Zac Gordon

Zac Gordon is a USA Parkour certified instructor as well as TV & internet personality and athlete. He has successfully ran a Ninja program in Harrisburg since 2014. He has taught a variety of parkour and ninja skills to hundreds of youth, growing their confidence mentally and physically all while burning calories and having a blast.

Growing up Zac was a competitive gymnast for 10 years with an extensive athletic background in recreational and action sports. Including parkour, which he has practicing now for over 2 decades.

He has also earned a living as a successful TV personality being featured on such shows as American Ninja Warrior, Americas Got Talent, Go-Big Show & is a professional tagger on the FOX TV show “Ultimate Tag”, hosted by NFL players JJ, TJ, & Derek Watt. He is a proud husband & father of three (Raiden, Eevee, & Bert), that also love parkour, attend his classes, and even help teach. His dream is to own a facility where he can provide a safe, fun environment to kids of all ages, (& adults), being able to pass along his knowledge of movement. Providing valuable mental and physical growth that anyone can benefit from in daily life, athletic hobbies, recreational or action sports, or even professional careers such as stunt work for commercials, TV shows, & movies.

Thomas Alquist

Co-owner and Head Coach of Team UP

Thomas Alquist is a highly trained and certified WFPF (World Freerunning Parkour Federation) instructor, as well as a certified gymnastics and rock climbing coach. Since 2011, he has worked in gymnastics facilities, coaching both kids and adults and guiding them toward achieving their fitness goals.

In 2016, Thomas built a Ninja program from the ground up, starting with just one student for the first three weeks. His dedication and expertise led the program to grow to 180 students within three years. Thomas has also organized and hosted numerous Ultimate Ninja Athlete Association (UNAA) league competitions, as well as charity events supporting causes like Church Without Walls, Make A Wish, and Veteran Warrior.

Teaming up with Zac, Thomas played a pivotal role in the creation, launch, and ongoing operation of Urban Playground in 2019. As co-owner, he directs all programs at the gym and serves as the head coach of Team UP, the competitive Ninja Warrior team. His commitment to building a facility where both kids and adults can explore extreme sports safely has helped shape Urban Playground into a space for developing confidence, endurance, and physical strength.

Thomas believes in the transformative power of extreme sports. From his personal experience, he knows that kids who grow up participating in such activities gain increased focus, discipline, and stress relief. Urban Playground provides a unique environment for athletes to build character and strength under the guidance of trained professionals.

Josiah Sunday

Josiah Sunday is a certified WFPF (World Freerunning Parkour Federation) instructor. He has been training parkour, ninja and other sports for about 5 years. His passion for the art of movement began when he moved to a home with enough yard space to get a trampoline. Once he realized how much he enjoyed learning new ways to move he began taking classes under Zac Gordon. He learned so much from Zac and training at home with YouTube. He even built a few ninja obstacles at home, including monkey bars and his favorite, the salmon ladder. He really likes extreme sports because it is great for improving physical fitness, focus, control and is just a ton of fun! He not only enjoys parkour, free running and ninja, but also really enjoys tricking and Taekwondo. Besides taking classes, he spent last year interning under Coach Thomas and Zac and learned a lot about how best to teach and work with kids. He is a recent home school high school graduate and is now employed here at Urban Playground. It has been his dream to share his love of extreme sports with others and he has always enjoyed working with kids. He is very excited to have the opportunity to work at Urban Playground and help teach what he loves and improve himself as an athlete and teacher.

Jasper

Jasper is a certified nice guy. He has been teaching ninja warrior since 2015 and has a degree in Early Childhood & Special Education. While earning his degree he taught preschool and he is now a 2nd-grade teacher at Harrisburg Christian School. He teaches kids at school during the day and at Urban Playground at night 😎 Jasper grew up wrestling in Annville, PA. He loves the outdoors, wiggling his ears, his favorite movie is 101 Dalmatians. Don’t let him out of your sight because he just might fall asleep 😴

Riyuichi Narita

Coaching Name: Riyuichi

Specializes in Parkour & Freerunning

Riyuichi was born in the Philippines and moved to America in 2002 at the age of seven. While he's called the U.S. home ever since, he hasn't traveled much beyond its borders but hopes to explore more someday.

Riyuichi actively works within his school district to provide more opportunities for students. As a Teacher Coach, he has led many teams to the “What’s So Cool About Manufacturing” awards, even securing 1st place in the state during the height of the pandemic.

Professional Background:

• Graduated from Penn State with a degree in Education

• Currently teaching STEM Education to K-4 students

Fun Facts:

• If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
  "I'd love to fly. Flying anywhere, anytime would feel like the ultimate freedom."

• Favorite Book: Old Path White Clouds by Thich Nhat Hanh

• Unique Skill: "I have an endless appetite for learning, which has helped me get to where I am today."

• If you were an animal, what would you be?
  "A platypus! Unique, adaptable, and a little mysterious."

Kristen Mam

Coaching Name: Kristen

Specializes in Preschool Movement!

Professional Background:
Kristen holds a degree in English but spent 14 years working at Highmark in customer service, IT, and management roles. Since 2012, she has been a dedicated stay-at-home parent after adopting her son. She now has two children, aged 13 and 7, both of whom are active in Urban Playground’s programs. Kristen joined the OCR program in early 2023 and started competing in late 2023. She began assisting with the preschool program in fall 2023 and is WNL floor-certified, also completing WFPF assistant and Parkour Level 1 training.

Personal Touch:
Kristen’s family is always on the go! A long-distance runner for 20 years, she has completed numerous ultra-marathons, ranging from 50 kilometers to 100 miles. In addition to her athletic pursuits, Kristen has been singing in her church band for over two decades. She also homeschools her children, allowing them to pursue their passions, from her son’s love of music to her daughter’s dedication to ballet. Kristen’s husband is a video producer and documentary director, adding even more creative energy to the household.

Travel:
In 2008, Kristen and her husband honeymooned in the heart of the Costa Rican jungle. Staying at an eco-resort powered by solar and hydro energy, they hiked through the jungle, repelled down waterfalls, and even climbed a 40-foot matapalo tree before jumping out of it! This experience remains one of Kristen’s most cherished travel memories.

Community and Volunteering:
Kristen has been deeply involved in her church for nearly 25 years and currently serves on the Church Council. Additionally, she has served on the board of Tree 4 Hope, a local non-profit, for over a decade. Through her involvement, the organization has opened a bilingual STEAM school for girls in Guatemala.

Fun Facts:

• If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
  "Teleportation! I’m so tired of driving everywhere."

• Favorite Books or Movies: "No favorites, but I enjoy reading non-fiction accounts of polar expeditions and mountaineering."

• Hidden Talents: "None that I can think of, but I’m always learning!"

• If you were an animal, what would you be?
  "An elephant – we’re both herbivores and cover long distances slowly!"

Ryan Reber

Ryan Reber is a World Taekwondo Federation certified third degree blackbelt with over 11 years of experience teaching Taekwondo as well as 15 years teaching martial arts tricking. He has run programs for traditional Taekwondo for kids and adults, bully safety, adults self defense, weapons, and assistant instructor programs as well as coached competition teams and a demonstration team.

Ryan first got his inspiration for martial arts from his father who did Muay Thai in Thailand as a young child. From there Ryan would go on to study and practice various martial arts like Muay Thai, kung fu, and Brazilian Capoeria, before starting Taekwondo in 2009.

His passion for martial arts has been a lifelong journey that drives his love and ability to pass on his skills and knowledge to others. He believes through martial arts we can all learn to be stronger and more confident people to better our daily lives.