The man who put wheels in kids’ sneakers and sent them gliding through malls and school hallways has died. Roger Adams, inventor of Heelys, died March 24 at his residence in Glenbrook, Nevada, at age 71 from pancreatic cancer, his family said, per the New York Times. At one point a psychologist unhappy in his job, Adams was on a 1998 vacation in California when watching skaters and cyclists zipping by triggered the idea for “a shoe that could roll on command” simply by adjusting one’s body weight. Adams headed to a friend’s garage, carved out a sneaker heel, slid in some skateboard wheels, and kept tinkering through plenty of falls to create what would become Heelys footwear.
Adams launched Heelys in 2000. By 2008, annual sales had hit 7.6 million pairs, the company had gone public, and Adams—who held several patents—had become a multimillionaire. CNBC notes that Adams sold his shares and left the company in the late aughts. The shoes attracted celebrity fans like Usher and spurred glowing reviews in Wired, but they also drew sharp criticism from safety groups and doctors over injury risks, including one death cited by federal regulators, per the Times. Adams, who grew up in his parents’ roller rink in Tacoma, Washington, and was skating by 9 months old, continued filing patents for rolling footwear even after his exit from Heelys. He’s survived by three children and four grandchildren.
