"While I was passive in this action, I do know most of the local community was relived the shark that bit me was killed…"
It is difficult to believe that it’s been nearly a quarter century since Bethany Hamilton lost her left arm. The thirteen-year-old up-and-comer was out surfing Tunnels, off Kauai’s North Shore, when a massive tiger shark attacked, nipping the limb at the shoulder in the flash of an eye. Mercifully, the Blanchard family was in the water, at the time, and were able to get Hamilton to shore and stabilized enough to survive a trip to the hospital. Once there, doctors went to work, saving the young woman’s life.
When news of the attack broke, a group of fishermen took to the sea and caught a 14-foot beast less than a mile from the attack. Its jaws fit the bite mark on Hamilton’s board and police later confirmed it was, in fact, the responsible shark.
Hamilton’s journey back to surfing, and surfing at a ridiculously high level, has been well-documented and rightly praised as one of the most inspiring stories of the 21st century though that doesn’t stop some from grousing.
The now-35-year-old was forced to defend the slaying of the shark. Taking to Instagram, Hamilton said, “One person even asked, ‘Why did you kill the shark?’
“I had no clue, like I was not involved. It wasn’t my choice. I did nothing in this situation,” she continued, noting she was in the hospital fighting for her life when the fishermen fished. She also said if she did, in fact, kill the shark, that would be “super beast mode.”
View this post on Instagram
She, anyhow, goes on to explain, captioning thusly:
While I was passive in this action, I do know most of the local community was relived the shark that bit me was killed…
It was cruising surf line ups for weeks! And yes I know we are in their environment… On the mention of shark safety, I do think the Sharkbanz is a great support to oppose shark culling! People can choose to use it for added safety or not!
I think it’s a much better option than nets (that mess with other animals) and culling.
Thoughts?
In the years since the incident, Bethany Hamilton has emerged not just as a skilled surfer but also as a motivational speaker and author. Her story of survival has resonated with countless individuals facing their own challenges, be it physical limitations or emotional struggles. Hamilton’s resilience is a testament to the power of the human spirit, showing that adversity can lead to growth and inspiration.
Furthermore, Bethany Hamilton’s journey has been marked by her ongoing commitment to raising awareness about shark safety and ocean conservation. She actively participates in campaigns that promote sustainable interactions with marine life and the significance of preserving natural habitats. Her voice has become a powerful tool in advocating against the misconceptions surrounding sharks and their behavior.
She often shares her insights on social media, engaging with her followers to foster a greater understanding of the ocean ecosystem. Hamilton has collaborated with various organizations focused on marine conservation, emphasizing that educating the public is essential in changing perceptions about sharks. By sharing her own story, she highlights the need for balance between enjoying the ocean and respecting its inhabitants.
Moreover, Hamilton’s influence can be seen in her participation in numerous surf competitions and her contributions to the surfing community. She has won several awards and accolades that recognize her prowess in the sport, showcasing that limitations can be transformed into strengths. Her presence in competitions serves as an inspiration to many aspiring surfers, proving that passion and perseverance can lead to excellence.
In her inspirational talks, Hamilton often shares the emotional turmoil she faced after the attack. She recounts the moments of self-doubt and the determination it took to return to the waves. Her journey involves not only physical rehabilitation but also mental fortitude. She emphasizes the importance of surrounding oneself with supportive people and maintaining a positive mindset, which are crucial elements in overcoming any life challenges.
Hamilton has also become an advocate for shark conservation, realizing that her experience, while traumatic, should not justify the killing of sharks. This perspective has driven her to educate others about the importance of coexistence with marine life and the dangers of culling. She believes that solutions like technology-based safety devices can provide a more humane method of ensuring swimmer safety without harming marine populations.
The impact of Hamilton’s story extends beyond the surfing community. It has inspired films, books, and documentaries that highlight her tenacity and spirit. The film ‘Soul Surfer,’ based on her autobiography, has encouraged many young athletes to pursue their dreams despite obstacles. Through her various platforms, Hamilton continues to advocate for resilience, empowerment, and respect for nature, making her a role model for generations to come.
Bethany Hamilton: A Champion of Resilience
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the amount of pop up’s on this site is stunning. I seriously think this is the worst I’ve ever experienced. Get it together, smh. You suck.
Sharkbanz are to sharks what power balance wristbands are to performance
Kill the big, asshole fish. They aren’t necessary to the ecosystem, and they bite our limbs off. They are fish.
Saw an amazing doco a few years back with a South African guy who frequently went diving with GWs and learned to scare them off with body language. He figured out a particular deep spot where they cruised, waiting to launch themselves up at the seals, and hung out with them to watch.
Fuck That.
which one was it? thx
I’m vehemently opposed to any shark culling programs or so-called protective nets. If any of you cry babies can’t accept the fact that every time you enter the ocean anywhere, you are rightful prey and a legit food source for sharks. Grow the fuck up and pull your head out of your okole and clearly understand the risk. Or just stop going into the ocean if you’re such a pansy ass scaredy-cat twat. It’s their domain, not ours. Live, or die, with this eons-old reality and biological imperative.
In old Hawai’i, manō were beloved and revered and were often family or community ‘aumākua. But they also had no patience for manō that were known to frequent areas and attack humans. Those sharks were quickly dispatched. Same goes for the present day. If a tiger shark is known for attacking then the boys will rightfully go out and hunt it down. That same rationale applies to Bethany’s situation.
So the old Hawaiians were cry baby pansy ass scaredy-cat twats?
Nah, just you
Culling is the act or process of selecting and removing desirable or undesirable individuals from a group.
Thanks for the lesson junior. Here’s sump you might find interesting:
From 1959 to 1976, the state of Hawaii culled 4,668 sharks (at an average cost of $182 per shark), including 554 tiger sharks, in a series of shark control programs. In spite of such efforts no significant decrease in rate of shark attacks was ever detected.
The reason for culling was a widely-held belief that tiger sharks were site-attached to small home ranges, with individual sharks preferring to remain along the same small stretches of coastline.
However after Dr Holland and other researchers tagged Hawaii tiger sharks they found that active tracking of tiger sharks equipped with acoustic transmitters revealed direct movements of up to 35 km across a 500 m deep channel between oceanic islands, orientation to the bottom in depths < 300 m and to the mixed layer (0-80 m) in deeper waters with occasional brief dives as deep as 335 m.
The data clearly showed previous assumptions of tiger shark site attachment to restricted coastal areas were incorrect, and shark culling programs are unlikely to be effective in catching sharks responsible for attacks as these individuals may move beyond the fished area within hours of the incident.
Moku o Loe (Coconunt Island), approx ’68 I believe. https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
You know tiger attacks happen regularly here, most recently bruddah Tamayo RIP, but in the early 1990s they were happening so much that manō hunters went out and caught about 50 tigers. The notorious Perry Dane was always up for a good tiger hunt but now unrestricted and unsanctioned hunting is outlawed.
A bill passed by the 2021 Hawaii Legislature banning shark fishing will took effect January 1, 2022. Act 51 (House Bill 553) makes it illegal to knowingly capture, entangle, or kill a shark in state marine waters. The new law applies to all shark species found in Hawaiian waters.
According to Brian Neilson, Division of Aquatic Resources Administrator, “Our Department is well aware of how important sharks are to maintain healthy marine ecosystems. And we recognize their importance for native Hawaiian cultural practices and beliefs.”
The new law does not apply to:
*people with special activity permits issued by DLNR;
*shark fishing for public safety purposes as authorized or conducted by DLNR;
*sharks taken outside of state marine waters, with required documentation;
*sharks captured, entangled, or killed for self-defense or the defense of another;
*sharks captured or killed according to a permit issued by DLNR.
https://uploads.disquscdn.c… https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
“just stop going into the ocean if you’re such a pansy ass scaredy-cat twat. It’s their domain, not ours. Live, or die, with this eons-old reality and biological imperative”
That is both fatalistic and dumb – effective shark control methods do exist.
“Since shark nets were installed on Durban beaches, there have been no fatalities from shark attacks. Prior to the nets being installed in 1952, seven fatal attacks had occurred in Durban between 1943 and 1951, according to the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board Maritime Centre of Excellence”
I will tell you this Mr Cunty, If I’m ever attacked by a shark I just hope it swallows me whole.
Not just an arm here or a leg there. Finish me off. Eat me up completely. What a way to go! See ya in hell.
Punahou School 1841 Buff and Blu, brah – just like I said, https://uploads.disquscdn.c… you stalker weirdo
*Anonymous stalker weirdo.
Yes – too chickenshit to post under his own name, uses a pseudonym like a teenage girl
so using your own name on a forum is being a tuff guy?
“Et tu, Brute?” is a Latin phrase meaning “And you, Brutus?” or “You too, Brutus?”. It is famously attributed to Julius Caesar as his last words, expressing shock and betrayal upon seeing his friend Marcus Brutus among his assassins.
and yeah kept the same name since the beginning..as no-one was dumb enough to put up their own names as we are just people making comments about whatever has no real importance, or value other than being a community of commentators….as for me a brutus…ya do know his dad overthrew Tarquin the proud…and created the Roman republic….
so your opinion on shark whisperers??
I have not seen “Shark Whisperer” but I do place Ocean Ramsey firmly in the category of the self-deluded Instagram opportunist, much like the “Grizzly Man”, Tim Treadwell –
If Ocean had any sort of academic qualification, myself and others may be able to cut her some slack, but she has no qualifications whatsoever to be swimming with large Tiger and White sharks other than a powerful sense of self-delusion and a desire to be famous.
Spoiler alert: The Grizzly Bears didn’t get the memo that “we all supposed to be fwenz” and ripped Treadwell to shreds along with his girlfriend.
so you have a really clear opinion on Ramsay’s film…and it’s just not her…but have not seen her movie?
So your opinion is based on what?
It’s a bit like when I see critics of the Bible , but they have never read it??
actually I thought you would enjoy the film as it has amazing underwater footage……and her husband Juan Oliphant has quite an amazing relationship with a damaged tiger shark…quite enthralling
I am sure I would appreciate the production values even more if the presenters were actual academically-qualified marine scientists with decades of knowledge and fieldwork experience, rather than self-deluded Instagram opportunists.
What, the Producers could not find a single academically-qualified marine scientist for the Presenter role?
Or they could not be bothered to look?
judging something without knowing what you are judging…
just watch it….and yes all the critics are in the movie accusing her of IG opportunist, all there……but , here and her husband put their lives on the line to test their theories , and thy have gone where no scientist would go………so they put their lives on the line changed the legislation in Hawaii and showed that sharks are not as scary as everyone else thinks AKA Jaws!
All those points could be made on screen by actual academically-qualified marine scientists with far more credibility than self-deluded Instagram opportunists like Ocean Ramsey, getting paid to swim with sharks.
It is rather like when Dave Rastovich presented himself at a marine mammal symposium a while ago featuring actual scientists with PhD’s and decades of peer-reviewed fieldwork and expected to be taken seriously. The men laughed at him and the few women scientists wanted to fuck him.
Everyone knows Jaws was more about scary summer entertainment than science – Spielberg made no pretensions of scientific accuracy from the get-go.
they were made…so the scientific world was taken aback….not self deluded or opportunists…they put their lives on the line to disprove and break down the myths about sharks….dismissing them without watching well no cred!
most people wouldn’t be interested in it, theres probly plenty of good documentaries , but theyve got good looking woman the swimming with the sharks so they ran with it
Yes – the programme is entertainment, not science.
That’s why they use a fame-hungry uneducated Instagram opportunist as the host and not a qualified marine scientist.
I maintain the programme should be science first, then entertainment.
well theres more people that want entertainment than want science
Fuck off you ignorant goon. Nobody would post if it wasn’t anonymous identity handles. But get it all out Nega. You can vent about it but it ain’t gonna change. You and Cunty should get a room.
*Anonymous irrational stalker weirdo.
OK which one of us are not,LOL??
You’re Maurice Cole, I’m Matt McCrory both of us are accountable for our words/actions and would say what we say here in person?
Durban….yep there was an anomaly in Black december with 9 shark attacks 6 fatalities……cause …whaling ships dumped blood in the water/flooded rivers washed livestock into the ocean and a tourist boom with more people in the water….so man made conditions for attacks…..??
so you must have watched shark whisperers and the ending result of killing sharks being banned in Hawaii!
How do the bans work? How are they enforced? Do sharks respect the bans?
if anything bites my arm off they die, its just a rule I have.
Who in the history of surfing felt sympathy for the beast that bit their arm off. No one that’s who.
There is an old documentary called Grizzly Man about a fucking insane guy that goes into the wilds of Alaska to “live” with grizzly bears. We worth a watch, entertaining as hell to see how fucking nuts old Timmy Treadwell was. He was reckless, ignorant, and completely incapable of understanding what was happening around him. That doesn’t mean we should start culling all the grizzly bears because they killed a guy who caused the situation all on his own. Culling is just human ignorance backed by people like Jackoff Semen Cuntyhan.
Buy the book and explore my semen
Don’t get me started on the Grizzly Man/ Ocean Ramsey parallels. Except instead of being a cautionary tale on what happens when you anthropomorphise deadly animals, the Ocean one makes out like sharks are our best friends and really just need a good cuddle and boop on the snoot.
Old Timmy Treadwell liked the boop on the snoot too. Best part of the doco is when he slaps a bear in the face and says “bad bear” as if its a 900 lb dog.
I do this my my dog using a Timmy Treadwell voice. He is a big dog but he is not a bear. I would not do it to a bear.
Can’t wait for her to get eaten. Here’s a crib from a recent Hawaii news article comments
https://uploads.disquscdn.c…
How about that closing sequence in the OR film. Chills! Impressive couple.
only grizzly man i acknowledge is Troy Hurtubise.
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/14E9fdjMDDu/
Haha best moniker yet.
I am sure neveryone has watched shark whisperers on Netflix……and seen sharks are quite intelligent……and pretty harmless…..mostly…….
Harmless until you’re on the receiving end. Like saying…”sharks only kill 5 people a year” … but all that matters is 1 person – you.
I don’t like downplaying those 5 people as just … 5 people.. they all have lives, friends, family and life goals too.
Hope neither of us ever have to experience that!
So we should start just randomly eliminating any animals that have killed 5 people? In that case, we better start killing ourselves rapidly.
Braj, i have no idea how you came to this response (maybe pre-established looking to dump it somewhere).
Anywho, my comment was about how messed up it is to chalk up dead people as a simple statistic, when each person is so much more than that. And that sharks are not harmless and do in fact attack and on occasion eat people.
Carry on
But seriously, how did you end up on that conclusion after reading what I wrote lol
It came to my mind because the sharticle is about culling sharks. Seems pretty natural to assume you were backing the idea of culling with the comment but apparently I was incorrect. My apologies brah, bruh, braj.
Apology accepted! These are topsy-turvy times
You choose to enter their home to go play. If you don’t like the risk, stay on land.
What if i was forced to surf with a gun to my head?
That would kinda suck and hard to surf with the use of only 1 hand. Ask Bethany how its done.
How many cups of haterade did you have today
a9 6 or a 10 ‘?
Full on rhino slayer
stats tell me that dogs are way more dangerous sharks……..understanding sharks as per the film…….we take our chances but are not on the menu!
I don’t know. I personally like what she is doing but Ocean Ramsey is promoting shark conservation while also encouraging dangerous interactions with sharks that are likely to end with her (and others) demise. Faces of Death, Ocean Version coming soon?
Yea like lions n tigers just so cuddly until that one moment
yep , same thing …except about 600 people killed by tigers and 200 by lions…each year…I mean there’s way more deaths from dogs…..
She could have mentioned sharkbanz a few more times.
Immediately launches into a pitch for a bogus product that does nothing to deter shark encounters – but pays her to promote it
most things are an advertisement now
Bethany, I want to buy your strap!
She washed her hand of the whole thing.
Right-arm brother!
High Five……..