How many helium-filled balloons does it take to provide enough lift so that a fully-grown man can be towed in the air across the Dnipro River by a speedboat?
Don’t know? Neither does Oleh Stepenev from Kyiv, who attempted the stunt on July 1.
The plan was to tie helium balloons to himself, rise gracefully into the air, and be towed by the boat across the river, in the style of a paraglider. He would then land on the far bank, where he would propose to his girlfriend.
The stunt took five days to organize, but only about five seconds to go wrong.
In front of a crowd of curious onlookers, Stepenev, with numerous helium balloons tied to him, jumped from the river embankment. But instead of sailing into the air, he flopped down into the water, and was then dragged by the boat through the water across to the far bank.
To cheers of encouragement from the crowd, the soaking Stepenev finally managed to haul himself out of the water and approach his girlfriend. On one knee, he held out the ring.
His girlfriend, obviously impressed by the lengths to which Stepenev had gone to make the proposal memorable, immediately started crying and said “yes.” The crowd broke into applause.
This report by TSN news program of Ukraine’s 1+1 TV channel shows the proposal stunt by Oleh Stepenev.
But not everyone was entertained by the event.
Some internet users, commenting on a Facebook video of the stunt, felt Stepenev had made too much of an effort to propose. Others left offensive comments.
But Stepenev said he was happy and is preparing for a wedding with the girl he loves.
“Nothing can stop you if you really want something to be done,” he wrote on Facebook. “I have lots of friends and relatives, and no one queried my ability to do what I did. They were simply there for me.”
Stepenev said he hoped his actions would inspire other people not to be afraid to do something extraordinary, and gave his tips on how to become braver.
“Write down your dreams, and they will come a little bit closer. Say what hasn’t been said, do what hasn’t been done, and your life will improve a lot.”
And even though he has already achieved his main goal, Stepenev still wants to fly over the Dnipro River using helium balloons. He says he has analyzed all the failures of the first attempt, and now is looking for investors to fund another flight.
