Shark Takes Bite Out Of Paddler's Surfski

One lucky paddler. Bit just behind the bucket.

Seems Plett's sharks have an appetite for surfskis.

www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/shark-ta...rs-surf-ski-20161219

Glad they all made it out alright! Lucky he was with a group to get him back to shore and the shark only got a mouth full of fiberglass. Hopefully the bad taste and itchy mouth deter the shark form another attempt on a ski =)

hmm, shark edition = skis with (more) bulkheads in those regions

There are probably numerous lessons we should take from this incident. In theory, this should also be a learning experience for sharks too.

Sharks
Pretty simple: I hope they share the buzz, and let other sharks know that surfskis taste like crap, not worth the energy or the bad taste it leaves them with.

Humans
Paddling in a group can have another advantage, and staying grouped clearly has many advantages.

One scary fact is that in the (exactly 30 years now) that I have been paddling skis, I have only heard of half a dozen incidents where sharks have take a piece out of a ski or one-man outriggers - 1/2 a dozen in the last 3 years!!! That's a clear indication that something is changing, and while many have theories on those changes, I believe we need to pin-point WHAT IS CHANGING?!

At this rate, logic tells me that we are bound to see more bites on skis.

Migrate to Brittany (France) , where apparently, there are no sharks to fear - for the time being.

Hi Ludovic,

I live in Fairlight (Sydney harbour). Now, on summer weekends there are masses of people boat fishing with bait attracting also larger fish. Consequently, I have seen more dolphins and sharks in the past 3 years than in the previous 10 years. I am sure this is one cause of the increased number of incidents.
But saying that, I have also seen more big fish out in the ocean..(mmmhh??).

Ludovic, no need to get alarmed.

First of all, we have lots of paddlers going out on the ocean on a daily basis without any incidents.

Also, both Fishhoek and Plettenberg Bay have a very active Great White population, as do the area where I paddle, maybe not as active as Fishhoek, and I only had a meeting with a juvenile Bronze Whaler and a Mako breached about 200 meter in front of me. Yet to see a Great White.

Also, I need to mention that this attack was very close to the outflow of a lagoon, and we all know by now that sharks are active at the outflows of lagoons and rivers.

So, put your big boy pants on and go paddle

When big fish come to clean our shoreline, I worry about the overall aspect. It's not going to stop me from paddling 5 to 6 times a week, in any body of water. Otherwise, it would be like saying: "we shouldn't be on the street because cars and trucks are dangerous".

Big Boys' Pants?
I only have my pink striped shorts. Originally, it was a joke to let my brother know that I wanted a real pair of shorts from Hawaii. If anyone is listening, size 30"

Thankfully we have no sharks in the mountain lakes of South Carolina. Of course we have no waves to ride either but that's an entirely different problem.

I just interviewed the paddler involved in this one... Watch out for the story in the next few days!!!