CHICAGO — From the beach where he swims on Lake Michigan, Rob Heitz can point out the green facade of the rehabilitation hospital where he began his recovery journey after being paralyzed from the neck down 19 years ago.
“I see my hospital, the window of my hospital room, where I looked out every day, my bed looking out on Lake Michigan,” Heitz said. “Rather than it being something that would cause me anything, fear or anxiety, it’s like — holy cow, I did it.”
Heitz, 41, is preparing to swim from Alcatraz Island to Aquatic Park in San Francisco on Friday. The Chicagoan has been training for a year by swimming in Lake Michigan, where the accident that left him quadriplegic — paralyzed in all four limbs — occurred. The distance of the swim can be 1.5 to 2 miles, depending on currents in San Francisco Bay.
