LJ GWS Thoughts
 

Is it just me, or does this GWS hype seam way over blown? I've been doing some combination of boating, surfing, yakking, swimming, free diving, and diving in our waters for 40 years. I lived and surfed for 4 years in Humboldt Co. I always just assumed that white sharks lived in our waters (or thier waters) and that it was always possible that I might cross paths with one. Does this come as a shock to any one? I never want to have any violent encounter but if there were no sharks in the ocean the ocean would loose about all of it's appeal for me. Any thoughts?
Mike

I agree with you. We are entering into their world by choice. You don't see the sharks and fish choosing to come on land and try to change how we do things.

Sharks and other creatures of the oceans don't have the free will ability like humans do. So why should we be freaked out if there's a GW swimming around. Heck there's probably a lot more than anyone even sees. Everything I paddle out I see something new and am amazed that I was that close to seeing that creature in the wild. Sure I see bat rays, and many other fish and creatures at Sea World but that's different than seeing them in their natural environment.

What makes me laugh is when someone gets attacked there's a full on mob mentality about hunting it down and killing it. I don't understand that either. It's not like killing that shark is going bring back the person you lost should the attack be that bad.

All I have to say is keep the feet up, and watch your meters, if you see something coming up at you fast hold on.

I agree, there are GWS around everywhere in the ocean... The media likes to hype everthing out of nothing. The last time I went out, a shark came up right underneath me... not sure what it was, but were in their territory so they have the ultimate free will...

Well if you remember back just before 9-11 happened we were hearing about shark attacks daily from all the people getting bit in Florida and on the East Coast. It was the only news worthy stuff going on at that time. Remember the story about the kid losing his arm and then someone caught the shark bare handed and killed it to recover the arm? That triggered all the shark attack stories. Then the planes crashed into the towers and we never heard any shark stories after that. Now we have a shark 50 feet from shore and the media goes nuts. The media is so eager to jump on a story.

Kayaker in DP dies in shark attack. . .
 

That's how I hope my obituary reads. (in about 40 years).

Better than "killed by some dude texting" :mad:

its alway going to be over hyped. but my question is to the guys who were out there on the yaks. did the CG or life guards kick you guys off the water? were they still allowing launching and landing? theres always GWS in the area and they can pop up any time, especially during the summer. i dont want to be denied a launch...

It's like going to a persons house that you know lives at that house. They might not be home when you knock on their door, but they will be home eventually too greet you at the door!!!!

There are always GWS in LJ and everywhere else on the cali coast. It's wether or not you see one the 1st time you knock or the 50th time you knock on the door...

So let's see...

number of days fished per year times the number of hours on the water divided by the number of great whites in the ocean off our coast?

I would think it is statistically certain you will see one at some point.

Add in the hunting strategy of the GWS and it is even more statistically certain that one has already seen you.

Sharks and other wild animals that attack people are(and should be) hunted down and killed. One attack on a human probably means it will attack the next . Why take a chance that it won't attack the next person it cross's paths with?. I never could understand why some think animal life is more precious than human.......

I know they do that with problem bears that have mauled.

They caught the Tiger that took Bethany Hamiltons arm.Very territorial creatures from what I hear,Righteous kill on that count.I suppose if a SPECIFIC GW was a problem that would be justified too.

Why not just bring an 80W and hang on? I have wondered why no one has tried with a smaller model,like the ones in front of the boobs(San O)? I have seen aerial shots with 3 small GWS in one frame.I am talking C&R of course I know their status.They could be bycatch while fishing for????

Totally overblown IMO. Here's a few fun facts I pulled off a shark website:

You are 1,000 times more likely to drown in the sea than you are to be bitten by a shark.

About 100 people in the world are bitten by sharks each year. Of these, five to ten die mainly from blood loss.

The chance of being killed by a shark is one in 300 million. The chance of being killed by airplane parts falling from the sky is one in 10 million.

More than 70 percent of victims of Great White Shark Attacks survive because the shark realizes it has made a mistake and doesn’t finish off the prey.

A shark attack on a human usually occurs in less than 6 feet 6 inches of calm water, and within a relatively short distance from shore.

:hahaha:Pigs kill more people every year than sharks do.

I see your point with that, once they get the taste maybe they will come back for more.

now that's just ridiculous. that's like saying a dog should be put down for attacking a person in its yard. Oh sure, every one will want it dead if its a kid that gets bit, but what if its an intruder and protects a family... dogs a hero right?

one track minds lead to destruction.

It becomes the Jaws thing. A person gets killed by a GWS and then all the boats go out to hunt for the shark that did it. Maybe they kill a GWS, do we know for sure if that is the one that killed the swimmer?

In the case of Bethany Hamilton, of which I am a huge fan of, Tiger Sharks don't usually leave the areas they hunt and live in.

I never said that an animal's life is more important than a human's. I just think it's kind of silly to kill a shark that we are not 100% sure was the shark that may have attacked someone.

That's kind of a dumb stat but your point is well taken that the chance is small. It says that about 20 people out of 7 billion will be killed by a shark, so it doesn't add up. They also say the odds of being attacked by a shark in the U.S. is 1 in 8 million. Another dumb stat. For most people on earth, the chance of being killed by a shark is zero because they don't swim in the ocean. If you live in Fairfield, Iowa, and only go to the lake to swim, your odds are zero. If you are a surfer in a black wetsuit in Queensland Australia, South Africa, or the murky waters of eastern Florida, your odds are astronomically higher. But still very small.

A better stat would be: what are your odds of being attacked by a shark if you are a regular ocean swimmer or diver? Or paddle a red kayak around the children's pool? :kayak-surfer:

True. Very subjective stats. But even still, the chances are small.