The Wedge

American Ninja Warrior - Crashing the Course- Los Angeles Finals (Digital Exclusive)

The Wedge is an obstacle, firstly introduced as the eighth obstacle in Los Angeles finals on American Ninja Warrior 8. It is known for being one of the toughest city finals obstacle in American Ninja Warrior history.

Competitors must hop a bar across a wedge-shaped gap, somewhat similar to the Flying Bar, then make the dismount the same distance as the gap. However, the dismount is made harder, by the fact the bar would roll as they swung, because it had a lacrosse ball on both ends of the bar.

The Wedge was proven to be incredibly difficult, as many competitors fell either from tiring out, keeping the bar even, or attempting to make the dismount. Several top competitors (e.g. Ben Melick, Flip Rodriguez, Adam Rayl, Grant McCartney, Jackson Meyer, Nick Hanson, Kevin Bull, and Nicholas Coolridge) fell on the obstacle. Only two competitors (Jessie Graff and Josh Levin) were able to get past the obstacle entirely.

American Ninja Warrior 9's The Wedge in Denver

The Wedge returned on American Ninja Warrior 9, serving once again as the eighth obstacle during Denver finals. Similar to what happened during Los Angeles finals, The Wedge once again became the ninja killer obstacle, with only 3 out of 16 competitors who attempted it, could complete it (Lorin Ball, Jesse Lucero, and Ian Dory).

During Denver finals, The Wedge had taken out competitors such as Meagan Martin, Dan Yager, and Nick Kostreski. Most notably, it took out Brian Arnold, who fell on its doubled variant (the Double Wedge) twice before (during American Ninja Warrior 8's Stage Two and USA vs. The World 3). 

Double Wedge

American Ninja Warrior 8's Double Wedge in Stage Two

The Wedge returned in Stage Two on American Ninja Warrior 8, as the Double Wedge, replacing the Roulette Row from the previous season.

This iteration of The Wedge was 22 feet across and it worked similarly to its single-wall set counterpart, but competitors had to make a lache transition to a second wedge at the end of the first one.

Of the six competitors who attempted this obstacle, four of them failed: Josh Levin, Jake Murray, Brian Arnold, and Chris Wilczewski. Only Drew Drechsel and Daniel Gil were able to defeat this obstacle.

This obstacle was replaced in favor of the Wingnut Alley on the next season.

Competitors' Success Rate

ANW	Clears	Attempts	Percentage
ANW8	2	18	11.11%
ANW8 (Double Wedge)	2	6	33.33%
USA vs. The World 3 (Double Wedge)	3	5	60%
ANW9	3	16	18.75%
Total	10	47	21.27%

Trivia

• The Wedge was the third hardest known city finals obstacle in American Ninja Warrior history by 2017, taking 16 out of the 18 competitors who've faced it, giving it almost an 89% knockout rate. While the Unstable Bridge in the semifinal of American Ninja Warrior 3 had the highest knockout rate, took 13 out of the 14 competitors who've faced it, giving it a 92.85% knockout rate.
• The first two competitors to get past The Wedge from their respective city finals (Jessie Graff during Los Angeles finals, and Lorin Ball during Denver finals), both finished in second place among the other competitors.
  • Coincidentally, this was the highest both of them have personally ranked in a city finals course to date.
• During Denver finals, all 16 competitors who attempted this obstacle advanced to Las Vegas national finals (with Meagan Martin, who finished in 16th place, advanced through the top 2 among the female competitors).
• The obstacle originally was going to have separate walls to make it feel more inspired by the Flying Bar. However, no tester could succeed in getting past that version, so it was scrapped.
• The Wedge is named after a surfing spot of the same name in Newport Beach, California.
• This obstacle is very similar to the Pipe Slider, with a dismount at the end of the obstacle to the landing platform.
  • However, due to a larger gap to the landing platform, the dismount from The Wedge is far more difficult than from the Pipe Slider.
• For the second straight season, the fifth obstacle of Stage Two is a modified obstacle from the city qualifiers/city finals course, as:
  • The Spin Cycle is modified to Roulette Row on American Ninja Warrior 7, and
  • The Wedge is modified to Double Wedge on American Ninja Warrior 8.