School staff and volunteers began installation of a Ninja course on the school grounds. Equipment pieces arrived last week and volunteers began the assembly Monday.

The course has been in the works for over two years. St. Paul Lutheran School Principal Pete Markgraf said the Ninja course came about through conversations with the Optimist Club. The local Optimist Club was looking for a legacy project that would keep giving back to the community. The Ninja course met that goal. The Optimist Club donated $30,000 to the project in 2023.

“Optimist club did a yeoman’s work in helping finance this project,” Markgraf said. Over the last few years other organizations and individuals have donated and provided in-kind donations.

Markgraf said Granby Construction of Nicollet provided equipment to help install the Ninja course equipment.

The Ninja course at St. Paul’s Lutheran School will be 156 feet long when complete with seven different unique sections. The last piece of the course is the agility wall. Students must run up a steep ramp to reach the top level and activate a bell to signify they completed the course.

The Ninja course is a series of play features laid out as an obstacle course. Unlike traditional playground equipment, kids using the course would run through the obstacle course, competing to complete it in the fastest time.

St. Paul’s building and maintenance manager Mark Weinhert said the entire course is 156 feet long and features seven unique sections, such as the chameleon slide, breakaways, cargo climber, vector pass, sprawl wall, airtime climber and agility wall. The course will include a clock for timing runs.

The course is being installed on edge of St. Paul’s Lutheran property near the baseball field. Markgraf said they do plan to have the equipment open to more than just St. Paul Lutheran students. The course is intended for community use.

This is the second Ninja Warrior course to be installed in New Ulm. The first Ninja course was installed in the aquatic center at the New Ulm Recreation Center. The St. Paul’s Ninja course will be the first outdoor course and built on the ground.

Tuesday, the volunteers began pouring cement to keep the individual structures in place. Markgraf said they are still waiting on one of the seven pieces–the vector pass–to arrive. Once the final piece has been installed, the school will add wood chips around the Ninja cross for safety.

The agility wall is the last part of St. Paul’s Lutheran School’s Ninja course. Students must run up a steep ramp to reach the top level and activate a bell to signify they completed the course.

Markgraf said it still take a few weeks before the equipment is ready for students.

Volunteers Mike Plocher (right) and Lloyd Schauer (right) help install the breakaway section of the Ninja course at St. Paul’s Lutheran School. Students are run/jump across the panels to complete the course.

St. Paul’s Lutheran School’s building and maintenance manager Mark Weinhert shows were the hand holds will go on the Air Time Climber section of the Ninja course

St. Paul’s Lutheran School’s building and maintenance manager Mark Weinhert (left) and volunteer Llyoyd Schauer work to setup the cargo net section of the Ninja course.

St. Paul’s Lutheran School’s building and maintenance manager Mark Weinhert (right) and volunteer Lloyd Schauer (left) setup the cargo net in preparation for pouring cement for the base.

The installation of the new Ninja course at St. Paul’s Lutheran School began Monday with cement poured Tuesday. The Ninja course will feature seven sections; the chameleon slide, breakaways, cargo climber, vector pass, sprawl wall, airtime climber and agility wall.

Installation of St. Paul’s Lutheran School’s new Ninja course began this week.