Big Balls

The Big Balls are an obstacle, first used as the third obstacle in the Qualifier of Season 1. It is one of the most iconic Wipeout obstacles and is quickly a staple of the show, being featured in every episode to date, including all the international versions and the TBS revival.

It is four large red balls filled with air that contestants must attempt to run across without falling into the water below.

Design and Changes[]

Big Balls (Season 2) — Season 2’s Big Balls

Season 2’s Big Balls (Australia Special)

There have been a few design changes to the Big Balls over the show's history. In Season 1, the Big Balls were held by a large metal frame with padding on the sides. This caused some contestants to go through the bottom of the Big Balls or hit their head on the padding of the metal frame. In some episodes of Season 2, the Big Balls featured a casing that better protected the metal frame, hiding it completely from view. In Season 3, the iconic look had been established with a large red ball encased on top of a blue pedestal. In the TBS revival (Season 8), the base of each pedestal was made square, and the balls appeared as if they were translucent. In the second season of the TBS revival (Season 9), a yellow rim was added to the bottom of the balls. The height of each pedestal can differ, depending on the episode or season. In international versions filmed in Argentina, the balls are instead propped up with a red metal frame, similar to the US version in Season 2, except that the holder for each ball is much smaller, reducing the risk of contestants hitting their head against it.

In an ESPN Sport Science segment, the specifications of the Big Balls are established as follows: each ball is made out of PVC and Cordura nylon fabric, are 6 feet (1.83 meters) in diameter, and are spaced 4 feet (1.22 meters) apart. The highest ball is 11 feet (3.35 meters) above the water, with contestants failing the obstacle subjected to up to 1 metric ton of force when hitting the water and angular velocity of up to 2,520°/sec. The optimal landing placement for each ball is estimated to be within 30° from the top on either side of the ball parallel to the path of the course. This data is accurate as of Season 4 Summer Wipeout, when the segment was taped and the course was tested.

There have also been four special cosmetic changes to the Big Balls:

In Season 2’s episode “Wipeout Bowl 1: Cheerleaders vs. Couch Potatoes”, which was a special for the Super Bowl, the Big Balls featured a design similar to a football helmet.

Maxresdefault — Season 3's World Cup Soccer Balls

In Season 3, the episode “Wipeout Soccer Special” featured a soccer ball design to promote the FIFA World Cup 2010 on ABC, and the episode “America’s Finest” featured the Big Balls colored in red, white, and blue for a patriotic motif.

Season 5’s Jingle Balls (Deck the Balls)

In Season 5’s episode “Winter Wipeout: Deck the Balls”, the Big Balls were colored yellow, red, green, and blue to resemble Christmas ornaments.

There have also been a few changes to make the Big Balls even harder. In some episodes of Season 3, the Big Balls bounced up and down while contestants try to navigate across. Additionally, the Motivator, introduced in Season 2, pushed contestants forward if they hesitated or waited too long on the platform. See its page for variations of the Motivator.

Lastly, starting in Season 5, a small version of Ballsy, fittingly named Smallsy, was introduced. He sits on the fourth ball, and contestants who knock him off receive a $500 bonus. His theming also changes per episode, including Disco Smallsy, Superhero Smallsy, Doctor Smallsy, and many more.

Big Ball Bonanza[]

CemeNDfW4AAjfAS-1 — Season 7’s Big Balls

Starting in Season 5, episodes with contestant duos (Blind Date (S5E15, S6E14, and S7E6), Family (S7E1), and Boss & Employee (S7E10)) featured a new bonus round called the Big Ball Bonanza for an additional $5,000 cash prize. Each of the six remaining teams will choose one of its members to run across the Big Balls. The teammate that makes it the farthest of the six before hitting the water will win the additional cash prize. Their distance is recorded once their forward momentum on the Big Balls stops. In the event of a tie, the other teammate must run the Big Balls and set a new distance for their team. If there is still a tie after the tiebreaker, the prize is then split amongst the tied teams. No teams are eliminated in this round.

Other Obstacle Appearances[]

The Big Balls have also appeared in other obstacles throughout the course in various seasons:

One of the three exits to the Overdrive is the Spinning Green Ball.
Spring Wipeout’s Qualifier obstacle, the Spring Fling/Mood Swing (later renamed Lover’s Leap during episode 31 of Season 4), featured a green ball to bounce on.
One of the Motivators used in Season 4 are two rotating Big Balls called the Ball Tapper.
In Season 5’s Winter Wipeout, the Cold Hearted Snake featured the Shivering Timbers, two rotating wooden planks that contestants must cross and jump onto the Snowball, a white ball that rises up, before jumping to the finish platform.
In Season 5’s Summer Wipeout, the Hangover featured the Brawl Wall, a sweeper arm with four red balls on it.
Season 5’s Qualifier obstacle, Snakes on the Plains, featured four smaller balls decorated as moles.
In the TBS revival of Wipeout, the Gauntlet featured the Pummel Pool as the final part of the course, where contestants started and ended the section by jumping on a large pink ball.

Trivia[]

The average amount of Big Balls touched is 2.5 balls. 75.55% touch only one ball, 62.09% make it to the second, 9.27% makes it to the third, and only 4.93% cross all four balls.
Ben Kronberg is the first and only contestant to cross the Big Balls twice (once in 1x05 and again in 2x11).
Sometimes, Wipeout's producers need to let some air out of the balls due to the heat that expands the balls and makes them hard.
The Big Balls are such a big part of the show. It's even in John Henson's sign-off: "Goodnight and Big Balls".
The Wipey for best Big Ball wipeout went to Chris Lekawa. Runners-ups were Chris Kinyon, Gwenisha Robinson, Gayla Johnson, and Christa Wiktorski.
The Wipey for best Romance went to Ben Kronberg with his love for the Big Balls and the Ball Swing.
The Wipey for best Wipeout went to Jacob Mann and his wipeout on the Big Balls.
As promotion for the TBS revival of Wipeout, large inflatable Big Balls were brought to small tourist attractions across America. These balls were much larger than the ones actually in the show, being 25 feet tall and 70 feet long.
The Big Balls are one of the only remaining obstacles not to be controlled mechanically (excluding Season 3).