In Australia this week, Nathan Podmore and Dave Richards went on a spear fishing dive to find they were far from alone in the water. A 10-12ft Great white circled the duo for about ten minutes while Podmore and Richards attempt to fend it off with only spearguns and knives. The footage was caught by Podmore’s head mounted camera. Now I don’t know about the rest of you, but if I ever saw a Great White of any size in the ocean while I was recreationally diving…I would simply have to throw away my wetsuit after the interaction. A close friend of the CDS crew once said, “Sharks and I have an understanding, they stay out of my back yard and I will stay out of theirs.” Now as good as that sounds, I still jump on the Ocean a few times a year for surfing, swimming and a little snorkeling. However, if I ran into this big guy, I don’t know if I would have handled it as well or as calmly as they did. Well done Dudes.
Alright, I am seeing a lot of buzz on the internet about this with people calling these guys cowards, or wussy, etc. People are also commenting on the friends giving the shark a little poke with a speargun. I don’t care if it is a naturally curious animal or if it is just swimming by. Sharks have no hands, so if they are inquisitive about something (like me) they have to BITE IT to figure out what it is. A nibble from a Great White can do enough damage to kill you. So to all of you naysayers out there, SHUT UP! I’d like to see how you react to being circled by a 10-12ft Great White for ten minutes, 30 feet from your boat with no help for miles around.
