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AP/Jeff Barnard
Kent Couch leaves Bend, Ore. for Idaho
via balloon-equipped lawnchair.
Kent Couch leaves Bend, Ore. for Idaho
via balloon-equipped lawnchair.
Oregon Lawn-Chair Balloonist Reaches Idaho in Wake of Brazilian Tragedy
July 06, 2008 02:26 PM
(Click for citation)
An Oregon lawn-chair balloonist set off for Idaho, just 24 hours after the body of helium balloonist Father Carli was discovered in Brazilian waters.
30-Second Summary
Using 150 party balloons attached to a 400-pound lawn chair, Kent Couch took off from Bend, Oregon, traveling 200 miles before finally landing in a small Idaho town.
This was Couch’s third attempt at flight since 1982, when a television program about the efforts of Larry Walters inspired the gas station owner to try it himself.
Dubbed “Lawn Chair Larry,” Walters had planned on traveling only 30 feet above the ground, before an unplanned ascent took him over 16,000 feet into sky.
More recently, Father Adelir Antonio de Carli of Brazil set off in April with the goal of breaking the 19-hour world record for the most hours flying with balloons.
His bundle was quickly blown off course and sadly, Father Carli was not seen alive again. His body was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean on July 4.
This was Couch’s third attempt at flight since 1982, when a television program about the efforts of Larry Walters inspired the gas station owner to try it himself.
Dubbed “Lawn Chair Larry,” Walters had planned on traveling only 30 feet above the ground, before an unplanned ascent took him over 16,000 feet into sky.
More recently, Father Adelir Antonio de Carli of Brazil set off in April with the goal of breaking the 19-hour world record for the most hours flying with balloons.
His bundle was quickly blown off course and sadly, Father Carli was not seen alive again. His body was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean on July 4.
Headline Links: One Search Ends, Another Adventure Begins
Making his third attempt at balloon-assisted flight since 1982, Couch launched from his Bend, Oregon, gas station early on July 5. Nine hours later, he landed successfully in a field in Cambridge, Idaho, 235 miles from his takeoff point.
Source: The Chicago Tribune [Associated Press]
Missing since first ascending into the sky on April 20, the body of Father Adelir Antonio de Carli was found by an oil-rig tugboat off the coast of Marcia, Brazil. Attached to 1,000 helium balloons, the priest was attempting to break a world record and raise funds to build a rest stop for truck drivers traveling through his native Paranagua.
Source: Bloomberg
Video: ‘Balloon Flight Takeoffs’
An Associated Press news report shows Father Carli before he took off on his flight.
Source: YouTube
Couch’s previous flight in July 2007 ended in failure. He appeared on Good Morning America earlier this year after his chair and gear from that 2007 flight were found by ranchers in Oregon.
Source: YouTube
Background Links: Father Carli Goes Missing, Couch’s 2007 Flight
Efforts to find Father Carli were scaled down on April 25, after the Brazilian navy found a bushel of balloons about 150 km away from where he last made contact.
Source: findingDulcinea
Couch tried to reach Idaho almost exactly a year ago, but fell short in his attempt with 105 balloons. He landed 193 miles away in Union, Oregon, after having traveled across much of the state at 11,000 feet or higher.
Source: KATU
Related Topic: Lawn Chair Larry
While Couch traces his efforts back to a childhood dream to ride atop a cloud, his inspiration came more directly from a television program he watched in 1982 about “Lawn Chair Larry” Walters, a Los Angeles native who set out to fly with the help of 45 weather balloons. Originally planning to float just 30 feet in the sky, Walters drifted 16,000 feet into the sky before working up the nerve to use his pellet gun. The Los Angeles Police Department awaited him upon his return.
Source: The Darwin Awards
Reference: Couch Balloons
Kent Couch’s balloon adventures are made possible by a team of volunteers and corporate sponsors, who help cover the more than $9,000 it costs to launch. Most of the cost comes from the purchase of helium. Read more at Kent Couch's official Web site.
Source: Couch Balloons
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