Paddle Out (also known as Inside Track, It's in the Bag, Tracks of My Tears, Roll Away the Dew, Born to Rung, and Freedom of Choice) is a recurring Survivor challenge.
Rules[]
Castaways must roll a series of balls down a lane on a wooden board to the end where there are several slots for the balls to land in. The first person or tribe to land all their balls in slots at the same time wins.
In the tribal version of this challenge, each tribe must first make their way through a course before reaching the final table maze. Two members then maneuver the balls down the board and land them in all the slots.
History[]
United States[]
The challenge debuted in Philippines, where the final nine battled it out. The race was tight the entire time between Michael Skupin and Pete Yurkowski, but Michael managed to finish first, winning individual immunity for the first time.
In Cagayan, the final seven battled it out for a spot in the top six. After leading for almost the entire challenge, Tasha Fox won her third immunity in a row, with Woo Hwang trailing behind her the entire time.
The challenge appeared again as the final eight Immunity Challenge in San Juan del Sur where it was nearly identical to the one in Philippines, with the exception of a small hump added at the end of the paddle. Jon Misch took the early lead, but Keith Nale was able to catch up and eventually overtake Jon to win immunity.
In Millennials vs. Gen X, the challenge was adapted to a tribal challenge for immunity. After the Ikabula tribe finished first, Michaela Bradshaw openly coached Vanua to a second-place finish, sending the Takali tribe to Tribal Council.
The challenge appeared again as the first Immunity Challenge of Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers. In this version, each tribe was given a choice between three mazes (an obstacle maze, a rail maze, and a traditional maze) depending on the order that they reached a given point in the challenge. After a tight race, the Soko tribe finished first, and the Yawa tribe narrowly defeated Levu, sending Levu to Tribal Council.
The challenge was again used as the final eleven Immunity Challenge in David vs. Goliath, with a snake-shaped board with the three slots on different parts of the snake. Alec Merlino and Dan Rengering took the lead heading into the final portion, but Alec's ability to leap over the high-step multiple times earlier in the challenge gave him ample time to get a hang of operating the board while the others struggled, allowing him to win immunity.
This challenge made another reappearance at the final nine of Edge of Extinction. While returning to the format used in San Juan del Sur (albeit with only five slots), an advantage was gifted to Rick Devens from Edge of Extinction inhabitant David Wright that allowed Rick to discard one of his balls, meaning he only had to land four of them. His advantage would allow him to maintain a lead in the challenge, and although he had particular trouble landing his final ball, he ultimately did so to win immunity.
In Island of the Idols, the castaways retrieved rope rungs which they then used to create a rope ladder. On the second level of the tower, they had to maneuver a bag of balls on a ladder puzzle and climb up to the top level. Once at the top, they had to land two balls on a table maze. Dean Kowalski and Tommy Sheehan were neck and neck throughout the challenge, but Dean was able to edge out Tommy, Janet Carbin, and Lauren Beck in landing his final ball to win immunity.
In Survivor 43, the challenge appeared as the first Immunity Challenge, using the same rules from Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers. Coco finished first and won immunity while Vesi finished second, sending Baka to Tribal Council.
Australia[]
New Zealand[]
Quebec[]
South Africa[]
The Roll Away the Dew variant of the challenge from Survivor: David vs Goliath appeared as the final nine Immunity Challenge of Island of Secrets, with the Manumalo tribe using bows to transfer three balls through an obstacle course before using a steering wheel to control a snake-shaped maze so as to land their balls in the maze. After winning an advantage in the previous Reward Challenge, Rob Bentele had the chance to practice the snake maze while on the Island of Secrets. In a close race to land their final ball, Rob's prior practice proved to be enough to beat Cobus Hugo and Jacques Burger, allowing him to win his second Immunity Necklace, as well as one month with a Mahindra XUV300 back in South Africa.
Winners[]
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Philippines "Little Miss Perfect" |
Individual Immunity |  Michael Skupin |
| Cagayan "Chaos Is My Friend" |
Individual Immunity |  Tasha Fox |
| San Juan del Sur "Kind of Like Cream Cheese" |
Individual Immunity |  Keith Nale |
| Millennials vs. Gen X "The Truth Works Well" |
Tribal Immunity |       Ikabula |
    Vanua | ||
| Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers "I'm Not Crazy, I'm Confident" |
Tribal Immunity |       Soko |
      Yawa | ||
| David vs. Goliath "Breadth-First Search" |
Individual Immunity |  Alec Merlino |
| Edge of Extinction "Blood of a Blindside" |
Individual Immunity |  Rick Devens |
| Island of the Idols "Mama, Look at Me Now" |
Individual Reward/Immunity |  Dean Kowalski |
| Survivor 43 "LIVIN" |
Tribal Immunity |       Coco |
      Vesi |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions v Contenders (2019) Episode 16 |
Individual Immunity |  Luke Toki | ||
| Brains v Brawn (2021) Episode 14 |
Individual Immunity |  Emmett Pugh |
 Andrew Ucles |
 Dani Beale |
| Blood v Water Episode 17 |
Individual Reward |  Jordie Hansen | ||
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Thailand Episode 10 |
Individual Immunity |  Adam O'Brien |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survivor Québec (2024) Episode 65 |
Individual Immunity (Final Immunity) |
 Ghyslain Octeau-Piché | |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Island of Secrets "Trouble Council" |
Individual Reward/Immunity |  Rob Bentele | |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- This challenge has always been used as an Immunity Challenge.
- Tasha Fox is the only woman to win this challenge individually.
References[]