As if by fate, Bootie’s father and Brett’s grandfather actually owned a real estate business together back in the 1970s, but neither Bootie nor Brett knew about that association until after they themselves met on the “American Ninja Warrior” set years later. In addition to Bootie, there’s Grace Sims, who has competed in multiple seasons, as well as her bearded husband Brett Sims, who appeared on the show’s very first season and has been a regular ever since. Regular viewers of “American Ninja Warrior” might recognize the team behind Motive. In early March, far away from the lights and cameras of national TV, Bootie and his partners were putting the finishing touches on the setup inside Motive School of Movement, the massive new gym they’re opening up near Haywood Mall. “Bootie! Bootie! Bootie!” they chanted, many of them waving banners that read Bootie Bandwagon!Ī second later the buzzer sounded, and Bootie took off. He could feel the strain more and more every day.īut that crowd – that cheering crowd wouldn’t let him doubt himself. At nearly 50 years old, his body wasn’t what it once was. Now Bootie knew this might be his last shot. He’d always fallen short – one hand grip that was just beyond his reach, one rung that slipped from his grasp. This was his sixth season on the show, but despite the hard work he’d put in, he still hadn’t been able to press that button at the end of the course. It was a warm night in Miami, Florida, and Bootie was here to compete in the 2018 “American Ninja Warrior” qualifiers.

Years of training and dreaming had brought Bootie Cothran to this moment, as he stood shirtless before a crowd of people, spotlights shining over him, cameras rolling.

All the fallen ninja sims 4