ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- It took him a half-hour to stand up. Making his way down the bunny hill successfully took almost a day. After his first day snowboarding, Detroit Lions defensive tackle Akeem Spence almost gave up.
He went to dinner in Park City, Utah, that February 2015 night with his friend, Stephen Onaga, frustrated, yet determined. He was a professional athlete, yet a rarity on the mountain -- a man over 300 pounds trying to snowboard. And he wanted to be good. He just wasn't sure if it would actually happen.
"I was ready to go home, man," Spence said.