LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Dave Harris may be soft-spoken and humble, but don't let that fool you. When he completes his first Ironman on Sunday, he'll have done something most thought was impossible.
"My call sign's Rooster, because my hair sticks straight up," he said.
During his day job, Harris also goes straight up in a jet called an EA-18G Growler. He's a commander with the U.S. Navy.
"I'm what's called an electronic warfare officer, so it's a two-seat aircraft, and I sit in the back and run all of the electronic warfare equipment," he said. "I've deployed out of multiple aircraft carriers in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, also Iraqi Freedom in Iraq, and most currently, Operation Inherent Resolve, which was operations against ISIS in Syria."
However, arguably his most memorable day in the Navy was Dec. 16, 2016 at an air station north of Seattle, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.
"The cockpit of my EA-18G essentially had an over-pressurization situation. The cockpit exploded," he said.
The cockpit explosion essentially caused his lungs to explode, too.
"The resulting pressure change caused both of my lungs to have severe trauma, and I ended up with respiratory failure," Harris said. "It was pretty bad. It was pretty severe. Essentially, my lungs stopped working."
Friends say Harris and his co-pilot only survived because of a series of miracles, including the fellow heroes who came to the rescue, a new piece of medical technology that just happened to be at the hospital where Harris was sent, and the expert team of medical professionals at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. For a whole month, he needed a machine to breathe for him, but somehow, some way, he was back in the saddle of a Growler in just half a year.
But the story doesn't end there.
"I said if I ever get out of here, if I'm ever able to exercise again, able to walk again, I'm like, 'I'm going to do it,'" Harris said.
The "it" he meant was Ironman, the 140-mile-long triathlon that few will ever even attempt. In Louisville on Sunday, participants will face a 2.4 mile swim in the Ohio River, a 112 mile bike ride through three counties, and a full marathon from Downtown Louisville south past Churchill Downs and back.
"My wife said, 'Oh, boy. Here we go again.' She kind of knew what was coming. She knew it would be a time commitment," Harris said.
On Sunday, he'll be sure about one thing. As he races toward that impossible achievement, he'll have plenty of motivation to keep fighting, mile-by-mile.
"My son Zach who's my 12-year-old ... he's a 12-year-old, right ... so yeah, he said, 'Dad, just don't give up.' And that's probably the best advice that I've gotten," he said.
Harris will also be competing for his co-pilot, Dillon, who's still healing after the accident two years ago. He plans to carry a photo of his friend in his race bag.
"I will cross the finish line one way or another," he said assuredly. "Yep, I've got too many motivations and too many people that have helped me through this process who have ownership in me completing this race, so I'm going to do it for all of them."
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