The Spring Forward is an obstacle, firstly introduced as the third obstacle on American Ninja Warrior 11 in Los Angeles.
It consists of three bars that are spaced six feet apart and connected to a spring that caused the bars to bounce when competitors swung on them. The first and third bars had a spring placed on their left while the second had a spring placed on its right. The first two bars are placed straight, while the third bar is angled by 20 degrees. Finally, there is a spinning cylinder placed on the side of the bar closest to the spring. Competitors must lache from one bar to another and dismount to the landing platform.
During Los Angeles qualifiers, 13 competitors failed the obstacle, including Thomas Kofron, Derek Miyamoto, Anthony Trucks, Emmi Rose, Lee Cates, Steven Barbarito, and Alex Weber. Frequently, competitors' momentum would be disrupted by the bar's elasticity. This obstacle ultimately served as the cut-off for making into the top 30, likely due to the high number of casualties on the first two obstacles (the Shrinking Steps and Walk the Plank).
During Los Angeles finals, only Thomas Kofron and Steven Barbarito fell on this obstacle.
Other Season Appearances[]
American Ninja Warrior 12[]
On American Ninja Warrior 12, the Spring Forward appeared as the second obstacle during the second episode of the semifinals, and later during the finals. This time, the obstacle featured four bars instead of three. The bars also seemed to bounce less severely, meaning that instead of trying to resist the bouncing, competitors could more easily use it to aid them in their swinging. As such, some competitors could "link" some of the bars, or swing through them in one fluid motion.
During the semifinals, no competitor fell on the obstacle. However, during the finals, it shockingly eliminated Tyler Gillett from the competition.
Coincidentally, during the finals, it appeared alongside the Diamond Dash and Spin Hopper, both of which appeared alongside Spring Forward during the Los Angeles Qualifiers/City Finals rounds on the previous season.
American Ninja Warrior 15[]
On American Ninja Warrior 15, the Spring Forward appeared as the second obstacle during both the Runoffs and Semifinals 1 and 2. It returned to having only three bars, but all of them were placed on a straight angle (similar to American Ninja Warrior Junior 3's version). Although competitors were expected to fail due to rushing because of the new side-by-side racing rules, only a few competitors fell in this way: during the runoffs, only Larissa Cottle failed, and during the semifinals, only Jaelyn Bennett (in Semifinal 1) and Austin Baron (in Semifinal 2) failed on this obstacle.
Quite a few competitors were able to link all three bars as a result of practicing on replicas, utilizing the bouncing of the bars to their advantage, and being efficient with their momentum.
American Ninja Warrior 16[]
On American Ninja Warrior 16, Spring Forward reappeared in the same position and modifications from last season in both the Runoffs and the Semifinals. No one failed the obstacle in the Runoffs, while Kyle McCreight was the only competitor who failed it during the semifinals.
Other Appearances[]
In most international SASUKE/Ninja Warrior formats, the Spring Forward have all bars were positioned on the same side. This trend seemed to have started with Ninja Warrior France.
Ninja Warrior France[]
On Ninja Warrior France 5, the Spring Forward, locally called Les Tiges à Ressorts (literally Spring Rods) appeared as the fourth obstacle in the Semifinals. Unlike American Ninja Warrior, all three bars were positioned on the same side rather than alternating from left to right and it eliminated twelve ninjas throughout the semifinals.
Ninja Warrior UK[]
On Ninja Warrior UK 6, the Spring Forward appeared as the fifth obstacle in the Round 1 of the Finals, which was very similar to the one used in Ninja Warrior Poland 6 where four failed the obstacle.
Australian Ninja Warrior[]
On Australian Ninja Warrior 6, the Spring Forward appeared as the fifth obstacle of Stage One. It featured four bars placed at the same level. Just like the one used in Ninja Warrior France 5, all four bars were positioned on the same side rather than alternating from left to right. Furthermore, competitors had to use a trampoline and two lache bars as a medium to reach the obstacle.
Ninja Warrior Germany[]
On Ninja Warrior Germany 5, the Spring Forward, locally called Sprungfedern (literally Springs) appeared as the fourth obstacle in Preliminary Round 2 and 3, which was very similar to the one used in American Ninja Warrior 11.
Then, on Ninja Warrior Germany 6, the Spring Forward appeared as the seventh obstacle in Preliminary Round 6. There was a rope as a medium to reach the first bar.
Later, on Ninja Warrior Germany 7, the Spring Forward appeared as the fourth obstacle in the Duel Course. Due to the face-to-face format in Duel Course, the obstacle was modified to the one used in Ninja Warrior Poland 6.
Ninja Warrior Poland[]
On Ninja Warrior Poland 6, the Spring Forward (Sprężyny, literally Springs) appeared as the fifth obstacle in Heat 1 and Heat 4. Despite there being no face-to-face competition format existed there, there are four bars were present, and were positioned on the same side.
Then, on Ninja Warrior Poland 7, the Spring Forward appeared as the fourth obstacle in the finals' Stage One. The number of bars has been increased to five, and the second and third bars were higher than the others.
Later, on Ninja Warrior Poland 8, the Spring Forward appeared as the fifth obstacle in Heat 1 and Heat 4. The second and third bars were hung higher than the first and fourth bars, and the fourth was a bit farther from the third bar, which made it difficult to hold onto it. This season, more competitors failed on it.
On Ninja Warrior Poland 9, the Spring Forward appeared again as the fourth obstacle in the finals' Stage One. The obstacle arrangement was similar to that of Season 7, except that the fifth bar was removed, leaving a total of 4 bars.
Ninja Israel[]
On Ninja Warrior Israel 4, the Spring Forward, locally called קפיצת הקנגורו (literally Kangaroo Jump) appeared as the fourth obstacle in Heat 6, Heat 10 and Heat 12, which was very similar to the one used in American Ninja Warrior 12, except without the trampoline.
Then, on Ninja Warrior Israel 5, the Spring Forward appeared as the second obstacle in Repechage Heat, Semifinal 1, Semifinal 5 and Repechage Semifinal. Due to the new face-to-face competition format, the obstacle was modified to the one used in Australian Ninja Warrior 6, still without the trampoline like the one used in the previous season.
American Ninja Warrior Junior[]
Spring Forward appeared as the fifth obstacle for Bracket 2, consisting of kids aged 11-12, for American Ninja Warrior Junior 3.
There are three springs for each competitor, but the paths cross each other. This meant that competitors ended up in each other's proximity. This obstacle eliminated seven competitors, including Kaden Forsha, and Dylan Yee.
This version later appeared as the second obstacle during both the Runoffs and Semifinals 1 and 2 in American Ninja Warrior 15.
Spring Forward Tag[]
Spring Forward Tag was the first event for American Ninja Warrior: All Star Spectacular, taking place above the Stage Two pool where the Falling Shelves were placed during the regular season. Here, one dozen bars from the normal version were used, but were organized in a perfect circle and alternated between being placed higher or lower. In this challenge, competitors were placed in a series of single-elimination brackets and had to try to tag their opponent while flying through the bars.
Prior to each match, the competitors would start at opposite ends of the obstacle, separated by 6 bars. Once the klaxon sounded, they would have to keep lacheing across the bars until either one person tagged their opponent or fell into the water, whichever happened first. Competitors essentially picked one of two archetypes:
- The "Chaser": This competitor was set on flying through the bars as quickly and aggressively as possible to tag the other opponent. The strategy here is to maintain an aggressive pace, but not rush. If someone tried to link every single bar, they risked not planting their hands firmly enough, losing momentum by neglecting to take extra swings, or gassing out too early.
- The "Evader": This competitor was set on trying to keep enough distance between their opponent and simply wait until they gassed out. While this allowed competitors to take a more steady pace by staying on the defensive, they risked being tagged if they did not move quickly enough. The strategy is to maintain a quick but steady pace, keeping an eye on their opponent.
R.J. Roman used an interesting tactic; he rested himself atop the bar to regain energy. This paid off for him, as his opponent, Jay Lewis, ended up falling on the bar.
Kyle Soderman became the first champion of this event.
Spring Forward Face-off[]
Spring Forward Face-off was the third event for Australian Ninja Warrior: Record Breakers 2.
The obstacle worked in a similar fashion to the Sprinting Steps Showdown event from the previous season. Each competitor must climb up a rope and swing across six bars in a straight line that were connected to a spring at the end. They then must swing to a static bar before going back the way they came from. From there, they grabbed a rope, swung back, and finally reached and hit the buzzer at the top of the wall.
There were three rounds in this competition. The first round consisted of four matches, the second round consisted of two matches, and the third round consisted of one match. Each match consisted of two competitors, and the winner of each match would advance to the next round. There was no time limit in this competition. The winning competitor of this event would receive the cash prize of AU$15,000.
Trivia[]
- The Spring Forward during American Ninja Warrior 11's Los Angeles qualifiers became the first ever instance in American Ninja Warrior history that the third obstacle became the cut-off for advancing to city finals, as four competitors (Lee Cates, Thomas Kofron, Anthony Trucks, and Steven Barbarito) failed on this obstacle but still made it into the top 30. Because of this, the Spring Forward ultimately has the lowest number of attempts out of any third obstacle during city qualifiers round, as only 39 competitors attempted the obstacle.
Competitors' Success Rate[]
- All results based on the NBC/Keshet 12 broadcast and external information found.
American Ninja Warrior[]
ANW | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
ANW11 (qualifiers) | 26 | 39 | 66.67% |
ANW11 (finals) | 28 | 30 | 93.33% |
ANW12 (SF EP 2) | 30 | 30 | 100% |
ANW12 (Finals) | 26 | 27 | 96.30% |
Total | 110 | 126 | 87.30% |
Ninja Israel[]
NWI | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
NWI4 (Heat 6) | 5 | 7 | 71.43% |
NWI4 (Heat 10) | 6 | 8 | 75% |
NWI4 (Heat 12) | 4 | 7 | 57.14% |
NWI5 (Repechage Heat) | 12 | 12 | 100% |
NWI5 (Semifinal 1) | 10 | 10 | 100% |
NWI5 (Semifinal 5) | 11 | 12 | 91.67% |
NWI5 (Repechage Semifinal) | 8 | 8 | 100% |
Total | 56 | 64 | 87.5% |
Ninja Warrior Poland[]
NWP | Clears | Attempts | Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
NWP7 | 13 | 13 | 100% |
NWP8 (Heat 1) | 16 | 19 | 84.21% |
NWP8 (Heat 4) | 13 | 14 | 92.86% |
NWP9 | 18 | 18 | 100% |
Total | 60 | 64 | 93.75% |