BUFFALO, N.Y. — When you think of an active 76 year old, you might think golf or pickelball, but Dave Kozak is not your typical 76 year old. "I train and compete in the sport of ninja warrior. " Yes, Dave trains at Hybrid Ninja Academy in Lancaster.
This passion for extreme sports began around 8 years ago. "I was a little bit sedentary, I wasn't too active until my son and his wife invited me to join them in a spartan obstacle course race in Colorado. It's a military style competition and it just blew me away." 5 miles, 30 obsticles at the base of Pike's Peak. He was hooked, they went back 4 years in a row. It marked a return to his dedication to fitness. "I was a fighter pilot for 20 years and Air Force and I needed to be physically fit and that has continued."
Soon after, the passion moved onto ninja competitions when he saw an ad for a ninja warrior competition in Buffalo. "I went down there to take a look and I was captivated. I thought that looks like so much fun, and I've been training so hard, I could probably do that." And he was right, he has kept on doing it many years later. In Dave's mind, age was just a number. "The body and the mind are magnificent machines and like any machine. if they sit idle, they're gonna corrode in deteriorate."
Even though he had a hip replaced and broke his heel, he attacked his new sport with committment and passion. He drew on his experiences in the military for mental toughness. "When I was in Vietnam, I was young fighter pilot, I was 24 years old and I thought I was immortal and invincible. We all thought that because if you didn't think that you'd die. I had a couple of things to scare the bejesus out of me. I've experienced a near death experience that was remarkable. What have I got to fear?"
And his passion has paid off, he has competed before a national audience, twice on NBC's American Ninja Warrior, in 2016 and then again last year. He also holds a Guinness world record for the oldest ninja. But accolades aside, he says he driven by something much more simple, meeting and overcoming any challenge that is in front of him. "I've been practicing and trying to get this obstacle for weeks. and it's just not working right? And then you get it, and then you do it. The exhilaration is phenomenal. You know, you've met a challenge, and it's serious challenge in many cases and you succeed."
And he is hoping to spread that exhileration. Dave has started a non-profit called the Buffalo Ninja Academy, and hopes to open a gym in the city for underserved kids who may otherwise never have the opportunity. "It transforms kids, it changes their lives for the better."
Right now Dave has his non-profit status and he is looking for a space and financial backers to make his Buffalo Ninja Academy a reality and give inner city kids another opportunity to build strength, discipline and confidence through the sport of ninja.