Reza Baluchi

Add links
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Reza Baluchi in his water craft in 2016, with members of the US Coast Guard

Reza Ray Baluchi (born 1972)[1] is an Iranian athlete and activist living in the United States. He has several times attempted to travel long distances off the East Coast of the United States in a self-propelled water craft resembling a hamster ball, which he calls a "hydro pod" or bubble.

Background

Baluchi was born in

Children's Hospital of Denver; ran again from Los Angeles to New York in 2009, acquiring an American flag from the White House;[3][4][8] and in 2010 moved to Death Valley, where he ran and trained in the desert heat for two years.[3]

Bubble expeditions

Baluchi built and equipped his first "hydro pod" using $4,500 in savings from working as a mechanic and a dishwasher,

hookah bar and a supermarket in Newport Beach, California.[3] The craft is a cylinder of 3-millimeter thick plastic in an aluminum frame with paddles and is propelled by his running inside it, like a hamster ball.[3][6] He estimated in 2014 that he could reach 4–5 knots (7.4–9.3 km/h) at sea,[6] and in 2021, 6 knots (11 km/h) in the 10 by 6 feet (3.0 m × 1.8 m) pod he has registered in Florida as a water craft.[7] He has said that he undertakes his ocean journeys to inspire others and to raise money for public services, including the US Coast Guard, which has repeatedly stopped him for his own safety.[9]

2014 attempt to reach Bermuda and Puerto Rico

In 2014, after two years of training

crabbing boat.[3] The rescue, in which a ship, a helicopter, and a C-130 airplane were launched,[3][10] cost approximately $140,000;[5] his water craft with his possessions inside was left adrift[4] and ultimately damaged beyond repair being towed back to shore in rough water.[3]

2016 attempts to reach Bermuda

Baluchi spent almost two years working on the crabbing boat to raise $22,000 to build a new hydro pod.[3][11] In 2015, the Coast Guard denied him permission for another solo expedition.[3][5] In April 2016, despite a letter from the Coast Guard threatening him with imprisonment and a $40,000 fine if he again embarked on a lengthy water journey without a support boat, he again set off alone from Pompano Beach,[5] planning to travel over about five months to Jacksonville, Bermuda, Haiti, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Key West before returning to Pompano Beach. His publicist said that he had not wanted to risk endangering the crew of the support boat.[8] On April 24, about two days after starting, he was spotted by the Coast Guard approximately 7 miles (11 km) off the coast of Jupiter, Florida, and agreed to allow his craft to be brought back to shore.[5][8][9]

He made a third attempt in July the same year, which he said was to raise money for abused children.[11] A friend towed his craft into international waters; they were forced to return once from 12 miles (19 km) offshore after the Coast Guard inspected the hydro pod and found Baluchi's fire extinguisher was not fully charged. After relaunching 20 miles (32 km) offshore from Jupiter, Baluchi was then allowed by the Coast Guard to proceed but was again stopped that night.[3] After three days floating alongside the cutter Robert Yered, approximately 90 miles (140 km) offshore from Jacksonville, he was brought back to shore and placed in a psychiatric hospital for evaluation; the Coast Guard told the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office that he had threatened to kill himself, and according to Baluchi, Coast Guard personnel shot the buoyancy balls in order to sink his bubble.[3][11]

2021 attempt to reach New York

In July 2021, he embarked from

Captain of the Port Order and could be fined up to $95,881.[7]

2023 attempt to reach London

In August 2023, Baluchi attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean to London in a hydro pod. The US Coast Guard first spotted Baluchi on August 26, 70 nautical miles off Tybee Island, Georgia. Finding the vessel "manifestly unsafe", the Coast Guard attempted to coax Baluchi out of his vessel and inform him of the oncoming Hurricane Franklin.[13][14] The Coast Guard reported that when they asked Baluchi to disembark, Baluchi pulled out a knife and threatened to kill himself.[13] Upon returning the next day, Baluchi reportedly pulled out two knives, held up wires, and threatened to blow himself up—Baluchi admitted the next day that there was no bomb.[13][15] On August 29, two days after the Coast Guard first made contact, Baluchi agreed to leave his vessel, and he was brought ashore on September 1.[13] On September 5, Baluchi was charged with obstruction of boarding and violation of the Captain of the Port Order. He was released on bond the same day under the condition that he "may not go to the ocean or board a vessel on to the ocean".[13] Baluchi has maintained that his attempted voyage was for charity.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "About Reza". Run With Reza. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Charlie Leduff (May 12, 2003). "Iranian Cyclist for Peace Begins Cross-Country Journey on Foot". The New York Times. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Nicolás Rivero (August 10, 2016). "Extreme Athlete Reza Baluchi's Sea Voyage Cut Short by Coast Guard Again". Broward-Palm Beach New Times. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Melhor Marie Leonor (October 5, 2014). "'I want my bubble back,' says man rescued by Coast Guard". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on April 18, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Nicole Hensley (April 25, 2016). "Coast Guard thwarts bubble daredevil during ocean trek from Florida to Bermuda". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 25, 2016.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Coast Guard rescues man vying to reach Bermuda in floating bubble" (with video, 3 mins 28 secs). CBS News. October 6, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d e Neil Vigdor (July 27, 2021). "He Tried to Walk on Water From Florida to New York. It Didn't Go So Well". The New York Times.
  8. ^ a b c d Brian Ballou (April 24, 2016). "Coast Guard ends bubble man's Caribbean trek".
    South Florida Sun Sentinel
    .
  9. ^ a b c d e "Man in contraption washes up in Florida after trying to run on water". BBC News. July 27, 2021.
  10. ^ a b c "Man in bubble rescued after attempting to walk 1,000 miles on water". Orlando, Florida: WFTV. October 6, 2014.
  11. ^ a b c Rebeca Piccardo (August 18, 2016). "Coast Guard stops 'bubble man' on third attempt to reach Bermuda". South Florida Sun Sentinel.
  12. ^ a b Stephen Sorace (July 25, 2021). "Florida man in bubble-like vessel washes up on beach, sheriff says". Fox News. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  13. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  14. ^ Rohrlich, Justin (September 5, 2023). "Florida Man Charged Over Failed Attempt to Cross Atlantic in Giant 'Hamster Wheel'". The Daily Beast. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  15. ^ a b Mayes-Osterman, Cybele (September 6, 2023). "Florida man arrested while attempting to run across Atlantic Ocean in giant hamster wheel". USA Today. Retrieved September 7, 2023.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Reza_Baluchi&oldid=1203866638"