A man apparently attempting to run 1,000 miles from Florida to Bermuda in a self-made inflatable bubble had to be rescued by the United States Coast Guard on Saturday.
Many of us have been there trying to motivate ourselves for that mini-marathon or cycling challenge or perhaps even just trying to make the gym regularly.
For Reza Baluchi however, things went quite a few steps further.
In his “bubble” Baluchi had pretty much all he wanted for a long-haul journey. The Coast Guard confirmed he had protein bars, bottled water, a GPS and a satellite phone with him inside the 3mm thick plastic creation.
Dare-devil Reza Baluchi was apparently destined for Bermuda in his man-made inflatable bubble.
Trouble At Sea
Baluchi’s intention was to complete the mission while picking up three hours sleep inside the hydro-pod per day. He would sleep in a hammock and endure temperatures of up to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. The endurance athlete would run until his body became too hot, then he would jump into the sea to cool down. It was quite the challenge, although perhaps a holiday along the Gold Coast in Australia and some time spent playing Casino Shortlist pokies might be in order to recover.
Despite the best laid plans, he ran into trouble and was first brought to the Coast Guard’s attention on Wednesday. At that point, he refused to leave his little oasis of calm and the authorities were forced instead to monitor his progress to try and ensure his safety.
Given the nature of his mission, it was no surprise to find the US Coast Guard coming to Baluchi’s aid on Saturday.
Some (Slightly) More Realistic Endurance Tests
Baluchi’s challenge was not likely to succeed, here are some more do-able extreme endurances tests from around the world.
• Lake Balaton Super-marathon – The Lake Balaton Super-marathon is a four-day race around the Lake Balaton, Hungary’s famous lake. The course is 195 km with participants running around 48 km per day
• Spreelauf – The Spreelauf is an ultra-marathon in Germany. Participants must run 420 km (261 miles) in six days. The race starts in Spandau in Berlin, follows the river Spree upstream to one of its three sources in Eibau
• Trans-Gaule – A race across France. The race includes 18 stages in 18 consecutive days, totalling 1,150 km, from Roscoff in the English Channel to the Mediterranean. This is definitely one of the craziest endurance events.
Not Giving In Easily
The authorities had quite a wait before they were able to finally pluck their man from sea. On Saturday morning an exhausted Baluchi activated his personal locating beacon prompting the Coast Guard to launch their rescue mission.
A HC-130 airplane and MH-60 helicopter, along with the vessel Maersk Montana, were sent to rescue Baluchi. Once returned to dry land he was reported to be exhausted but had no other health issues after his remarkable journey.
Had he completed the marathon mission, Baluchi would have clocked up enough miles to travel just under half the width of Australia.
In explaining the difficulties he ran into, the authorities unsurprisingly hinted that manpower and sheer will alone were not going to get the job done for Baluchi.
“Part of his effort was to make world peace but he got caught up in the Gulf Stream,” said Coast Guard public affairs specialist Mark Barney. “The chances of muscling out of the Gulf Stream were pretty low.”
Baluchi was attempting the dangerous journey to raise money for children in need and also raise awareness for Plant Unity, his non-profit organisation.
