i hope you dont mind the unpleasent subject. very improbable,but not impossible.i thought it might be good to plan beforehand what one should do if you suddenly saw one coming close when 100m offshore. these are the choices
1 discard buoy & wieghts & swim like its the olympics
2 stand ground & wait to see what shark will do
3 poke shark with spear
4 shoot?
5 some bolder ppl might say just watch & enjoy the scene, but after watching these clips i think normal ppl heart would just stop beating
unloaded harpoon
loaded
that was scary and as you said my heart would stop beating.
always carry a small gun which you can easly turn it and shoot to your self before he attacks :) , I think sharks are very rear but not impossible to see one they are very good predetors ,and if your heart stops beating thats a good thing because shark is attrackted to heart pulses, It is impossible but one good think is to reamain calm beacuse if you panic it will stike because it will confuse you with some hurt fish and the tip of the spear is a good idea, if you shoot he will take your gun if your lucky ;) good luck and dive safe.
Mark
i would never shoot,
there is a very wrong misconception on sharks that they are agressive creatures...
Some types of sharks are truly agressive by nature but most of the close encounters occur because sharks get curious and get near.
Most of the sharks are scavengers meaning that they eat dead prey. That would be a perfect understanding why there could be a close encounter with a spearfisherman.
In Australia spearfisherman are common to encounter sharks during their dives. Remaining calm is the best thing to do unless you would like to be an edible prey.
In truth sharks are amazing creatures and we should respect their habitat, their home. We are just foreigners to their habitat and should accept that and the risks we are exposing ourselves to.
well said but,would'nt the saying "easier said than done"be in place here?
if you are not able to dive relaxed and calm, apnea is not suited for the person. Relaxation is essenstial in apnea.
You can think about it this way, if you lose the cool and get nervous, probably you are f***ed. :P
from this story, shooting is not mean it will stop, this guy had to fire 7 spears & it took 2 hours of pulling shark backward with the boat before it stopped moving
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/03/11/article-1161211-03D5BC17000005DC-731_634x600.jpg)
so shooting spear will either frighten the shark or make it angry
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1161211/Pictured-The-moment-diver-grappled-12ft-tiger-shark-save-friend.html (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1161211/Pictured-The-moment-diver-grappled-12ft-tiger-shark-save-friend.html)
check the story about this catch... they said that they killed the shark to save their asses.
a shark is long gone if it is shot in its nose. It loses all the sensory system and if if stops moving, sharks do not breathe and die.
I hope you notice that the shark was shot from the upper part. It was probably shot by caduta technique, the way aj and tuna is caught.
the shark wasn't shot to save a friend, it was shot by a reckless person.
The blue suit he is wearing testifies the fact that they were spearing caduta style. It is the type of suit used in open water caduta dives