A Toronto man becomes the first disabled person to cross the 5 Great Lakes on a stand-up paddleboard

Mike Schorman, who was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt Syndrome in 2018, completed the trip on August 20 after months of training

Schorman eventually started volunteering with jack.org. A Canadian organization dedicated to adolescent mental health, and when he felt ready. He knew he wanted to do something “newsworthy” to help cause relief, he told news.

He tried to cross Lake Ontario from upstate New York to Toronto on a stand-up paddleboard for the first time last summer, but had to cut short the journey halfway. “I’m devastated,” he said of the aborted mission, which was stopped by a tropical storm. After taking a month to “recover from the meltdown. As he puts it, he started training furthermore in October, this time with a bigger goal: traversing the five Great Lakes.

First is Lake Erie in late May, followed by Huron, Superior, Michigan, and finally Ontario.

“Every run presents a different challenge,” he said. “Huron is 27 hours, Michigan is 28 – it’s a night hike. Crossing in the dark with dizziness and hearing loss was “tiring,” he continued. “At 6pm, my body was really starting to break down. It’s starting to become more of a mental game than a physical one: how badly do I want this?’

Coming to Chicago across Lake Michigan, “20 knots wind coming right at me, I gotta really fight for this one. Luckily, Shoreman has a team by his side to get him past his lows and ensure he stays mentally and physically fit along the way.

“It’s one of the most challenging things I have ever done,” he says, “but it’s the most rewarding thing I can or will do.”

Schorman’s arrival in Toronto on August 20 was met with great acclaim. “It was wild,” he said of the hundreds of friends, family and fans waiting for him on the beach. “My family is very proud. I feel like I’ve been separated from them for the past year, but they understand why. And I am very grateful to them.”