Kent Couch Uses 150 Helium Party Balloons, Cherry Kool-Aid and One Lawn Chair to Travel from Oregon to Idaho

Answers to the Top Questions You Might Have -- Besides "Why?"

Ever since I saw movies such as The Red Balloon and the classic Wizard of Oz, I've been fascinated by people - whether in "reel life" or real life - who take to the skies in balloons of various sorts. Some people use single, large hot air balloons but Kent Couch has a different method for traveling from one place to another. He takes a huge cluster of helium party balloons (officially known as a cluster balloon), a lawn chair and some other items and takes to the skies. You can follow his updates and future flight plans at his website here: www.couchballoons.com.

This time around, on July 7, won't be his first trip. He hopes to make it from Oregon to Idaho. If you're as intrigued by this as I am, here are some top questions and answers about a man who dares to go where many would fear to follow (at least, in a lawn chair, carried along by party balloons) :

Why and how did Kent Couch decide to travel using helium balloons and a lawn chair?

He had heard of another man, Larry Walters, who made a balloon ride in the 1980s. Kent Couch also watched a show on the Discovery Channel, Myth Busters, and decided he wanted to try a similar feat of daring. After preparing carefully, he did just that.

When did he make his first flight using helium or party balloons and how did it go?

He set off on September 18, 2006. Couch was in the air for about six hours before he had to come down by parachute( a reminder that a parachute may be a useful thing to have along on a cluster balloon trip). Otherwise, there might have been problems when he started using a BB gun to shoot down balloons to decrease his altitude. He could have come to earth way too quickly and the results might have been disastrous for Couch and anyone or anything he accidentally hit.

How can you follow Kent Couch and his balloon trips in real time - or as close as possible?

Right here: www.couchballoons.com/track-the-flight/

What did he learn from that initial trip and what adjustments did he make the next time around?