and I pulled this song together in about 30 minutes shortly before the funeral. The audio from the actual service didn’t come through very well so I’m glad I recorded this, our last run-through. I love this song and its message. Performed at Shelby Presbyterian Church, Shelby, NC.
This song is an old gospel spiritual, in the public domain.
Thanks to Mac Arnold for sitting down for a talk this past weekend. Follow Mac at https://www.macarnold.com/
Hey friends! A lot of you have been asking when my appearance on American Ninja Warrior will be, and the short answer is: summer of 2024!
So this year they did something different and filmed 2 seasons in a row, back-to-back. Some of us were selected for season 15, which is airing currently, and some of us got selected for season 16, which will air next summer, and some of us got selected for both. I was selected for season 16 only. So, it’s a long time to wait, but there’s a lot of great runs between now and then.
Greenville and MOTIVE have 3 competitors to watch, 14-time legend Ryan Stratis, 12-timer Brett Sims, and world-renown parkour athlete Bob Reese on his 2nd season. Watch for them on the upcoming episodes, and of course… if you’re looking for a place to let your kid work out their energy in a safe, positive and learning environment, come see us at MOTIVE School of Movement!
That’s a wrap of filming for #americanninjawarrior!
It’s all a blur, filming overnight, trying to sleep during the day, plus a west coast time zone haha. But it’s always so fun to be there, seeing everyone again, if only for a few days. I never take enough photos with people and then the next thing I know we’re all saying our goodbyes and headed home all over the place.
We filmed this year on the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot and it was a lot of fun. If they would allow me to wander around that place I could get lost for weeks.
I’m so grateful to be a part of this ninja family. Love you all.
It’s always an amazing time and I’m excited to see how everything comes together. This year Greenville has 5 competitors, Brett Sims, Bob Reese, Ryan Stratis, JB and myself. I can’t share any results yet but say tuned for more info on air dates! Enjoy the photos below!
🙏✌️❤️ #BootieBandwagon
Los Angeles bound! Feeling as good as I’ve ever felt before competing. I’ll be sharing some behind-the-scenes stuff to my Instagram and Facebook stories. Here’s a humble ask for your vibes, prayers and energy.
Bootie Cothran 