Those two last post where the most sensible interesting posts Ive read all year .
thanks guys .
Select to expand quoteYoungbreezy said..
I would imagine a small shark would be scared of a sup that was bigger than it but the large gw's don't seem to be afraid of many things. There's plenty of footage online of them munching on boat props, even one crazy one where the shark starts biting chunks out of the side of a rib. I also have a friend who had a close encounter with one whilst he was on a jet ski, he said the shark was not afraid of the ski in the slightest.
If one of these monsters really wanted to eat you there would be very little short of a medium sized boat that would stop it but I do definitely feel safer on a sup. The year that I bought my first sup was the same year as there was about 6 attacks in 5months in WA and it has been a big factor in me choosing to stay with sups.
I grew up surfing around the Margaret river area and we would often surf til after sunset. In those days ( late 90's) attacks were very rare and great white sightings were not at all common in the area. Now sightings are numerous and there is around 1 fatal attack per year statewide.
Today was a day where if I had only had a prone surfboard I definitely would not have gone in the water. It was overcast, murky choppy, the spot we were surfing has a memorial to a recent victim of shark attack. The surf was too crappy and the conditions too spooky for me to have been tempted to dangle my bits in the water there.
It seems like most of the attacks are inquisitive bites where the shark is not trying to eat the person it's just giving a test bite which unfortunately is often deadly.
I think with a sup you have a much better chance of surviving this kind of attack ( if you were standing up on the board of course) it would be likely that the shark would bite fiberglass first and may hopefully be put off by this. At least being up out of the water and having a big whacking stick gives you an advantage plus there is usually a few prone surfers in the water and let's face it if a shark feels like having a go it's gonna pick a prone surfer first
The shark that attacked Tadarshi (Shelly beach Ballina)wasn't inquisitive,it was there to attack.It swam under at least 20 plus surfers to hit him,reasons.They say he was laying across his board, not straddling,or laying prone,talking to his mates.he died,Matty Lee same,swam under other surfers to attack him,he was riding an esky lid.They are an ambush predator, that stalk their prey,and have a single thought,eat and live.Both theses guys,according to the "experts" looked like prey,lived in Ballina for 50 plus years ,never seen a seal up this way yet.
Reasons for GW's being in close and the amount of attacks and interaction with humans are varied,some say global warming,others say we are destroying the the lower food chain with over fishing,others increase in whale population,more people in the water,whales learning that they won't be hunted are now closer to shore and the predators follow,to swim with the prevailing current.Even a thought saying sharks are learning to associate boats and humans with food.Feed whites,so they can photograph them and be YouTube heroes.The tourist industry built around cage diving at Neptune reef.Interesting a pod of Orcas killed a White at Neptune,and the whites disappeared for months.
Up until 5yrs ago no one had seen a GW around the North Coast,but that's when the trawlers started to decline,commercial fishing was less viable.Yes, the trawlermen kept the sharks in tow by killing a few,sorry if I offended anyone but that's the hard facts.
We need to protect humans.
No, I don't believe sharks fear us.
But Laird has a theory, bound to upset some......
www.news.com.au/sport/sports-life/famous-surfer-laird-hamilton-says-women-responsible-for-shark-attacks/news-story/af1523765f5f74096bbf7b14617802ee
Last weekend I spent down south with a bunch of guys from the longboard forum surfing a sharkie looking place.
Over a few drinks on the Friday night one guy mentioned how sharkie the place felt.Another guy said you know something
all the attacks have been on shortboarders and boogieboard rides,then he asked do you think sharks look at us longboarders
and sup riders as being possibly threat with the size of our boards to putting up some form of challenge to the shark?
I was going to post this earlier but don't normally get involved in shark threads.
Mr Chompy like Mal riders too!!! :www.macleayargus.com.au/story/4689022/shark-swims-under-competitors-at-surf-contest-video/?cs=1526
I don't know about sharks being afraid of sups but the short board riders are vary scared of them 
LAird is so funny, I think he was being serious and it must be a hawaii thing with reef shark attacks.
If you just want to look at the loss of habitat for the sharks as a reason they are encroaching closer to shore. Check out the local library around your nearest coastal town. Look at what the fishermen were catching back 50-60 years ago. When I was a young tacker up on school holidays we befriended the son of the caravan park and he showed us the pictures of his grandad and dad fishing up at foster in the early 1900. It was ridiculous, boats full of fish, boats full of prawns where the fisherman couldnt fit any in, just scopping them out with buckets, the place has been over fished ridiculously, maybe to 95 percent of original stocks. Maybe more, instead of a marine park lets ban all fishing for like 7 years and then well see if the sharks are still hungry.
Hey that post by Mahaca has got me thinking, how about a post on the most sharky place with the most consistent waves you have seen. Shark/wave quality ratio I reckon north haven has always been firing off the beach when Ive checked it or done the drive up to port. Its fully pumping but jeez you feel like a shark entree out there.
www.9news.com.au/world/us-kayaker-attacked-by-great-white-shark/606f00d0-78c0-489b-b06f-1a6286de7ca4
14' kayak, no one is safe
