Harris has purpose for Ninja Warrior challenge

NWA Democrat-Gazette/BEN GOFF @NWABENGOFF Jeff Harris trains Friday, March 9, 2018, at High Rise Extreme Air Sports in Rogers. Harris, a former Bentonville firefighter, now owns his own waste and recycling business, White Line Waste, while still serving as a volunteer firefighter in Centerton. He is training to compete on the television show American Ninja Warrior.
NWA Democrat-Gazette/BEN GOFF @NWABENGOFF Jeff Harris trains Friday, March 9, 2018, at High Rise Extreme Air Sports in Rogers. Harris, a former Bentonville firefighter, now owns his own waste and recycling business, White Line Waste, while still serving as a volunteer firefighter in Centerton. He is training to compete on the television show American Ninja Warrior.

ROGERS -- Jeff Harris has always enjoyed a challenge.

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Jeff Harris trains March 9 at High Rise Extreme Air Sports in Rogers. Harris is training to compete on the television show American Ninja Warrior.

The 37-year-old former firefighter and EMT will test his athleticism and mettle on a taping of the television show American Ninja Warrior on March 25-26 in Dallas. Competitors try to complete extraordinary obstacle courses in an effort to qualify for the national finals in Las Vegas.

Profile

JEFF HARRIS

Age 37

Height 5-feet-10

Weight 185 pounds

Notable Owns his own dumpster rental business called White Line Waste located in Hiwasse. … Graduated from Rogers High School where played football and ran track. … Married to his wife, Ashley and they have a son Ikiah (12) and a daughter Audiya (3). … Was a member of the Bentonville Fire Department and an EMT and currently serves as a volunteer fireman for Centerton.

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Harris ran track and played football at Rogers High, so he's no stranger to competition. But the Ninja Warrior experience is something different.

"There's just something about the obstacles, just flying through the air and being in the right place at the right time," Harris said. "And knowing the timing's perfect. It's like having a dance partner almost and moving in sync together."

The show, which began in 2009, has grown from having 1,000 applicants in season one to more than 70,000 in recent years. Dallas is one of six regional sites across the country.

Harris and his wife, Ashley, own White Line Waste Dumpsters, a dumpster rental business in Hiwasse, and their passion for the environment ultimately pushed him to try out for the show. But he might not have even known about it if not for walking into High Rise Extreme Air Sports in Rogers.

The avid rock climber found the spot as a way to satisfy another sense of adventure because the center provides a variety of challenges like a trapeze, a climbing wall and various other activities.

That's where he met Vern Whelchel, the manager at High Rise and a former competitor on season eight of American Ninja Warrior.

Whelchel encouraged Harris to try out for the show after watching him complete some of the tasks at High Rise.

But the father of two and business owner wasn't convinced that's how he should spend his time. Going to High Rise had just turned into a getaway spot for he and his wife to spend time together doing something they enjoyed.

"When you get older, you kinda let go of that competition thing a little bit," Harris said. "I just thought 'I don't know. I've got a family. I don't have time to be running obstacle courses.'"

But Ashley pointed out the national television show could be a great opportunity for them to share their love for the environment and nature and to promote recycling. That got his attention.

"When she said that, it was like boom, so there's a purpose," Harris said. "We're getting more into recycling, and that's what we're really passionate about. Our lifetime goal is to get Northwest Arkansas to recycling 80 to 85 percent. We're trying to educate more people."

"That's what got us out of bed," Ashley Harris said. "The very first time we penciled out this business model. Our goal would be to do long-term diversion from the landfill. We've spent enough time at the landfill, it's just painful to watch things get buried."

So the Rogers graduate filled out the detailed application and had someone help him make a video showcasing himself and his story and sent them in only a day or two before the Jan. 2 deadline. He admitted there were no real expectations at that point.

"I was just thinking at that time, 'I'll walk through the doors when they get there,'" Harris said.

A while later he got a strange call from someone in Los Angeles.

"He was like, 'This is Peter from Ninja Warrior, and I'd like to order a dumpster,'" Harris said. "I was like, 'OK, I can have you one there by tomorrow.' I was in the truck with my daughter telling her to be quiet."

The man on the phone strung him along a little longer before asking him if he'd like to compete on the show.

"I was in shock," Harris said. "I was like, 'My name is Jeff, and that's all I can remember right now.'"

He will be the Waste Warrior for the purpose of the show. But Harris won't be the first from the area to compete on the show. April Steiner Bennett, a former pole vaulter at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and Olympian, competed on season nine and was invited back this year for the Ninja vs. Ninja show.

Steiner Bennett was part of a team with former Olympic gymnasts Paul Hamm and Jonathan Horton and was on a show that aired last week. Their team failed to advance to the playoffs. But she's hoping to be able to give Harris a few pointers before he competes.

"I'm a teacher by nature, so I really want to sit with him and be able to guide him and things to think about when he's in front of the obstacles," Steiner Bennett said. "Because they are very intimidating. You watch the show and think "Well, I can do that.' Then they are in front of you, and they are much larger in life."

No matter what happens for Harris next week, Whelchel already has some thoughts for the future.

"Maybe next year we would tag team and get a team to be on Ninja vs. Ninja," Whelchel said. "Maybe we even get his wife because you need a female for a team."

But for right now Harris just wants to get his message of taking care of the environment to the public and have some fun in the process.

Sports on 03/20/2018

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