I am fairly new to kiting and have the pleasure of living in the beautiful state of W.A. Over here we have lots of waves lots of wind and you guessed it lots of sharks!!! As I have only really started kiting consistently over this last winter I have had the joy of learning in uncrowded beaches and strong gusty winds. I have also however had the joy of falling of far from land on dark overcast days and having to bodydrag back to my board all the whilst feeling like I am trolling for great whites using myself as the lure
.
There hasn't been any kiters attacked yet in our state (and people get munched here on a fairly regular basis) and I am unsure about how many worldwide which makes me wonder if this is luck or statistical or if the nature of kiting is a deterrent to sharks. I could imagine that a small shark could be afraid of a big kite (12m kite vs 6 foot bronze whaler) but I doubt if it would be true for a big shark (6m kite vs 5 meter great white). You are fast and mobile on a kite but if you came off in the wrong spot at the wrong time? Does a shark look at a kite like a small fish looks at a sea bird ready to swoop (I know thats pushing it but wouldn't that be nice).
I have had my fair share of run ins with sharks whilst surfing over the years and would be interested to hear peoples kiting shark stories also any ideas/theories on how sharks relate to kites. I know any kiter in WA who has had to bodydrag out the back has thought about it and I know were definitely not the only place with sharks.
So what do you guys reckon, bloody sharks eh?
First up sharks don't see your kite they see your shadow and seem to think its a school of baitfish.
Other than that I have never seen a gw while kiting but most of the tigers seem to run when you get close while your up and riding. Body dragging is a bit different with most showing no interest but I have had one student get buzzed by a few smaller sharks so I pulled her into the dingy before the big tiger got too close. I have also heard of 2 kiters getting bumped by big tigers while body dragging up here.
So I guess your safe as houses
Ps I have only ever caught 1 shark on a lure
hey jacob, a couple of years back i spoke with a french shark researcher up north, shark bay area, he would tag big tigers in a pair of board shorts and a mask, when i asked him about which shark species was the worst he said the bull shark as they are like a neighbours dog ( unpredictable), i asked about the gw, he said if one wants you the is f**k all you can do about it
Hey guys thanks for the responses, i agree with all of you. Cauncy- I have a close family friend who is the curator at AQWA (perth aquarium) who has been diving for the best part of 30 years and I strongly trust his opinion on these matters. We were discussing the effectiveness of the shark shields and he said it might work for a small shark thats circling but if a great white wants you your F***ed and bull sharks are definitely really nasty, just look at what is happening on Reunion Island at the moment people literally cant go in the water and there have been a number of fatal attacks in waist deep water meters from shore(scary). There are bull sharks in the swan river but no one has been attacked and I have heard that they can be more or less aggressive in different geographical locations (I cant substantiate that claim though) Turtle Hunter- you must be kiting around the ningaloo is that correct? I am pretty keen to get up there to go kiting I have surfed alot of the big name breaks up there, getting bumped by big tigers sounds scary as **** and if i was a student with you I would say get me the hell out of there as soon as there was any sharks around!! That is very interesting what you say about the bait fish though. Glokite- Crocs are scary as F**K i would take a shark over a croc any day
There hasn't been any kiters attacked yet in our state (and people get munched here on a fairly regular basis)
Sorry to rain on your parade but one munchee was a kite surfer at Wedge Island a couple of years ago
Really i didn't know about that I will have to google that. I realise kiters don't have any sort of immunity from sharks but i was mostly just posting this topic so i could develop a bit of a false sense of security
Select to expand quote[b]JacobMatan getting bumped by big tigers sounds scary as **** and if i was a student with you I would say get me the hell out of there as soon as there was any sharks around!!
Haha I only ever told one student when I ran out of reasons for keeping him on the beach while the tiger hung around. I reckon the bull sharks are the biggest worry round here though
Select to expand quoteJacobMatan said...There are bull sharks in the swan river but no one has been attacked
Years ago (decades) there were a couple of fatal attacks on people (swimmer and a rower off the old boat shed) and there were also a few horses & dogs taken. Maybe the river was more popular with swimmers 50 years ago than the ocean i dont know?
Given how many people use the ocean every day, your chances are actually pretty slim really. Another idea could be too keep an eye on SLSWA's twitter pages and work out what directions the sharks might be swimming in that day and go opposite
Ie on the 21st august a tagged white was making his breakfast run from Cott to city beach and setting off the recievers and there's been a 3-4m tiger hanging around woodman point lately.
Interesting thing to note that a couple of commercial skippers i know in the NW now turn their echo sounders off once they find their fishing spot as they have started to experience far fewer fish losses from sharks when they are off.
Select to expand quoteJacobMatan said..
Really i didn't know about that I will have to google that. I realise kiters don't have any sort of immunity from sharks but i was mostly just posting this topic so i could develop a bit of a false sense of security
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Kitesurfing/General/wedge-shark-attack/
If you want to develop a false sense of security I prefer to think I'm on the water, not in it. 
Select to expand quotecauncy said..
hey jacob, a couple of years back i spoke with a french shark researcher up north, shark bay area, he would tag big tigers in a pair of board shorts and a mask, when i asked him about which shark species was the worst he said the bull shark as they are like a neighbours dog ( unpredictable), i asked about the gw, he said if one wants you the is f**k all you can do about it
Bull sharks came up as an issue when I asked on here about a particular flat water spot last week. A river mouth like that might well have a bull shark or three, and it being closed over from the ocean without river flow for significant lengths of time I guess the predators get desperate and will munch whatever they can. I don't know what it was but I saw something about 3 feet long actively feeding and chasing mullet in the middle of the day when I was up there.
Select to expand quoteMDSXR6T said..JacobMatan said...There are bull sharks in the swan river but no one has been attacked
Years ago (decades) there were a couple of fatal attacks on people (swimmer and a rower off the old boat shed) and there were also a few horses & dogs taken. Maybe the river was more popular with swimmers 50 years ago than the ocean i dont know?
Given how many people use the ocean every day, your chances are actually pretty slim really. Another idea could be too keep an eye on SLSWA's twitter pages and work out what directions the sharks might be swimming in that day and go opposite
Ie on the 21st august a tagged white was making his breakfast rI grewun from Cott to city beach and setting off the recievers and there's been a 3-4m tiger hanging around woodman point lately.
Interesting thing to note that a couple of commercial skippers i know in the NW now turn their echo sounders off once they find their fishing spot as they have started to experience far fewer fish losses from sharks when they are off.
I grew up along the Swan River in Maylands and we were told there had been two fatal attacks in that area. In fact the Garrat Road Bridge swimming area used to have a shark net around it until only a few years ago ( could be 15 plus by now)
Yep, give up now. The sharks are out to get you. Sell all your gear.
Empty beaches for me this summer :)
Sharks LOVE eating kiters, they use the kite to wipe their mouth after and the kite lines as dental floss.
... I recently watched a 6 foot tigershark chase bait fish on the surface of the water,,,, I didn't know they did that! 
Big bull sharks are up as far as Maylands. A friend caught one whilst trying for Mulloway on morning. Trying to track down the photo to prove it. Gave me shivers coz I used to go water skiing in that stretch of river..
I regularly kite in a North Queensland rivermouth and it's not uncommon to see sharks. Mostly it's not possible to see enough of the shark to identify it, as by default it is windy when I'm on the water and hence the water is turbid. Having said that, I'm more concerned about bull sharks than the others.
On one occasion I was happily mowing the lawn across the river and heard a load 'slap' behind me (it sounded like someone had whacked the flat face of a cricket bat on the water). I looked around in time to see the dorsal fin and thrashing tail of a shark. I'm guessing that I disturbed it as I kited over it and it tail slapped the water as it took off.
I've also had a shark surface in front of me, it was travelling across my line of travel and I just kept the same line and ended up kiting through the gap between the dorsal fin and tail.
We share the ocean we sharks (and crocs), that is how it is.
Most people like to think that they are at the top of the food chain and get a little unsettled when this idea is challenged. If you are going to kite (or do any other activity) in the ocean, accept that there is a risk, modify your behaviour if needed to lower the risk (you won't find me kiting in the Daintree) and enjoy your day on the water.
We are here for a short time and often worry about the wrong things.
For the record, I don't expect anyone else (council, government etc) to make the water safe for me. If I get munched by a shark or croc I'll accept that is just the nature of the beast. 
Select to expand quotesnalberski said..
There hasn't been any kiters attacked yet in our state (and people get munched here on a fairly regular basis)
Sorry to rain on your parade but one munchee was a kite surfer at Wedge Island a couple of years ago
May last year (2012)
Select to expand quoteADS said..snalberski said..
There hasn't been any kiters attacked yet in our state (and people get munched here on a fairly regular basis)
Sorry to rain on your parade but one munchee was a kite surfer at Wedge Island a couple of years ago
May last year (2012)
Last year was the fatal shark attack at Wedge but the guy was a regular surfer, 2010 was the young fella bit on the leg body dragging at Wedge (see the link to the thread on my post back up near the top).
I recall a US kitesurfer shark bite fatality last year.
Stay on the board. Or worse case: near it!
Select to expand quoteNO SHARKS IN THE OCEAN THEY ARE ALL BIRDS ..
I am fairly new to kiting and have the pleasure of living in the beautiful state of W.A. Over here we have lots of waves lots of wind and you guessed it lots of sharks!!! As I have only really started kiting consistently over this last winter I have had the joy of learning in uncrowded beaches and strong gusty winds. I have also however had the joy of falling of far from land on dark overcast days and having to bodydrag back to my board all the whilst feeling like I am trolling for great whites using myself as the lure.
There hasn't been any kiters attacked yet in our state (and people get munched here on a fairly regular basis) and I am unsure about how many worldwide which makes me wonder if this is luck or statistical or if the nature of kiting is a deterrent to sharks. I could imagine that a small shark could be afraid of a big kite (12m kite vs 6 foot bronze whaler) but I doubt if it would be true for a big shark (6m kite vs 5 meter great white). You are fast and mobile on a kite but if you came off in the wrong spot at the wrong time? Does a shark look at a kite like a small fish looks at a sea bird ready to swoop (I know thats pushing it but wouldn't that be nice).
I have had my fair share of run ins with sharks whilst surfing over the years and would be interested to hear peoples kiting shark stories also any ideas/theories on how sharks relate to kites. I know any kiter in WA who has had to bodydrag out the back has thought about it and I know were definitely not the only place with sharks.
So what do you guys reckon, bloody sharks eh?
Forget the sharks.
What about whales!!?
Imagine hitting a whale while out the back on a big tack! On impact they dive and if you're lucky enough not to be decapitated by the tail, you'll be pulled deep into the dark abyss, don't forget to take a big breath!
Select to expand quoteGarryA said..
NO SHARKS IN THE OCEAN THEY ARE ALL BIRDS ..
No bird in the sky, they are all sharks.
