I-Beam Cross

The I-Beam Cross is an obstacle, firstly introduced as the fifth on American Ninja Warrior 7 in San Pedro (Military).

It consisted of a customized beam in which competitors must cross it with their arms and legs from underneath (similar to the Spider Flip). The ledges of the beam varied in width from one inch to three inches. Many competitors had trouble with the middle part of the beam, where it turned from horizontal to vertical, raised a couple feet, and turned back horizontally. Only 10 competitors could complete this obstacle during San Pedro (Military) qualifiers.

American Ninja Warrior 8
The I-Beam Cross returned as the fifth obstacle on American Ninja Warrior 8 in Los Angeles. However, there was a minor modification on the first horizontal part of the beam (with a gap in which competitors had to cross over). Despite that, the number of completions during Los Angeles qualifiers almost doubled from San Pedro (Military) qualifiers on the previous season, as 19 competitors could complete the obstacle (including Natalie Duran and Jessie Graff).

Ninja Warrior UK
The I-Beam Cross appeared as the fifth obstacle in Heat 5 on Ninja Warrior UK 3 (simply called as the Beam Cross), and then in Heat 4 on Ninja Warrior UK 4, which was very similar to the I-Beam Cross from American Ninja Warrior 8.

However, just like during San Pedro (Military) qualifiers on American Ninja Warrior 7, several competitors got struggled at the middle part of the obstacle. On Ninja Warrior UK 3, 9 competitors could complete the obstacle (3 of them were female competitors), while on Ninja Warrior UK 4, only 4 competitors could complete the obstacle.

Australian Ninja Warrior
On Australian Ninja Warrior 2, the I-Beam Cross appeared as the fifth obstacle in Semifinal 2, which was very similar to the one used on American Ninja Warrior 7 (since the beam didn't have a gap to cross over).

Ninja Warrior Poland
At Ninja Warrior Poland 3, I-Beam Cross appeared as the second obstacle in the semi-final track. This obstacle turned out to be the easiest, as no participant this season fell from it.

In Ninja Warrior Poland 4, I-Beam Cross appeared as the eighth obstacle during Stage One, except that the tip of the obstacle was a few centimeters from the landing platform. Then, on Ninja Warrior Poland 5, I-Beam Cross reappeared as the eight obstacle in the Stage One. 4 competitors attempted and finished this obstacle.

I-Beam Gap
An upgraded version of the I-Beam Cross (called the I-Beam Gap), appeared as the fifth obstacle on American Ninja Warrior 9 in Cleveland. However, this obstacle is a fusion between the I-Beam Cross and Spider Flip.

Competitors would start the obstacle horizontally, and must cross the ledges with their arms and legs from underneath. Then, they must go vertical and do a 180-degree jump onto another setup, 6 feet away and placed higher than the first setup (similar to the Spider Flip). From there, they must climb back down and dismount to the landing platform to advance. Some parts of the beam had no ledges, making it harder for the competitors to traverse. During Cleveland qualifiers, 16 out of 31 competitors fell here, including Alexi Matousek, Jon Alexis Jr., and Mike Shuck.

Although the 6-foot gap between the obstacle could be completed by making a 180-degree jump, some competitors (e.g. James McGrath and Jon Alexis Jr.) could use their long legs to prop one of their foot onto the second setup, which made it easier to complete the obstacle.

During Cleveland finals, it took out four competitors (Steve Allen, Alexi Matousek, Cory Cook, and Mark Ribeiro).

Australian Ninja Warrior
On Australian Ninja Warrior 2, the I-Beam Gap appeared as the fifth obstacle in Stage One. However, the gap between the first and second setups was much smaller and the first setup was similar to the first half of the I-Beam Cross. Therefore, when the competitors reached the gap, they must directly make the transition to the second setup instead of going vertical on the first setup and making a 180-degree jump to the second setup.

Then, on Australian Ninja Warrior 3, the I-Beam Gap appeared as the second obstacle in Stage Two. This time, the gap between the first and second setups was made much larger, meaning competitors must attempt the obstacle in a similar manner as the one in Cleveland course on American Ninja Warrior 9 (with the exception during Ashlin Herbert's run, as he completed the obstacle by using only the underneath part of the beams), and the obstacle ended up defeating one competitor (Mike Snow).

On Australian Ninja Warrior 5, the I-Beam Gap appeared as the third obstacle in Stage Two. The gap between the first and second setups were known to be 2.5 meters, which led to many competitors attempting Herbert's technique on clearing the gap. The obstacle ended up eliminating Olivia Vivian and Ben Polson, in which both tried clearing the gap using only the underneath part of the beams. This also eliminated Zak Stolz, but he would eventually complete this obstacle in his second run due to him using a second-chance advantage he won during Semifinal 3.

Ninja Israel
The I-Beam Gap would appear as the fifth obstacle of the qualifiers of Ninja Warrior Israel 3. It is paired with the Swinging Peg Board as part of Route A of the Crossroads. Compared to previous appearances in other competitions, there would be a ledge similar in appearance to the Window Hang between the two set ups in which competitors can hold onto to make the transfer.