Florida Man and His Giant Hamster Wheel Go For the Grand Slam
There’s nothing like having a hobby. In the case of Florida Man, it’s gone from a giant hamster wheel hobby to an obsession worthy of a grand slam.
FLORIDA MAN STRIKES AGAIN!
DATELINE – 70 miles off the coast of Tybee Island, Georgia, and the saga of Florida Man Reza Baluchi.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. The headline reads “Florida Man Arrested by Coast Guard for trying to cross Atlantic in human-sized hamster wheel.”
According to a criminal complaint, 44-year old Reza Baluchi is now facing federal charges after he was rescued off the coast of Georgia by Coast Guard officials. He was found a few days ago in his bizarre hamster wheel contraption.
Based on the condition of the vessel, which was afloat as a result of wiring and buoys, US Coast Guard officers determined Belucci was conducting what they called a “manifestly unsafe voyage,” according to the criminal complaint.
Well, the manifestly unsafe vessel is a giant metal drum with inflatable buoys on each side and paddles that are powered by the runner inside. The complaint says Baluchi was unable to provide officials with the required registration for his water vehicle. He told the Coast Guard he was running in his hamster wheel all the way to London.
When Coast Guard officers told Baluchi they were cutting his voyage short, well, he threatened to kill himself with a twelve-inch knife, and then he also claimed to have a bomb aboard.
Well, after days of trying to get Baluchi out of the hamster vessel and on board a Coast Guard vessel, he admitted, no, I really don’t have a knife or a bomb.
Officers were able to get him to disembark at the US Coast Guard Base in Miami Beach, Florida.
Now, if this story sounds familiar, well, it should because this is not the first time Baluchi has attempted this.
There were similar stunts in 2014, 2016, and in 2021 which we had told you about in a previous episode of Florida Man Strikes Again.
All of those episodes have ended with Coast Guard intervention.
What’s the point of all this? Well, Baluchi said he’s looking to raise money for various charitable causes, including homeless people, the US Coast Guard, (heaven knows he’s probably cost them a lot of money in all of this), plus police and fire departments.
Baluchi said, “My goal is to not only raise money for homeless people, raise money for the Coast Guard, raise money for police department, raise money for the fire department. They are in public service service. They do it for safety and they help other people.”
Baluchi also says, though, that he’s not giving up on his dream. “They stopped me four or five times. I never give up.”
So I think in other words, this Florida Man is going to strike again…and maybe again…and again….
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