| Q |
Where was your attack? |
| A |
At Mavericks, a surf break in California. |
| Q |
What happened the day of your attack? |
| A: |
My partner and I were meeting with a contact about a story idea for a documentary about following a swell across the ocean. The guy suggested we surf first, so we got our boards and paddled out. The swell was double overhead and my board was about a foot smaller then everyone else. I didn't want to hold them up so I told them to paddle ahead. My partner and I took a break at Mushroom Rock (edge of the reef) before we continued to paddle. Just as I started paddling again, a 14 foot great white came up with its mouth open and chomped down on my board. |
| Q |
Did it bite down on you? |
| A: |
No, but the leg of my wetsuit has puncture holes in it where the sharks lower teeth raked my leg. Its bottom jaw hit the bottom of my board causing me to fly up in the air. Then its top jaw came down on the top of my board . The shark, me and the board were all in the air together. When we landed, I fell on top of the shark. Then for some unknown reason, it just swam away. |
| Q |
Did it break your surf board? |
| A: |
No, but its teeth left "rake marks." My friend said it sounded like a watermelon being dropped from a seven story building when it bit down on my board. |
| Q |
What were you wearing? |
| A: |
A full wet suit. |
| Q |
What were the water conditions? |
| A: |
The water temperature was about 60 degrees and the visibility was only 2 feet. The waves were double overhead on the inside. |
| Q |
Were you wearing any jewelry? |
| A: |
Just my wedding rings. |
| Q |
That was an incredibly big shark and you came out on the incident unjuried. How do you feel about that? |
| A: |
Very lucky! The paddle rotation of my arm entering the water and then coming out is about two seconds. If my arm was in the water at the same time the shark attacked, I probably wouldn't have it. I was also about 200 yards out with a 7-8 minute paddle back in. Any injuries could have been fatal. |
