Top Ten Hardest Obstacles in American Ninja Warrior

If you think the Flying Bar, Slippery Summit, Walking Bar, or Stair Hopper are difficult, this bar-type obstacle is the worst of all. You have to move the bar perfectly horizontally to wedge through the obstacle without tilting down, or you'll fall.

I thought the normal Wedge looked hard. This obstacle doubles the difficulty.

It seals so many fates. By far the hardest.

This obstacle tests your core strength, hands, feet, and almost every part of your body. You must sustain a very uncomfortable position while progressing downwards, literally right above the water. Then you must elevate about 15 feet and grab onto the next obstacle without touching the ground.

A normal Body Prop has been hard in the past but conquered many times. Now, the Curved Body Prop (which is shaped like a letter U) is harder than it looks. I bet it hurts your stomach unless you're well-trained for it.

Some Cliffhangers aren't too hard, but if your fingers start to tire after a few obstacles, the Ultimate Cliffhanger becomes the hardest part to get through. Even if you're fully trained, it's still tough. Plus, to make it even harder, you have to hop from one Cliffhanger to another and then another.

This obstacle knocked out everyone, including Daniel Gil, Flip Rodriguez, and The Phoenix Najee Richardson.

It burns your grip strength quickly.

A brand-new obstacle for the 2018 Indianapolis Finals, Cane Lane is tough. You must move the cane above you and hop to difficult spots without missing or getting unhooked from the rail.

Veterans and some rookies are getting better at this obstacle, and it's becoming less difficult. However, if it's the double or down-up version of the Salmon Ladder, it can get a little disorienting.

It's a short obstacle to complete, even though it's like rock climbing on a ceiling. But after crossing several obstacles in Stage 3, your fingers will still be aching, and you won't be able to hang on much longer.

It took out Brent, Joe, and Drew twice. I loved this obstacle - too bad it's not there anymore.

It took out The Real Life Ninja in Season 8.

It looks easy, but if your hands and arms are already tired, this one could cause you to fail in the blink of an eye.

It just wears out your grip so you have nothing left for the other obstacles.

If you think the Unstable Bridge and the Wave Runner are hard, wait until you try the Hourglass Drop. This obstacle is tough to nail because of the gripping, and to make it even harder, you must jump on a trampoline to reach the other platform. And yes, they move just like their predecessors.

It may seem easy, but both veterans and rookies have had their ups and downs on this obstacle. Even Kacy Catanzaro had a tough time beating it.

I definitely think the Jumping Spider is more difficult than people realize.

Yes, but 1) the Wingnuts are still hard just by jumping from one to another, and 2) you're right, the last Wingnut on Stage 2 is a little too far away. Even Daniel Gil and Drew Drechsel failed miserably on that one too.

The Wingnuts may look easy in the City Opening and Finals, but that time on Stage 2, one Wingnut was a bit too far away from the dismount, making it much harder.

Not many got past this obstacle, but there are three ways to fail it:

1. You get little swing.
2. You get too much swing and get hurt.
3. You let go at the dismount. (Season 9)

I think this obstacle should be in the top five. It knocked out Daniel Gil, Drew Drechsel, and Jamie Rahn. Only Najee Richardson and Sean Bryan have done it twice. Drew and Joe Moravsky have ever beaten it.

How does one swing sideways and catch a 1-inch wing nut?

Looking back at my ANW list, it seems I've discovered that the Vertical Limit is bound to be a nightmare on ANW. It's even tougher than the Cliffhanger, with a 1-centimeter hold for fingertips. That's like getting your fingers smashed by a window! The best way to beat it is to practice, practice, and practice some more on the obstacle.

If you think this is easy, how did Joe Moravsky, Isaac Caldiero, James McGrath, Jody Avila, and Jamie Rahn all fail on this obstacle?

After the nine obstacles before it, the ninjas have nothing left to complete it.

Tough - it took out Ryan Stratis and The Real Life Ninja.

In my earlier comment, I mentioned that both Kevin Bull and Adam Rayl fell on this obstacle. I forgot to add that Hunter Guerard also suffered a head injury on it. I was so freaked out and almost had a heart attack! I hope Hunter is doing okay. Stay safe, everyone.

You have to swing hard enough to hold on to a small ledge and leap three times to the same length of ledges, with one being a blind, midair transition.

This obstacle took out 11 competitors, including big names like Kevin Bull and Adam Rayl.

If my bar rolls, if I lose grip, or if I make a technical mistake - heart attack!

This obstacle was relentless. It didn't care if the competitors had accomplished great things, like Geoff Britten, who became the first American Ninja Warrior and the first to conquer Mount Midoriyama, or Drew Drechsel, who won it all the year after he fell on this obstacle.

Heartbreaking fact: Did you know that this was the only upper-body obstacle Geoff Britten ever fell on?

It's really hard to get the bar positioned correctly on top of the obstacle.

This is literally a hard obstacle, but Drew fell on it because he was going too fast. Still, it's tough.

It appeared in the Cleveland Finals (Season 9) and on Stage Three.