Today, I was watching some old WWE matches online, and it got me thinking – what are those ladders they use made of? I mean, those things take a beating, and the wrestlers climb them like they’re nothing. So, I went on a little mission to find out.
First, I started with the chairs, because I got a theory that the material would be the same. I did a lot of digging, some people online were saying they’re made of steel, but come on, if a wrestler got hit with a real steel chair, they wouldn’t be getting back up. After some more digging, I found out they’re actually made of aluminum, it made a lot more sense! It’s light enough to swing around, but strong enough not to break easily.
Next, I looked into the ring itself. I learned that the ring is basically a steel frame with wooden planks on top, then some foam padding and a canvas cover. Pretty standard stuff. They usually have three ropes around the ring, which is one less than boxing rings, if you didn’t know that already.
Now, back to the ladders. I had a hunch they weren’t just regular ladders from a hardware store, because safety first and they also need to perform well. After a deep dive, here’s the scoop: WWE ladders are made from aluminum, too. This makes them light but still strong enough to climb and carry around.
I also stumbled upon a story from someone who claimed to have worked backstage at a WWE event. They said that WWE just ordered a bunch of ladders from a regular hardware store and spray-painted them silver to make them look shiny on TV! I doubt that though.
I also found some discussions where people mentioned “gimmicked” ladders. Apparently, these are made of wood and are partially sawed through to make them break easily for dramatic effect. But they’re painted to look like aluminum. That’s some next-level trickery!
So, in the end, here’s what I figured out:
- The chairs? Aluminum.
- The ring? Steel frame, wood planks, foam, and canvas.
- The ladders? Mostly aluminum, but sometimes gimmicked wood ones.
It’s pretty cool to learn about the behind-the-scenes stuff of WWE. Those ladders and chairs aren’t as simple as they look!
