Idaho’s Cowboy Ninja Shares Heartbreaking Story on American Ninja Warrior [VIDEO]

A few weeks ago, we had a board meeting for Team Run Boise at my apartment and one of our members was crossing her fingers that our meeting would be over before before "American Ninja Warrior" came on.

Why? Because, like so many other Idahoans was waiting to watch "The Cowboy Ninja," Lance Pekus try to qualify for this year's finals.  Pekus lives in Salmon with his wife Heather and their two kids.  If you've been following this season of NBC's hit reality competition, you may notice that Heather and the kids have been missing from the sidelines this year.  After watching "Stage 1"of the Vegas finals, we finally know the heartbreaking reason why.

The story that aired before Pekus's run, he and Heather revealed that she's been fighting Multiple Sclerosis (MS) since her early 20s.  For years, she was able to continue to ride horses, run and be active with her children through the assistance of medications.  Unfortunately, over the past year and a half, her body has stopped responding to those medications.  She now uses a walker to get around.  Heather still works as a school counselor and hopes her children will always remember her as happy, positive, strong woman.

During Monday night's episode, family friend Maggi Thorne held a smartphone that allowed Heather and her kids to watch Lance not just make his run in "Stage 1" of the Vegas Finals, but qualify for "Stage 2" with the fastest time of the night. The "Stage 2" finals are scheduled to air on September 18th.

If you'd like to give Lance a hug and your well wishes, we've confirmed that he WILL be appearing at the FitOne Expo with the Idaho Beef Council again this year.  Catch him Thursday, August 21st.  Admission to the expo is free whether you've registered for the 5K/10K/Half Marathon or not.