UMass-Boston players skating 900 miles for cancer research
Jake Adkins, Andy Walker trying to go from Massachusetts to Michigan in 10 days
ByPat Pickens @Pat_Pickens / NHL.com Staff Writer
Two UMass-Boston hockey players are conditioning for a good cause.
Jake Adkins and Andy Walker took off on an approximately 900-mile inline skate from their campus to Walker's home in Mason, Michigan in support of cancer research on Monday.
Walker and Adkins planned to leave at about 4 a.m. each day and are planning to skate 80-100 miles per day, with planned stops for food, water, naps and social media updates. Adkins' dad will tail them in a truck, towing an RV, and they're bringing a support staff that includes a chef, nurse and videographer.
— UMassBostonAthletics (@UMassBeacons) July 14, 2020
Walker and Adkins began brainstorming ways to train after their rinks were shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They ordered inline skates and started skating around campus.
"Everything kind of got shut down right after we ordered our blades," Walker told NHL.com before the group left for their journey. "We started rollerblading around without a stick and tried keeping our legs under us."
They initially discussed skating to Los Angeles before deciding to go to Walker's hometown, which they felt was more realistic.
"We started to map it out, and it seemed more and more real," Adkins said. "We figured we could get a big following if we did this for something bigger than us, and we really want to make an impact out there and inspire people to get out and do everything they can and enjoy themselves while they can in a world that has turned dark."
They are raising funds for the American Cancer Society
with all donated proceeds going to cancer research. They chose the cause because Walker and Adkins have each been affected by cancer. Walker's grandfather died of cancer when he was a kid, and Adkins' mom Ali battled Hodgkin's lymphoma for more than a year from 2014-15.
Walker and Adkins trained for the skate for weeks, even going as far as Adkins' home in Windham, New Hampshire, 37 miles from campus. They hope to complete it in 10 days as long as weather -- and their health -- holds up.
"I think this will be the hardest thing we've ever done," Adkins said. "But in the grand scheme of things, I know what it's like to be around people who have cancer… and I know that in comparison to what we're doing it's nothing like the hardships people that face with chemotherapy and being in the hospital for years at a time."
