14 DAY TRIAL // This past weekend, the US Coast Guard completed a fairly bizarre rescue mission. Long story short, they saved a man who was trying to run on water from the city of Miami in Florida all the way to Bermuda.
The man, identified as Iran-born endurance athlete Reza Baluchi, hoped to complete this journey with the help of a floating bubble that he himself put together, media reports say.
A photo of this so-called bubble, which, truth the told, looks more like a freakishly oversized hamster wheel, was shared with the public and is available next to this article.
As detailed by RT, the endurance athlete used an aluminum framing and sheets of plastic measuring about 3 millimeters (0.11 inches) in thickness to piece together this floating device.
Apparently, the man even fitted the floating bubble with a hammock, which he hoped to sleep in at night. Besides, he even added a leash to the device. This leash was supposed to keep him tied to the plastic wheel whenever he decided to take a bath in the ocean.
This wasn't the athlete's first running on water experience
It is understood that, before taking his floating device out on a spin from Miami, US, to Bermuda, the man used it to run on water from Newport Beach to Catalina Island.
The bubble, which Rezu Baluchi likes to call the Hydro Pod, made it possible for the man to cover the 33 miles (53 kilometers) from Newport Beach to Catalina Island in about 12 hours.
The Bible might have made the entire idea of walking on water sound like child's play, but the fact of the matter is that this first trip in the Hydro Pod seriously took its toll on this Iranian athlete.
Long story short, the man is said to have lost 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms) as a result of this first journey in his floating device. However, he decided to move forward with his plan to run from Miami to Bermuda.
Reza Baluchi's failed trip from Miami to Bermuda
Officials with the US Coast Guard say that the man hoped to complete this second 1,033-mile (1,660-kilometer) journey relying on nothing but protein bars and fish that he himself would catch to stay nourished.
Unfortunately, things did not go quite as planned. Thus, last Wednesday, just three days after leaving the US coastline, the athlete starting showing signs of exhaustion. The Coast Guard paid him a visit, but the man refused to leave his bubble.
Instead, he simply asked for directions. Apparently, he was a wee disoriented and wasn't very clear about Bermuda's whereabouts. At that time, US Coast Guard officials settled for simply offering him some assistance, and then let him be.
By Saturday, the man was in such poor condition that he himself asked for help via his Personal Locating Beacon. The Coast Guard crew sent to save him found Reza Baluchi at a distance of about 80 miles (128 kilometers) from the city of St. Augustine in Florida.
He was taken to a hospital and examined by doctors. Apart from exhaustion, the man was not found to struggle with any major health issues. “There were no reports of any injuries,” the US Coast Guard said in a statement.
The Iran-born and US national endurance athlete is expected to soon make a full recovery. It is unclear whether he will attempt to run on water anytime soon. Given the outcome of his latest endeavor, one can only hope that he will give up on this sport.
In case anyone was wondering, Reza Baluchi tried to run on water from Miami, Florida, all the way to Bermuda in an attempt to raise awareness about children in need and raise money for his non-profit organization, Plant Unity.