According to court documents and US media, a man attempting to cross the Atlantic aboard a strange craft described as a giant hamster wheel saw his dreams of a US Coast Guard odyssey shattered.
As they prepared for Hurricane Franklin in late August, the Coast Guard spotted the ship and its passenger off Tybee Island, Georgia, in the eastern United States.
Reza Baluchi, an Iranian activist who worked as a professional cyclist in Germany, told them he planned to travel more than 6,000 kilometers to London aboard his “homemade” boat with buoys and cables, according to the complaint filed by federal authorities in early September against the person affected.
Imaginary bomb
The Coast Guard concluded he had made an “obviously dangerous journey” and urged the Balochi to get off his floating wheel and into their own boat.
Unfortunately, Baluchi declined the invitation and threatened to commit suicide by brandishing a knife and then blowing himself up with explosives. It wasn’t until three days later that he agreed to leave what the local media described as a “giant hamster wheel.” He later admitted to authorities that his bomb did not exist.
Reza Baluchi is not his first attempt. According to the complaint, he actually attempted the same type of exploit in 2014, 2016, and 2021 to what he claims to promote world peace, each time being rescued by the Coast Guard. This time he faces criminal prosecution for non-compliance, among other things.