Roller Ball (also known as Take the Reins and Pegs Over Easy) is a recurring balance and endurance challenge that originated in Survivor: Redemption Island.
Rules[]
The castaways must stand on a small log while balancing a ball on a wooden disc. At regular intervals, more balls will be added onto the plate until there are three balls, which will increase difficulty. If at any time a ball falls off the disc or a castaway loses their footing on the log, they will be eliminated. The last castaway standing wins.
The Take the Reins variation of the challenge instead has castaways balance a ball on a disc, and balance the disc on two ropes. At regular intervals, they must their hands farther back on the rope, making it more difficult to balance the disc.
A third variation, Pegs Over Easy, requires castaways to balance balls on an inclined table. Lowering the table would trigger a device which locks the table into a new position, making it more difficult to balance the balls. Unlike the other two variations, castaways may drop balls, so long as they still have at least one remaining on their table.
History[]
United States[]
The challenge debuted in Redemption Island as the first individual Immunity Challenge. Natalie Tenerelli won the challenge, outlasting Mike Chiesl.
The challenge was re-used two seasons later in One World, where it was once again used as the first individual Immunity Challenge. Troyzan Robertson won the challenge, outlasting Kat Edorsson.
In San Juan del Sur the rules of the challenge were changed. The contestants had to balance a ball on a disk, and balance the disk on two ropes. At regular intervals, moved their hands farther back on the rope making it more difficult to balance. After 25 minutes, a second ball was added. Keith Nale outlasted his son, Wes Nale, to win the first individual Immunity Challenge of the season.
In Cambodia, it came down to Keith Nale and Joe Anglim. Joe ended up winning.
In Kaôh Rōng, the challenge returned to its original version, where it was used as the first individual Immunity Challenge. Nick Maiorano ultimately won the challenge, outlasting his former Gondol tribemate Tai Trang.
In Ghost Island, the Take the Reins variation was again used, where most of the tribe dropped out within the first two minutes of the challenge. In the end, Chelsea Townsend outlasted Sebastian Noel to win immunity.
In David vs. Goliath, the original version of the challenge was used yet again. In the third round, the challenge came down to Alison Raybould, Mike White, and Nick Wilson, with Mike ultimately winning his first individual Immunity Challenge.
In Island of the Idols, a new variation of the challenge was introduced where castaways had to balance three balls on an inclined table. Every time they lowered the table, a device would lock the table into a new position, making it more difficult to balance the ball, with the last person with at least one ball still on their table being the winner. After over 25 minutes, the challenge came down to Aaron Meredith and Jamal Shipman, with Aaron ultimately outlasting Jamal to win immunity.
The Take the Reins variant of the challenge reappeared in Survivor 44 as the final six Immunity Challenge. By the start of the second round, only Lauren Harpe and Heidi Lagares-Greenblatt were still in the game. Ultimately, Lauren outlasted Heidi to win her second individual Immunity Challenge.
The original version of the challenge appeared at the final nine of Survivor 47. Prior to the challenge, Jeff Probst offered the Beka tribe rice if four members agreed to sit out; instead, the tribe proposed to relinquish their remaining Shots in the Dark, to which Jeff agreed, allowing every member to play. Played under windy conditions, the challenge ended with a showdown between rivals Kyle Ostwald and Sue Smey. In the end, Kyle beat out Sue to win his fourth individual Immunity Challenge.
Australia[]
In Blood v Water, a variant of the challenge appeared as the final ten Immunity Challenge. Contestants would stand on a perch while holding on to two ropes to keep their ball balanced on a weighted hanging track. At regular intervals, the contestants will move to stand on narrower perches. The last person left standing with their ball still on their track wins. After about 30 minutes and standing on the second-narrowest perch, only Jordie Hansen and Mark Wales remained in the challenge, with Jordie ultimately defeating Mark for the win.
New Zealand[]
Winners[]
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Redemption Island "This Game Respects Big Moves" |
Individual Immunity |  Natalie Tenerelli |
| One World "The Beauty in a Merge" |
Individual Immunity |  Troyzan Robertson |
| San Juan del Sur "Million Dollar Decision" |
Individual Immunity |  Keith Nale |
| Cambodia "You Call, We'll Haul" |
Individual Immunity |  Joe Anglim |
| Kaôh Rōng "It's Merge Time" |
Individual Immunity |  Nick Maiorano |
| Ghost Island "It's Like the Perfect Crime" |
Individual Immunity |  Chelsea Townsend |
| David vs. Goliath "Are You Feeling Lucky?" |
Individual Immunity |  Mike White |
| Island of the Idols "We Made It to the Merge!" |
Individual Immunity |  Aaron Meredith |
| Survivor 44 "I'm the Bandit" |
Individual Immunity |  Lauren Harpe |
| Survivor 47 "Loyal to the Soil" |
Individual Immunity |  Kyle Ostwald |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Survivor (2016) Episode 24 |
Individual Immunity |  Lee Carseldine |
| Blood v Water Episode 15 |
Individual Immunity |  Jordie Hansen |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Nicaragua Episode 10 |
Individual Immunity |  Mike Sparrow |
| Episode | Challenge Type | Winners |
|---|---|---|
| Survivor Québec (2024) Episode 55 |
Individual Immunity |  Déborah De Braekeleer |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- This challenge has only been used for individual immunity.
- Jeremy Collins and Keith Nale are the only contestants to have competed in this challenge twice.
- Keith has won once and lost once, while Jeremy has lost both times.
References[]