Lucky fans of Lego's Ninjago property got to participate in their own version of America Ninja Warrior this summer, when the brand launched a cross-country interactive competition inspired by the ninja-theme toys and Cartoon Network television show.
Lego and brand experience agency Sparks partnered to host a seven-city tour—dubbed the "Quest2Ninjago Wu-Cru Team Challenge"—for kids ages 7 to 12, giving teams of two an opportunity to compete in physical and mental ninja-theme challenges. Winning teams in each city earned a trip to Legoland California Resort in Carlsbad, where the tour's finale took place, and where participants also competed for the winning title and grand prize. The tour kicked off on June 10 in Austin at the Browning Hangar at Mueller and ended with the finale on Saturday.
Other competitions throughout the summer took place in Lego's partner Toys "R" Us store parking lots in Charlotte, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Seattle. The basketball court-size courses featured giant brick models of two Ninjago characters and four themed arenas that each offered two challenges inspired by and named after characters.
"While beloved for its action-packed storyline and ninja-theme building sets, the Ninjago universe is also known for celebrating the power of teamwork and problem-solving," Lego senior director of brand relations Michael McNally commented in a statement. "The Quest2Ninjago is a one-of-a-kind, hands-on, minds-on 'training' event, where we literally bring the Ninjago property to life, encouraging kids to work together to combine their physical and mental talents to master the challenge, just as the teenage ninjas from the television show must do."