Ray “Reza” Baluchi, a 44-year-old ultra marathoner, planned to run from Pompano Beach, Fla., across the Atlantic to the Bahamas, Haiti, and Cuba, among other locales, and then back to Florida in a giant handcrafted bubble. But the trip that was supposed to take five months came to an end Sunday, just two days in, after the Coast Guard picked up Baluchi and his bubble and hauled them back to Florida. “Adventure runner’s voyage ends,” the Coast Guard tweets, “after he violated a USCG order not to embark.” It was Baluchi’s second try crossing the ocean in his “hydro pod.” And it was his second time being pulled out of the water by the Coast Guard: He was rescued 70 miles off the coast of St. Augustine, Fla., during an October 2014 attempt after his GPS fell into the water. That rescue cost $140,000 and placed personnel at risk. Baluchi faces up to seven years in prison, fines of up to $40,000, and the bill for his latest rescue.
Source: UPI
