Jordan Wisely - MTV's The Challenge

1) Jordan Wisely is an MTV star from Mustang, Oklahoma, who has competed in four seasons of The Challenge. Jordan made his first appearance on MTV during The Real World Portland which aired in 2013. 

2) Jordan is a 2-time Challenge champion who won Battle of the Exes II and XXX: Dirty 30, where he took home the biggest prize amount in Challenge history ($450,000).

3) Wisely is the owner of Strapped Mfg. Co. which builds custom motorcycles and designs and sells handmade motorcycle jackets.

D: What are your favorite fruits or vegetables?

Jordan Wisely: I like broccoli and other vegetables when you saute them and bake them to make them crispy. So really, I like vegetables when they are smothered in grease. That's how I like them.

D's Follow Up: My favorite veggies are broccoli, peas, and green beans. I haven't really tried them the way Jordan likes them. Just the way my Dad makes them.

J: What have been your favorite Challenge events to compete in?

Jordan Wisely: I love the individual challenges that are athletic. I grew up wrestling and playing football. I want to do the sports competitions. I hate the puzzles. You never know if somebody is going to accidentally solve it. 

J's Follow Up: If I was playing I think I would like the puzzles the most but I would be good at some of the sports competitions too. I might be a good Challenge player someday?

On Saturday, May 19th, we attended the third Challenge Throwdown for the Cause in Yorkville, IL. This event was a volleyball tournament where 6 cast members from The Challenge competed in a volleyball tournament with fans to raise money for Diem Brown's MedGift charity, who's mission is to provide emotional, physical, and financial support to those experiencing health related hardships.

The boys and I got to meet our favorite cast members including Jordan, Derrick, Darrell, Laurel, Nicole Z., Tori, Cohutta, and Ashley K. We met Jordan after his volleyball victory and his biggest fan Jordan V. had the chance to shake hands and ask Jordan about his favorite type of challenges. Jordan's response would be the same as mine if I was a competitor. He loves the athletic competitions which he clearly excels in and is not a big fan of the puzzles, which could be solved quickly and randomly by another competitor. But just as much as being good at multiple sports and physical activities is important in The Challenge, so is being good at odd puzzles. Jordan has been good at both during his time in The Challenge competitions.

Jordan was one of the nicest people we met throughout the day at Pinheadz in Yorkville. He went out of his way to say hi to the boys on multiple occasions, he spent about five minutes talking The Challenge with us, and after our Jordan and I went to get hot dogs inside, we even found Danny playing a giant game of "Beer Pong" with Jordan when we came back. They were battling it out Challenge style to be the first player to eliminate all of the cups from the game. It came down to one cup for each but ultimately Jordan came out on top in the end. It was an incredible experience for D and for us as spectators. It felt like D was in the middle of an elimination with the XXX: Dirty Thirty champion. Too much fun!

We had the greatest time at our first Challenge Throwdown for the Cause event and we are making plans to attend the next event in IL on September 8th in Marseilles for a golf event. Huge thanks to Jordan for hanging with us guys for the afternoon and sharing his stories!

Derrick Kosinski - MTV The Challenge

1) Derrick Kosinski is an MTV star from Chicago, IL who has competed in ten seasons of The Challenge. He made his first appearance on MTV during Road Rules X-Treme in 2004.

2) Derrick is a 3-time Challenge champion who won The Inferno 3, The Island, and The Ruins. He made it to the Finale on The Inferno II and XXX: Dirty 30. 

3) Derrick and friend Scott Yager host the Challenge Mania Podcast, which features interviews with current and former Challenge competitors two times a week. The Challenge Mania podcast gives an insider's point of view of the The Challenge and a peek into the lives of your favorite challengers.

Photo credit / https://challengemania.podbean.com/

J: What is your favorite Challenge event that you've competed in?

DK: I love eliminations. You've seen the one with Joss? That is my favorite kind of event.

J's Follow Up: Derrick's elimination against Joss was my favorite one to watch. Joss is a monster and Derrick was the underdog. I was happy that Derrick won.

Photo credit / MTV

D: What's your favorite fruit and vegetable?

DK: Here's one good one. Avocados. Have you started eating avocados? My son likes them and he's nine. You should eat most fruits and veggies to be healthy the rest of your life. I make myself eat them because I know it will make me better at sports and keep me healthy.

D's Follow Up: I like a lot of fruits and veggies. Most of them are really good. I want to play football, tennis, baseball, hockey, basketball, lacrosse, and every sport. I always eat fruits and veggies, so that should keep me healthy.


Dad: What sports did you play in high school?

DK: I played football, basketball, and baseball. I also walked on to the football and basketball teams at Oakton Community College. I went in and told them I wanted to play. It helped me pay for some of my college.

D: That makes sense because he's an athletic dude. Being good at sports probably makes him good at The Challenge.

On Saturday, May 19th, the boys and I ventured out to Pinheadz in Yorkville, IL to watch our favorite Challenge stars go head to head in volleyball matches to raise money for Diem Brown's MedGift charity, who's mission is to provide emotional, physical, and financial support to those experiencing health related hardships. 

I have been a big fan of The Challenge since the start of the show and Jordan and Danny have been watching with me the past two years (minus the party scenes). We love the unique competitions and heart pounding eliminations. 

We live about 80 minutes away from Yorkville but we knew this was a small trip to make to meet our favorite stars including Derrick, Jordan, Darrell, Laurel, Nicole Z., and more. The volleyball portion was an all ages event and was perfect for the 11 year old and the soon to be 8 year old. We bought tickets to be spectators, which was incredible, but next time I'm not passing on the opportunity to play with a Challenge veteran. It's the closest I'll ever get to being on my favorite show and I'm not passing it up.

Of course, Derrick is a favorite of ours and he feels like family to me as I hear his voice on his podcast twice a week on my way to work. We've watched his epic elimination against Joss in Vendettas over and over and I think he could take the crown as the toughest competitor to ever step inside the Challenge lines. He's certainly in my Challenge Hall of Fame.

On Saturday afternoon, Derrick and his Challenge friends were extremely nice and approachable. Derrick asked the boys to sit next to him while watching his red squad play and he told us to ask him anything we want and to come by and visit him throughout the day. So we did. The Challenge Throwdown for the Cause was a fun event for fans and we recommend it to anyone who wants to meet their favorite Challenge competitors all in one place and raise some money for a great cause!