MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Following a bizarre three-day standoff at sea with the U.S. Coast Guard, officials arrested a Florida man after they intercepted his unusual human-powered hamster wheel that he was using in his attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean and “run” to London.
Reza Baluchi, 44, is facing federal charges after Coast Guard officials had to rescue him 70 miles off Tybee Island, Georgia, with Hurricane Franklin taking aim at the eastern seaboard, reported the Daily Beast.
The USS Coast Guard cutter Valiant was in the region when they spotted Baluchi and contacted him on Aug. 26, and asked him “standard questions” during the encounter.
Baluchi said he was heading for London, England on his “vessel,” but was unable to provide officials with the required registration for his water contraption, also referred to as a “hydro pod.”
“Based on the condition of the vessel – which was afloat as a result of wiring and buoys – USCG officers determined Baluchi was conducting a manifestly unsafe voyage,” the criminal complaint filed in US District Court in Florida states.
The “manifesting unsafe” vessel is a giant metal drum, with inflatable buoys on each side and paddles that are powered by a runner inside.
When Coast Guard officers told Baluchi they were cutting his voyage short, Baluchi reportedly threatened to kill himself with a 12-inch knife if anyone tried to arrest him and also claimed to have a bomb onboard his craft, the Independent reported.
Finally, after several days of trying to get Baluchi to board Coast Guard vessels, he admitted that he did not have an explosive device and on September 1 officials were able to get him to disembark at the USCG Base in Miami Beach, Florida.
This was not Baluchi’s first attempt to run on water in his hydro pod. Officials said he tried similar voyages in 2014, 2016 and 2021, all of which have ended with Coast Guard intervention, Fox News Digital reported.
His efforts have led to his own Wikipedia page. “Reza Ray Baluchi is an Iranian athlete and activist living in the United States,” it says. “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.”
Baluchi faces federal charges of obstruction of a boarding, and violation of a Captain of the Port order.
Following his arrest, Baluchi told a local news outlet that his efforts were meant to raise money for various charitable causes, including “homeless people,” the U.S. Coast Guard and police and fire departments.
“My goal is to not only raise money for homeless people, raise money for the Coast Guard, raise money for the police department, raise money for the fire department,” Baluchi said. “They are in public service, they do it for safety, and they help other people.”
It’s unclear if Baluchi’s fundraising claims are verified. Nevertheless, he said he will never give up on his dreams.
“I’ll never give up my dream. They stop me four or five times, but I never give up.”
