I went to hockey games for the wrong reasons… and accidentally found a lifelong obsession.

In this episode of Adaptive AF: Disability Unfiltered, Elliott and Dave dive into the unexpected origin story of Elliott’s hockey obsession. What started as a way to meet students outside the music department (and maybe talk to some cute hockey players) turned into weekend road trips, learning the rules of the sport, and becoming a passionate fan.

From chaotic accessible van adventures and historic arenas to wheelchair accessibility, college hockey culture, and the moments that made the sport click, this episode is about how the thing you’re chasing isn’t always the thing you end up finding.

Sometimes a random decision becomes something you genuinely love.

This episode explores the highs and lows of navigating bar culture as a wheelchair user. Elliott and Dave share stories about accessibility challenges, awkward and inappropriate interactions with strangers, dive-bar adventures, karaoke nights, and the assumptions people often make about disability. Through humor and candid conversation, they highlight how a simple night out can quickly become a lesson in disability etiquette and social awareness.

Chapters

• 00:00 Bar Adventures
• 02:51 The Corvette Bar
• 05:49 Front Room vs. Back Room
• 08:56 Karaoke Night
• 10:59 Uncomfortable Interactions
• 14:56 Physical Encounter
• 17:57 Use of Offensive Language
• 24:57 Bar Environment
• 29:02 Negative Bar Experience
• 32:46 Accessibility Challenges

• • 37:00 Social Dynamics

EJ and Dave kick off Adaptive AF with the story of how a dead wheelchair battery, an unfastened seatbelt, and a downhill ramp landed EJ in the ICU with a rare complication nobody warned him about. Welcome to Adaptive AF.

For decades, voices like Ed Roberts and Judith Heumann have been fighting to change the conversation around disability—now EJ and Dave are picking up the baton. Adaptive AF is unfiltered, unapologetic, and hilariously honest: myths get smashed, chaos is laughed at, and disability finally gets its spotlight.