After numerous sightings of one or more great white sharks in the past few weeks at San Onofre State Beach, a surfer was attacked on Sat., July 11. The following report was provided to SurfPulse by the Shark Research Committee:
San Onofre State Beach — On July 11, 2009 Brian Hovnanian and companion Lance E. were Stand Up Paddleboarding at the reef south of Dog Patch, San Onofre State Beach. It was 8:30 AM and they had been on the water 1.5 hours. It was sunny with little or no wind and an air temperature in the low 70s Fahrenheit. The ocean was calm and glassy with water visibility 4–5 feet and a temperature in the upper 60s Fahrenheit. They were about 50 yards from shore over water about 6 feet deep with a sandy, rocky bottom. No marine mammals were observed in the area. Hovnanian reported: “I was paddle surfing at the reef south of Dog Patch, with one other paddle surfer, Lance E. I have had many shark sightings of 5′ to 6′ sharks jumping all of the way out of the water at this same place for the last two months, as I paddle surf there a couple times a week. I had not seen any today and did not see this one coming. We both had just ridden waves in from a nice set. As I was paddling out, my friend was paddling about 30 feet behind me when all of a sudden it felt like something hit the back of my SUP, then slammed into the back of my left calf, forcing me to lose my balance and I fell backwards. The shark was now on top of my SUP and I was lying backwards on top of the shark, as it was on my board. The shark slithered off the board back into the water. This all happened so fast, and I believe when I fell on the shark, it scared it and it tried to get away from the board and me. I still had my paddle in my hand, jumped to my feet on my board and looked at my leg, to notice nothing had happened to my body or board. By now my friend had paddled quickly to me and could not believe what he had just seen right in front of him. He made sure I was OK; luckily I was, then we paddled back out to the line-up and caught a wave from the next set and paddled in thinking how lucky I was. I’m not sure what kind of shark it was, but it did have a gray back and white underside and was about 5 feet in length. It might have been a Mako or White Shark.”
By definition an unprovoked shark attack is “any physical contact between a shark and human, or piece of equipment being utilized by a human, without any known provocative action by the subject which might cause the shark to strike out.” This is the second authenticated unprovoked shark attack for 2009 from the Pacific Coast of North America. Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.
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shark wanted to join the sup craze. no biggie
it’s just the sharks way of saying, “what’s sup?”
used to surf there, old mans and lowers. I used to see lots of smallish (2-3 ft) leopard sharks there…also a ton of OC snakes
just wondering….is this the San Onofre down south, just between San Diego and camp Pendelton? and by the way….Stand up paddlers are lame : )
who are you “kimmy”
everyone has a right to surf what they want out there
you should not judge
you have no right
True that! You can’t have a website called “surf love” and then hate on a group of surfers, “kimmy”! Plus giving directions to a local surf spot on your website is not cool! Lets all appreciate surfing and all its different aspects, but not hate other groups nor give spots away on homemade websites.
jeez, I’m sorry if I offended anyone…I was just kidding around. The stand up paddlers just make me laugh a little…
Kimmy, how old are you, 16??
I’ll tell you what’s lame, is you, your website, and more so your art work.
Its people like you that give surfers a bad name.
I don’t stand up paddle, but i have respect for others who enjoy the ocean. No matter how they enjoy it.
So what makes it so lame, and why the hell do you think your so special Kimmy, way cool surfer girl chick.
Work on the art, its lame.
As long as sup’ers stay at SanO (giving directions to secret 60-yr old SanO? haha) and are circled by sharks. They don’t make me laugh, they are lame and dangerous in the lineup of any performance wave. Thank you Sharky-
SUP kooks deserve what they get! Sharks will always go for the slower, weaker prey. Whomever invented SUP’s should be banned from the oceans forever! And don’t tell me about all the hawaiian pros who do it because they can rip on a friggin kitchen table. Anything over 6’2″ isn’t surfing sorry.
whats a SUP??
any sharks in the SAN FRAN BAY AREA THAT YOU GUYS heard or seen? is a SUP a kite with a surfboard? help…i know wat surfing is but it seems like peeps are just inventing weaker versions of surfing becasue a) they suck at real surfing b) they hate to work for the waves they catch
SUP = Stand Up Paddleboard
Notice how the’re not called stand up “surfboards”.
It truly is the lowest form. Spongers can rejoice in the fact that they no longer hold bottom honors.
Maybe the next thing will be 20′foot motorized panga boats in order to make the sections at rincon. That would be great, wouldn’t have to be in the water at all!
That is one cool shark encounter.
Re: artwork. If you do not like someone’s art do not look! Who cares what you think about it? I sure don’t.
The guy’s shark encounter was interesting, and the fact that he SUP’s at San O means he knows which tool to pull out for which job. San O is the perfect spot to SUP. Bodyboarding is the perfect thing to do at a thumping shorebreak. Surfing is good for many other types of breaks. I do all three, plus bodysurf, and so do most real surfers. I’m a grandma too.
So there ya have it, kook whippersnappers. ;-D
Don’t take it to heart Kimmy, none of these people would say such mean things in person. Keyboard ninjas. I think your art is just fine and your cartoons are pretty clever. Keep it up. as far as secret spots go, there aren’t many in Cali. People just get weird about these things–some kind of pack mentality.
I mostly SUP these days. Makes me laugh too. My paddle blades have stickers on them that make them look like brooms. Most versatile water craft I’ve ever found. Surfing, racing in flatwater, downwinders, cruising, fishing, exploring, running whitewater.
Amazing fun. give it a try sometime. Modern SUP surfboards are no longer than your longboards, and many are shorter. I know 200 pound guys who rip on 7″ SUPs. They’re just wider and thicker.
obviously it wanted to be a sweeper as well…
Much of this discussion is why surfers have such a snotty reputation. Can’t we (you) just get along?
Aw, this was a really quality post. In theory I’d like to write like this too – taking time and real effort to make a good article… but what can I say… I procrastinate alot and never seem to get something done.
Don’t wish shark attacks on any one. Karma is a bitch, usually a big, heavy, bitch who knocks the breath out of you when she hits you! Kimmy, love your art, nix on the hate shown here, keep sharing the love found on your site. If a site can be seen from the road and is described in books about San Francisco history it isn’t a secret local spot. If you were telling people of spots five miles down a maze of dirt trails describing each turn that would be upsetting, especially to the three guys who surf there.
Kimmy rocks! I love her website – so cute! Surfing today requires a lot of things; mainly connections to trannies from Pennsylvania and New York; they have such vision! Easterners have “an eye” for whatʻs cool in the west. Remember Niceness, Mollusk?
Danny Hess?
Put a fork in Frisco – the old guard is gone, let the dogs have the rest.
Thanks.
SUP is lame. Get those big clunky things away from me. Wake up, the whole surf world is going smaller. Have you ever tried a boat? You might like it. Stroke me stroke me
A interesting post, provocative in its way, deep . More please.
Shark just clearing out another one of those wave stealing SUP ers
SUP has really arrived! The 150lb shrimps who like 6′ boards are welcome to them, but there are many of us out there that are bigger and would be on a longboard anyway. Ignore the paddle if it bothers you, but the fact that one can 1) be standing, waiting for the wave and in position and 2) be faster into the waves is an amazing innovation.
For those offering specious arguments that the next thing is a boat (the old reductio ad absurdum argument) clearly don’t know their surfing history. Boats were the first things to catch waves! Then, if you want to be really genuine, get yourself a 100lb, 11′ wooden log with no leash or wax. And no wetsuit. And don’t bring your little shortboard made of high tech material with quad fins, etc. Anyway, you probably sit around waiting a lot for waves in the cold water waiting for mr. Sharky to nibble. I don’t blame you for being envious of the obvious enjoyment SUPrs get. One day, when you get that assistant manager promotion at Mickey D’s, you too will be able to afford a used SUP and you will buy it.
I’m in Maui for a while and can’t tell you how many local kamaina Hawaiians are learning to SuP right now. They “get” it. You don’t. But in 5 years, 50% of surfers will have sups in their quiver and the longboard’s popularity will drop precipitously. You’ll see.
SUP is going through the same pattern as snowboarding did.
OOOHHH. Thanks, now I get it.
You offer no challenge in the waves as much as you think you do. Maybe youʻre on some kind of ego trip.
Surfing at The Point at San O until 3 elderly SUPers savagely beat me with their paddles when nobody was looking. The bald one with the big gut and shark tooth necklace plucked a tooth from the necklace and repeatedly plunged it into my calf in the pattern of a white’s jaw. Luckily, a pod of dolphins charged, driving the SUP gang out 500 yards past the lineup.
One of the dolphins told me all the shark sightings at San O are rumors SUP crews are spreading to clear the lineup of legit surfers. By the way, the 2012 SUP boards have deep hulls, 3 seats, and 1/2 hp outboards– they are now calling them SDP (sit down paddle) and they look a lot like canoes.
It’s not about acting cool, it is about being cool. Surfing, sponging, SUPing…it is all about having a good time. Now, do I like it when I see a guy on a SUP paddle out into a line-up with surfers, no. Ecpecially if he does not know what he is doing. It is simply dangerous. However, when I see longboardsrs riding without leashes, that pisses me off too. Again, it is about trying to “look cool” rather than being cool. It is not cool when you lose your board and somebody has to pay with injury because you are “too cool” to wear a leash. Shortboarder guy! There are rarely waves in Southern California that warrant a “short board”. Pull that out of the quiver when there is some juice and use it to get barreled instead of trying to do gymnastics on every two foot wave. It cracks me up when I paddle out and see all the atttitude on peoples faces. Relax! This aint Pipeline and other than some seaweed hanging you up, everything is gonna be ok. Stop pursing an image that does not exist and just enjoy yourself.
Most surfers are lame – Iʻd say 85%. The other 15 % surf for the soul of it; all the rest of you are posers. If you canʻt handle a SUP in the lineup then get out. And BTW, “Jack Masters” was a name I made up; canʻt you think of anything on your own- see how lame it is. Hi Kimmy! Love, BVB.