An Oregon man has successfully completed a 370-kilometre flight to Idaho in a lawn chair held aloft by helium-filled balloons.
Kent Couch touched down safely on Saturday in Cambridge after setting off from his home community of Bend, Ore.
His flight created a sensation in Cambridge, a community of about 300, where in the words of resident Sandi Barton, "not much happens."
Plumber Mark Hetz said he got a tip from his wife that Couch was approaching.
"She called and said, 'The balloon guy in the lawn chair just flew by the market, and if you look the door you can see him.
"We go outside to look, and lo and behold, there he is. He's flying by probably 30 to 60 metres off the ground.
"He takes his BB gun and shoots some balloons to lower himself to the ground. When he hit the ground he released all the little tiny balloons. People were racing down the road with cameras. They were all talking and laughing."
Barton said Couch came in over her pea field, and that he gave some of his balloons to local children after he landed.
Couch had tried this twice before, but this was the first time he completed the flight.
"If I had the time and money and people, I'd do this every weekend," Couch said before liftoff. "Things just look different from up there. You've moving so slowly. The best thing is the peace, the serenity.
"Originally, I wanted to do it because of boyhood dreams. I don't know about girls, but I think most guys look up in the sky and wish they could ride on a cloud."
With files from The Associated Press
