I was out shopping for kayak equipment when I saw a poster advertising a new game show called Wipeout that will premiere on ABC on 6/24. My first thought was some crazy water sport show like kayak fishing for dollars. I had the crazy part right. The concept of the game is simple, a bunch of contestants (24 of ‘em) will go through an obstacle course surrounded by (among other things) water and mud, that’s designed to provide a lot of falls, slips, spills and even face-plants. The title of the show is fitting. Based on the trailer of the show, the premise seems loosely based on an old Japanese game show.

I once watched a show on some channel I can’t remember called Takeshi’s Castle. The main difference I saw was that if you fell or failed to pass the obstacle, you’re out of the game. On the Wipeout trailer, it seemed that you get to continue with the obstacle course. Anyway, Takeshi’s Castle had lots of mean falls and crashes. One favorite obstacle of mine was where you had to run through a wall with 3 doors. You choose which door you want to crash into. Either 1 or 2 of ‘em were fake doors that you can easily go through. The other door was real. It’s a good thing everyone was wearing their outdoor safety gear. There was even an obstacle where you would get on a kayak of sorts, maybe a canoe, and paddle to where you would try and catch a ball launched up in the sky.

Going back to my shopping for kayak equipment, things are getting really expensive out there. I was only looking for a new helmet. Apparently, a lot of equipment are classified for either river kayak or sea kayak. I took the time to go around and look at the stuff in the shop. There were other things I’d eventually want to get into like kayak fishing or get a new ocean kayak. Maybe they’ll have an obstacle on Wipeout that will use a kayak of some sort. I think the show will be funny, even if just for the spills.