Gear Review: Atomik Ninja Hangboard
Author: Evan Perperis
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Atomik Climbing Holds, a revolutionary brand in the climbing and ninja training industry, is back at it again. They just released their new hangboard which is normally a climbing tool that is used by many Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) athletes. However, Atomik “ninja-fied” the traditional hangboard and came up with the Ninja Board (or the OCR board as I like to call it). I picked one up and here are my thoughts on their latest product.
Durability:
The ninja board is made with the durability of all Atomik products…indestructible. Well not actually indestructible but I own about a dozen of their holds, their peg receivers, balance trainers and pegs but have yet to even chip one let alone break one. This includes lots of traveling with them, keeping them in the back of my trunk in the summer/winter and accidentally dropping them from around ten feet up onto concrete. If you want durable, you want Atomik.
Color Options:
As with all Atomik products the color choices are almost overwhelming. I went with a Conquer The Gauntlet (CTG) type green color. Just check out their full line of color options. The bottom line is whatever color you want, Atomik has it.
Mounting/Assembly:
There was no assembly required. It simply required mounting to a wall, which wasn’t a problem…even for me who is not known for being a handyman or build crew member. The one thing I was surprised with was how large it was (something I would have known if I read the product description details). To get the maximum use of the Ninja Board, you are supposed to have the bottom lip (Vertical Limit training tool) hang free away from a wall. This makes hanging it from a beam or above a door with no frame an option. I went with hanging it from a beam on my back porch since none of my doorways seemed adequate.
Training Use:
The biggest value of the ninja board is its versatility. Included in one product is:
- Traditional Fingertip Training: (Read my previous review of Atomik fingertip training products)
- Pull-Up Training: Bomb holds at the outer edges make for great wide grip pull-ups.
- Hanging Holds: (Read my previous review of Atomik rig grips)
- Pegboard: 8 locations for inserting Atomik’s high quality oak pegs (which I’ve yet to event wear down or dent). (Read my previous review of Atomik Peg Receivers and Products)
If you consider yourself an advanced OCR athlete or ninja then you may think those obstacles are too easy. Not to worry, the ninja board is compatible with other Atomik products so you can pick up bombs, I scream cones, missiles, vertical pipe bombs, grip training blocks and more to hang from below the board. For increasing the difficulty of the peg board you can pick up pegboard compatible vertical pipe bombs, horizontal pipe bombs or bombs.
Jenny using the ropes instead of the vertical pipe bombs to train for races like Savage Race’s Twirly Bird.
The product can be used to train for any OCR obstacle that requires hanging from your hands. From Tough Mudder’s Funky Monkey or Spartan’s Beater to Conquer The Gauntlet’s Pegatron or Savage Race’s Wheel World this tool will help you prepare. With brands like OCR World Championships (OCRWC) seemingly increasing the difficulty slightly every year, you are going to want to be ahead of the power curve by preparing for harder obstacles that haven’t officially made their way onto the OCR course yet. If you find your grip strength is not capable of some of these movements, I highly recommend Atomik Liquid Chalk for your training. It will allow you to improve that grip so you can keep training and improving.
Atomik’s liquid chalk
Overall:
The ninja board is 5/5 stars no question. For those of us without a lot of space in their apartment or house, this is probably the best training tool you can pick up. Lots of versatility in grips, ability to add/change hanging holds to increase/decrease difficulty as needed and the inclusion of a pegboard (that you can also make progressive), make the Ninja Board an all in one tool. If you are looking to surprise your ninja/OCR family this Christmas or just want to make someone extremely happy pick up the ninja board. The ninja board is currently on sale at almost 50% off its normal cost, so now would be a good time to pick one up.
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