The Flying Bar (フライングバー) was the final obstacle of SASUKE's new Third Stage in SASUKE 25 and SASUKE 26.
It was a hybrid of the Jumping Bars and Pipe Slider (or referred on American Ninja Warrior as a horizontal version of the Salmon Ladder), where competitors must negotiate down a track by jumping from one cradle to another, while holding onto a pipe.
There were five cradles, with each jump approximately 1.5 meters (5 feet) from one cradle to the next cradle.
In SASUKE 27, the obstacle was placed as the second obstacle in the Third Stage, while the new Bar Glider took its previous spot. In addition, the obstacle was shortened from five cradles to three.
Ishikawa Terukazu was about to attempt the Flying Bar, SASUKE 27
This version was not proven to be too difficult, only eliminating 2 out of 10 competitors who attempted it in that tournament (Okuyama Yoshiyuki and Ishikawa Terukazu).
It was removed after Urushihara Yuuji's second kanzenseiha in SASUKE 27, being replaced by the Iron Paddler, but would eventually return in its SASUKE 27 version in SASUKE 32, replacing its former successor.
Upon its return, the obstacle was proven to be brutal, eliminating 4 out of 8 competitors who attempted it, including former finalists Nagasaki Shunsuke and Kawaguchi Tomohiro.
For SASUKE 33, the obstacle directly led into the Sidewinder Kai without any rest, while also having a wire installed to secure the obstacle to an upper track (much like the Pipe Slider), so that competitors would not drag the bar down with them if they failed.
While no one failed the transition between obstacles, the obstacle itself eliminated most of the competitors who attempted the Third Stage in that tournament, including SASUKE champion Morimoto Yūsuke (who completed the obstacle during USA vs. The World and USA vs. The World 2). Only Drew Drechsel managed to clear the obstacle.
The difficulty was blamed on the addition of the wire, as it caused the bar to slip off of its cradles before competitors could successfully build up momentum.
Jessie Graff was about to attempt the modified Flying Bar, which would lead directly to Sidewinder Kai, SASUKE 34
As the result, in SASUKE 34, the cradles were increased in size to rectify this, which gave competitors more space for the bar to move while the competitor made the transition from one cradle to another. This led to no one failed the obstacle in that tournament.
In SASUKE 35, the Drum Hopper Kai was removed, due to the introduction of the Planet Bridge, which in turn moved the Flying Bar and Sidewinder Kai (simply called as the Sidewinder) to the first and second obstacles respectively. This made the Flying Bar the first obstacle in SASUKE history to be placed as the first and final obstacles in a stage for different tournaments.
In SASUKE 36, the Flying Bar eliminated no one except for Ben Toyer - possibly due to inexperience.
American Ninja Warrior Appearances
American Ninja Warrior 4's Flying Bar in Stage Three
American Ninja Warrior 6's Flying Bar in Stage Three
American Ninja Warrior 11's Flying Bar in Stage Three
The Flying Bar appeared as the final obstacle in Stage Three from American Ninja Warrior 4 until now, which was the same as the one used in SASUKE 25 and SASUKE 26.
So far, during its overall appearances on American Ninja Warrior's regular season, only seven competitors had ever attempted this obstacle:
- Brian Arnold on American Ninja Warrior 5,
- Ian Dory, Isaac Caldiero, and Geoff Britten on American Ninja Warrior 7, and
- Drew Drechsel, Adam Rayl and Daniel Gil on American Ninja Warrior 11.
Note: On American Ninja Warrior 11, the producers considered Adam Rayl failed on the Flying Bar, but actually, at the end of the previous obstacle (the Cane Lane), he barely touched the resting bar before falling, so he didn't attempt the obstacle itself.
Four of those competitors had completed it: Isaac Caldiero and Geoff Britten on American Ninja Warrior 7, and Drew Drechsel and Daniel Gil on American Ninja Warrior 11. With the exception of Gil, every competitor who completed the Flying Bar on American Ninja Warrior later achieved total victory on his respective American Ninja Warrior season.
Although only four competitors so far completed this obstacle on American Ninja Warrior's regular season, more competitors completed it on American Ninja Warrior's international tournament.
- During USA vs. Japan, three competitors (Matachi Ryo, Brian Arnold, and Paul Kasemir) reached this obstacle. However, all of them failed to complete it.
- During USA vs. The World, five competitors (Morimoto Yusuke, Stefano Ghisolfi, Matachi Ryo, Sean McColl, and Brian Arnold) reached this obstacle, and each competitor, with the exception Sean McColl, completed it (with Morimoto Yusuke ultimately becoming the first to complete it on any American Ninja Warrior competition).
- During USA vs. The World 2, five competitors (Ian Dory, Stefano Ghisolfi, Morimoto Yusuke, Sean McColl, and Isaac Caldiero) reached this obstacle, and three of them (except Ian Dory and Stefano Ghisolfi) completed it.
- During USA vs. The World 3, only two competitors (Josh Levin and Drew Drechsel) reached this obstacle, and both of them completed it.
- During USA vs. The World 4, the obstacle was unattempted.
- During USA vs. The World 5, the obstacle was again unattempted.
Other Appearances
On most of the SASUKE/Ninja Warrior's international formats, the Flying Bar appeared as the penultimate obstacle before the Final Stage/Mount Midoriyama tower.
Ninja Warrior UK
Ninja Warrior UK 3's Flying Bars
The Flying Bar (called as the Flying Bars) appeared during the finals:
- as the eighth and final obstacle in Stage 2 on Ninja Warrior UK, and
- as the third and final obstacle in Stage 3 from Ninja Warrior UK 2 onwards.
Since the obstacle was not preceded by any obstacle with no rest, there was a rope at the start, as a medium to reach the bar.
During the first 3 Ninja Warrior UK seasons, the obstacle was unattempted. On Ninja Warrior UK 4, the obstacle was attempted for the first time ever by Deren Perez and Tim Shieff. However, none of them could complete it.
On Ninja Warrior UK 5, the obstacle was finally completed for the first time ever by Tim Champion, making him also the first ever competitor to attempt Stage 4 (Mount Midoriyama). He would later become the first competitor in Ninja Warrior UK history to achieve total victory and earn the title of the first "Ninja Warrior UK".
Australian Ninja Warrior
Australian Ninja Warrior's Flying Bar
The Flying Bar appeared:
- as the eighth and final obstacle in Stage Two on Australian Ninja Warrior,
- as the sixth and final obstacle in Stage Three on Australian Ninja Warrior 2, and
- as the fifth and final obstacle in Stage Three on Australian Ninja Warrior 3.
However, no one has attempted the obstacle so far.
SASUKE Ninja Warrior Indonesia
SASUKE Ninja Warrior Indonesia 2017's Flying Bar in Final Stage
On SASUKE Ninja Warrior Indonesia 2017, the Flying Bar appeared as the sixth and final obstacle during Final Stage, with a similar specification from SASUKE 25-26/American Ninja Warrior's version of the Flying Bar, with the addition of an installed wire to secure the bar onto an upper track (similar to SASUKE 33 version of the Flying Bar). Among the 2 competitors who attempted the obstacle (Yosua Laskaman Zalukhu and Angga Cahya), Yosua Laskaman Zalukhu was the only competitor who could complete it and advanced to Mount Midoriyama Stage.
However, during SASUKE Ninja Warrior Indonesia: International Competition, the Flying Bar became much brutal than ever, as the obstacle eliminated every competitor who attempted it. Among the 9 competitors who attempted the obstacle, including some of the competitors who completed the Flying Bar in either SASUKE and/or American Ninja Warrior (including American Ninja Warrior's international tournament), such as Drew Drechsel and Morimoto Yūsuke, none of them could complete this version of the Flying Bar, leaving the Mount Midoriyama Stage untouched. Similar to what happened in SASUKE 33, the brutality of the Flying Bar during this tournament was likely due to the addition of the wire, as most of the competitors failed while making the transition to either the second or third cradles.
SASUKE Vietnam
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SASUKE Vietnam 4's Flying Bar
The Flying Bar (called locally as Xà Bay) appeared in Stage 3 from SASUKE Vietnam 3 to SASUKE Vietnam 5, as the and final obstacle in Stage 3, with a similar specification from American Ninja Warrior's version of the Flying Bar (except the number of cradles was reduced from five to four).
Competitors' Success Rate
- All results based on the TBS/NBC broadcast and external information found
SASUKE
| SASUKE | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| 26 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| 27 | 8 | 10 | 80% |
| 32 | 4 | 8 | 50% |
| 33 | 1 | 5 | 20% |
| 34 | 9 | 9 | 100% |
| 35 | 5 | 5 | 100% |
| 36 | 9 | 10 | 90% |
| Total | 36 | 47 | 76.59% |
American Ninja Warrior
| ANW | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
| ANW4 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| ANW5 | 0 | 1 | 0% |
| ANW6 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| ANW7 | 2 | 3 | 66.67% |
| ANW8 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| ANW9 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| ANW10 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| ANW11 | 2 | 3 | 66.67% |
| USA vs. Japan | 0 | 3 | 0% |
| USA vs. The World | 4 | 5 | 80% |
| USA vs. The World 2 | 3 | 5 | 60% |
| USA vs. The World 3 | 2 | 2 | 100% |
| USA vs. The World 4 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| USA vs. The World 5 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| Total | 13 | 22 | 59.09% |