Sasukepedia Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Balance Tank (バランスタンク) is a Second Stage obstacle introduced in SASUKE 10. Competitors must stand on top of a dodecagonal barrel, rolling over a downward-slanted 5.4 metres track. As it descends down the track, competitors must constantly move their feet to keep up with the increasing velocity of the barrel. If they can't, they'll ultimately lose their balance and fail.

Although most competitors rode it out the whole obstacle, some competitors (most notably Yamamoto Shingo) leaped midway through in order to avoid losing their balance, but it also increased the risk of touching the water if unsuccessful.

Three competitors failed on this obstacle, being Yamada Katsumi in SASUKE 11 (when he tipped over on the barrel and landed with one leg on each side), Shimizu Hideaki in SASUKE 13 (who lost his balance on the barrel), and Shiratori Bunpei in SASUKE 14 (when he lost his foot rhythm, slipped, and fell in front of the barrel, causing it to hit him in the head as he fell).

This obstacle was most likely inspired by the Single Roller game from another TBS gameshow Takeshi's Castle, albeit the barrel was smaller and the track was shorter. A similar version called Enchū Nori, later appeared from KUNOICHI 2001 to KUNOICHI 2009.

Lee En-Chih attempting Balance Tank in SASUKE 17

Lee En-Chih attempting modified Balance Tank in SASUKE 17

Despite the damage, this obstacle was replaced by Delta Bridge in SASUKE 16, but possibly due to its high clear rate, this obstacle was brought back in the next tournament And was modified, with the track being made longer. However, due to the course renewal brought on by Nagano Makoto's Kanzenseiha, it was once again replaced, this time by Stick Slider and Net Bridge.

Takeda Toshihiro attempting Balance Tank in SASUKE 24

Takeda Toshihiro attempting modified Balance Tank in SASUKE 24

After a hiatus of six tournaments, Balance Tank returned in SASUKE 24, replacing the Unstable Bridge, which was moved one spot backwards. It was modified with a much shorter track (combined with the bumps at the end of the track) and a rope at the end, make it basically a hybrid of this obstacle and Rope Climb from First Stage. In addition, the barrel is no longer dodecagonal compared to the previous version. The finishing platform was raised, requiring competitors to roll to the end of the track (or reach the bumps) and jump to the rope, before climbing up the rope to get to the platform, in order to get to the next obstacle. It was proven to function more as a time waster, as no competitor failed there.

In SASUKE 25, the rope was shortened, now being only half of its original size. Because of that, Yamamoto Shingo was eliminated when he tried to leap halfway through the track. Kanno Hitoshi also failed the obstacle before by losing his balance and falling backwards, marked the first time that the obstacle took out more than one competitor in a single tournament (along with American Ninja Warrior 4).

The rope was made longer in SASUKE 26, but the track was steeper than before, making it roll much faster than in the previous tournament. These modifications made Balance Tank one of the many obstacles in SASUKE's history to be modified in three consecutive tournaments.

The modification proved to be effective, eliminating Travis Furlanic, who failed by losing his balance on the rolling portion. However, no competitor failed on this obstacle in SASUKE 27. Combined with Urushihara Yuuji's second Kanzenseiha in this tournament, it was replaced for good by the returning Spider Walk in the following tournament as part of the renewal.

Other Appearances[]

American Ninja Warrior[]

ANW4 Balance Tank

American Ninja Warrior 4's Balance Tank in Stage Two

Anw4 balance tank stopper

Closer inspection of the stopper on American Ninja Warrior 4's Balance Tank track

The SASUKE 24-27 version of Balance Tank appeared on American Ninja Warrior 4 as the fourth obstacle in Stage Two, However, the track was made similar to the original version, with no bumps at the end of the track, and the length was increased to 16 feet (4.87 meter) long. As the result, the obstacle took out four out of seven competitors who attempted it (Travis Rosen, Flip Rodriguez, Brian Arnold, and Ahmed Toure), in which all of them failed at the rolling portion of the obstacle. A notch was added at the start of the track to prevent the barrel from accidentally rolling.

ANW5 Balance Tank

American Ninja Warrior 5's Balance Tank in Stage Two

On American Ninja Warrior 5, the rope was shortened, and the finishing platform was placed higher and closer to the starting platform than the previous season, indirectly made the track shorter. It was proven to be much easier than the previous season, as no competitor failed on this obstacle.

On American Ninja Warrior 6, the obstacle was replaced by the Butterfly Wall, with the rope and finishing platform remained the same.

Competitors' Success Rate[]

  • All results based on the TBS/NBC broadcast and external information found.

SASUKE[]

SASUKE Clears Attempts Percentage
10 4 4 100%
11 9 10 90%
12 11 11 100%
13 9 10 90%
14 12 13 92.31%
15 7 7 100%
17 10 10 100%
24 10 10 100%
25 5 7 71.43%
26 7 8 87.5%
27 16 16 100%
Total 100 106 94.34%

American Ninja Warrior[]

ANW Clears Attempts Percentage
ANW4 3 7 42.85%
ANW5 8 8 100%
USA vs. Japan 3 3 100%
Total 14 18 77.78%
Advertisement